Blue Prism Attended Automation – BPM / Workflow Integration

In previous posts, I covered how to setup desktop-based automation triggers, high-level attended architecture, simple desktop automation pop-up forms, polling, and Blue Prism’s own workflow mechanism known as a Work Queue. I will cover how to embed web-service triggers into existing enterprise applications, Blue Prism Cloud Interact, and other end-user experiences across several future posts.

Switching gears to the other end of the user experience spectrum, Blue Prism’s connected-RPA platform is designed to be extended through best-of-breed technologies. Blue Prism currently provides drag-and-drop integration with Business Process Management (BPM) providers including Appian, AuraPortal, Bizagi, ClearWork, Xeelo, Signavio, Enate, IBM DBA, and K2 through the Digital Exchange. Blue Prism is working with Hyland OnBase to provide similar integrations and pairing with other BPM's such as Nintex and Pega are fairly common.

With these integrations, the BPM / Workflow engine manages end-to-end processes by aggregating content into a central user experience, routing complex workflows and approvals, surfacing data for superior customer engagement, and creating a collaborative enterprise. Blue Prism then collects data for presentation through the BPM or completes otherwise manual processing steps through the same interfaces as human employees.

IBM’s Digital Business Automation (DBA) team compiled this easy-to-follow example for imminent announcements with Blue Prism. This is just one snippet of an exciting new intelligent automation platform.

IBM - Combining Workflow with RPA

A combined BPM + RPA solution can be leveraged to:

• Create and deploy modern UIs for any device, ranging from simple forms to complex applications, as standalone applications or embedded user interfaces.
• Automate human-in-the-loop tasks like add-hoc triggering off-desktop digital workers, exception management, reconciliations, or approvals that people perform and stay on top of SLAs.
• Aggregate BPM + RPA record management and reporting capabilities through web/mobile for end-to-end process visibility to both the human and robotic workforce.

Appian's Blue Prism Robotic Workforce Manager Interfaces

I personally have much more experience in Appian when compared to all of Blue Prism’s BPM partners. This makes sense given Appian was Blue Prism’s First Technology Alliance Partner in 2017 and won Blue Prism’s award for technology partner of the year in 2018 and 2019. Consequently, I am focusing on “Appian RPA” within this post, but the information can be roughly translated to several BPM partners.

A pre-built integration with Blue Prism is available in Appian as a “Connected System”. A pre-built integration with Appian is also available on the Digital Exchange for use within Blue Prism as a “Skill”. Both platforms rely on a visual drag-and-drop no-code/low-code design experience, a process modelling skillset apply similarly to both platforms.

All publicly available Blue Prism Skills for BPM / Workflow integration can be found at https://digitalexchange.blueprism.com/dx/. Blue Prism customers & partners can also setup a private "Enterprise Digital Exchange" to host additional pre-built assets.

In the remainder of this post I show how to first setup the connection to Blue Prism within Appian, followed by the connection to Appian within Blue Prism. Setup steps within Blue Prism to connect to any BPM related “Skill” found on the Digital Exchange are very similar to setup of the Appian Skill. These configuration steps can be found by aggregating a few existing technical documents.

Setup Blue Prism in Appian as a Connected System

Appian’s “Blue Prism Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Connected System” provides an easy way to integrate software digital workers into your end-to-end business process and eliminate repetitive and error-prone tasks that people perform. Automatic discovery of the available Blue Prism processes and their data inputs makes it quick and easy to set up.

IMPORTANT – Blue Prism Objects and Processes used with BPM integrations must be exposed through Web Services. This will be covered in a separate post and a significant amount of detail can be found in Blue Prism “User Guide – Web Services.pdf”.

Configure Blue Prism as a Connected System in the Appian Designer

• Open the destination application for the new Connected System.
• Click New, then choose Connected System from the dropdown menu

• Select the Blue Prism connected system template.

• Enter configuration details for your Blue Prism environment.

• Once you configure & test your Blue Prism environment as a connected system in Appian, you can click “Use in New Integration” to save the object and start creating an integration immediately, or you can click Create to just create the object.

Execute Blue Prism Process

Once the overall system connection is setup, you then need to define how values flow between the platforms. The “Execute Blue Prism Process” operation calls a Blue Prism Process that was exposed as a web service.

NOTE - "Execute Blue Prism Process" is a WRITE type Integration. To prevent the integration from making the same update twice, it can only be used in the saveInto parameter of an interface component or in a Web API.

Configure Blue Prism Process Execution in Appian

Execute Blue Prism Business Object

The “Execute Blue Prism Object” operation calls a Blue Prism Object that was exposed as a web service.

Once the Blue Prism Connected System is configured, and specific Process / Object Operations are defined, these components can be used through Appian’s Drag-and-Drop Designer. 

Example Appian Process Using Blue Prism

Setup the Appian Skill in Blue Prism

The Appian Skill for Blue Prism allows you to connect to Appian from Blue Prism. Once imported into Blue Prism 6.4 or later, the Appian Skill it will be accessible from the skills panel under the Collaboration tab.

Once you have imported and configured the Appian Skill there are four pre-built actions.

• Assign Task to Appian User: Pass relevant information to Appian to automate human-in-the-loop tasks. Exception management, reconciliations, or approvals that people perform as part of the robotic process can be fully automated using Appian's task management capabilities.
• Send Data to Appian: Send information to create or update an Appian Record or Start an Appian process. This example shows how to create a case as part of a case management application by sending data to Appian and persisting that data in Appian’s database.
• Get Data from Appian: This example shows how to retrieve Appian data necessary to complete a process in a case management use case
• Use Appian Rule: Makes a decision using Appian’s rules to automate complex decisions. Once defined, a rule can be easily used within single or multiple RPA processes to automate complex decision management. The business owner of the rule can change it at any time without requiring any changes to the related robotic processes.

Appian Skills Actions

To use this Skill, you will need:

• Blue Prism environment version 6.4+
• The Appian Skill from the Blue Prism DX marketplace
• An Appian environment version 18.1+
• Designer permissions for the Appian environment

Appian Skill on the Blue Prism Digital Exchange - https://digitalexchange.blueprism.com/dx/entry/3347/solution/appian-skill

In addition to the standard Appian Skill, the Blue Prism Digital Exchange includes Appian’s Robotic Workforce Manager as well as pre-built Appian + Blue Prism solutions from our Implementation Partners.

Configure your credentials and set your Web API base URL in the Appian Skill in order to call Appian Web APIs from Blue Prism.

Configure your credentials and set your Web API base URL in the Appian Skill in order to call Appian Web APIs from Blue Prism.

• Configure Credential Encryption Scheme for this environment.

- In the System tab in the left panel under Security, select Encryption Schemes

- Double click the Default Encryption Scheme

  - Set Location of the Default Encryption Scheme to be database.

        - Click Generate Key

              - Click OK

• Import the AppianSkill.bpskill file through File > Import
• When prompted, enter the Username and Password for your Appian Credentials

• In the System tab in the left panel under Security, select Credentials

- Double click the Appian Credentials credential

- Give appropriate Access Rights

   - Set roles for the following tabs: Security Roles, Processes, and Resources

• In the System tab, in the left panel under Objects, select Web API Services
• Double click the Appian Skill

- Modify the Base URL to match the desired Appian site.

- Default form is https://yourenvironment.appiancloud.com/suite/webapi/ 

Additional detail on environment setup, step-by-step use case setup, Appian Skill on the Blue Prism Digital Exchange - https://digitalexchange.blueprism.com/dx/entry/3347/solution/appian-skill

PRO TIP – Blue Prism automatically produces API Documentation. Note the ? icon which can always be found at the top right in the Blue Prism Interactive Client.

The Web API Service Definition describes the actions available within a single Web API, their parameters and their behaviours. The Web API Service Definition is a dual-purpose document designed to serve the needs of both business users and technical system support staff who require information relating to the business functions available and their details.

Appian Skill Web API Definitions in Blue Prism