How RPA Can Help Companies Overcome Legacy System Integration Challenges in 2024 and Beyond

Legacy systems are older software applications and platforms that remain in use despite being outdated and incompatible with modern IT infrastructure. By some estimates, legacy technology comprises anywhere from 50 to 70 percent of systems at many large companies. Yet ripping and replacing these critical legacy systems can be infeasible. So making them work with next-generation solutions is crucial.

This is easier said than done. Legacy platforms predate the APIs and microservices that enable seamless integration today. Getting these dated systems to talk to cutting-edge cloud applications requires overcoming complex technical hurdles.

Robotic process automation (RPA) has emerged as an appealing option for companies to integrate legacy systems in a quicker and more cost-effective way. Let‘s explore how RPA can help you conquer those legacy integration challenges holding back your digital transformation.

Legacy Systems Remain Prevalent But Problematic

Before digging into solutions, it‘s worth highlighting just how common and entrenched legacy systems still are across major industries. This persistence stems from the critical nature of processes these aging platforms handle.

• Manufacturing: Industrial equipment and assembly lines valued at billions rely on legacy systems for coordinating complex manufacturing workflows.
• Banking: Critical mainframe systems that manage core banking functions date back decades. Rewriting them from scratch poses huge risks.
• Healthcare: Patient records, billing systems, and mission-critical hospital equipment run on legacy platforms that are too sensitive to replace.
• Government: Important public services depend on archaic systems that would cost taxpayers billions to modernize.
• Energy: Power plants and utility grids utilize legacy industrial control systems that cannot be easily updated or changed.

For these industries and others, legacy simply works for vital purposes, which makes wholesale modernization dauntingly complex. But retaining legacy systems untouched causes major headaches:

• Vendor unsupported – Many legacy platforms are no longer maintained or updated by the original vendors.
• Integration obstacles – Connecting legacy systems to modern apps and data sources is difficult.
• Security risks – Older platforms become vulnerable without ongoing security patches.
• Compliance gaps – Outdated systems fail to meet legal and regulatory compliance standards.
• Lack of agility – Business needs can‘t be addressed quickly due to legacy system rigidity.

Rather than attempting risky rip-and-replace projects, integrating legacy systems with more modern platforms can provide digital transformation benefits without huge disruptions.

Pain Points of Traditional Integration Approaches

IT leaders have traditionally turned to coding-heavy custom integration or third-party integration platforms to bridge legacy and modern systems. But these options come with major drawbacks:

Custom coding

• Requires specialized legacy platform expertise
• Lengthy development efforts drive up costs
• Hard to maintain integrations over long term
• Not agile for changing business needs

Third-party integration platforms

• Prebuilt connectors may not exist for legacy systems
• Vendor lock-in limits future flexibility
• Still requires coding for custom connectors
• Can introduce security risks

According to McKinsey, such legacy integration efforts can take from 6 to 18 months on average. And costs usually run north of $200,000.

With legacy systems underpinning so many vital functions, companies need an integration solution that‘s faster, more flexible, and less expensive.

How RPA Mitigates Legacy Integration Challenges

Robotic process automation provides a lightweight and code-free approach to integrating legacy systems with modern technologies.

RPA tools can interact with legacy system user interfaces the same way humans do. Software robots can log into legacy platforms, execute updates and tasks, then extract data to share across applications new and old. This removes the complex coding and connectors needed to link APIs and services.

Leading enterprise RPA platforms from vendors like UiPath and Automation Anywhere also incorporate artificial intelligence capabilities. Bots can use computer vision and machine learning to read and understand information from legacy system screens and reports. Natural language processing enables them to handle unstructured data locked in legacy platforms.

Let‘s examine some of the biggest ways RPA mitigates common legacy system integration challenges:

Overcomes technical barriers

• Requires no APIs or custom coding
• Platform- and technology-agnostic
• Works with any legacy system UI

Enables faster integration

• Weeks vs months implementation
• Achieve integration goals in days/weeks rather than months/years
• Realize value from integration much sooner

Lowers costs

• Avoids expensive custom development
• Reusable bot components reduce maintenance costs over long term
• Capex to opex shift – pay based on usage rather than large upfront costs

Reduces business disruption

• Non-invasive to legacy systems
• Low risk of destabilizing critical legacy functions
• Seamless integration minimizes process changes

Adapts to changing needs

• Easy to modify bots without affecting underlying systems
• Flexibility to quickly integrate new systems and data sources

These advantages have made RPA a go-to choice for enterprise IT leaders tackling legacy modernization initiatives today.

Real-World Examples of RPA Legacy System Integration

RPA isn‘t just theoretical – it‘s already helping many companies unlock their legacy systems today. For example:

• Global bank: Automated reconciliation and reporting processes between legacy mainframes and cloud apps using RPA. This eliminated 40,000 manual work hours per year.
• Hospital system: Created bots to transfer patient data between older EMR system and new cloud platform. Accelerated centralization by 70%.
• Energy company: Using RPA to integrate field data from legacy sensors and PLCs with cloud analytics and AI to optimize oil rig performance.
• Insurer: Bots extract policy documents from legacy content systems and move to modern cloud DMS. Improved underwriter productivity by 60%.
• Retailer: Intelligent character recognition bots read legacy mainframe green screens and share data with e-commerce and analytics systems.

These examples showcase the power of RPA to drive value from legacy systems rather than rip them out.

Combining RPA With Other Integration Technologies

While RPA delivers legacy integration capabilities beyond traditional coding and iPaaS, it is most effective when combined with complementary technologies:

• APIs – For high throughput batch data transfers, APIs provide better performance. RPA handles lower volume UI interactions.
• ETL – Legacy data warehousing can feed data lakes and cloud data hubs via RPA, then ETL manages data modeling and loading.
• iPaaS – Where connectors exist, iPaaS can move bulk data augmented by RPA for UI interactions.
• Cloud storage – Bots transfer legacy data securely into cloud storage for backup/archival.
• Analytics – RPA extracts legacy data for cloud BI and analytics tools to generate insights.

RPA shines for automating legacy UI interactions. When combined with APIs, ETL, and cloud platforms, it provides an end-to-end legacy modernization toolkit.

Expert Guidance on RPA Legacy Integration

Industry analysts recommend RPA as a best practice for breathing new life into aging legacy systems:

• "RPA offers a pragmatic path to integrate legacy systems with modern cloud platforms and unlock trapped data." – Ron Tolido, EVP Capgemini
• "Using RPA bots to connect legacy and next-gen systems accelerates digital transformation initiatives." – Maureen Fleming, VP IDC
• "Software bots can emulate any legacy UI to enable smoother integration at lower costs." – Kathy O‘Connell, Sr. Analyst Gartner
• "Legacy system UI automation is a killer use case for RPA with quick ROI potential." – Jason Bloomberg, Intellyx Analyst

These experts affirm RPA as a top option for organizations seeking to maximize returns on legacy system investments.

Best Practices for an Effective RPA Integration Strategy

Based on the experience of leading enterprises, here are some recommendations for ensuring RPA success with legacy integration:

Get leadership support – Educate executives on RPA benefits early to secure buy-in and funding for automation.

Pick the right software – Evaluate RPA tools like UiPath, AA, and PowerAutomate based on needs, not just hype.

Start small – Prove value with targeted high-impact automations before broader integration.

Choose the right processes – Good RPA opportunities have high manual effort, repetitive steps, and data transfer needs.

Monitor bots closely – Check bots are delivering ROI and tweak as processes evolve.

Combine RPA with APIs – Determine where RPA vs APIs vs both together makes most sense.

Expand skills – Train staff in RPA principles, bot building, and integration governance.

RPA can deliver quick wins when applied strategically to high-value legacy integration use cases.

The Future Looks Bright for RPA and Legacy Modernization

Legacy systems aren‘t going away anytime soon for companies in industries like banking, government, manufacturing, and healthcare where they underpin mission-critical functions. But being shackled to aging technology also limits competitiveness and innovation.

RPA empowers these organizations to enjoy the best of both worlds. Critical legacy systems remain untouched while their capabilities are extended through seamless integration with cloud platforms, analytics, and other emerging technologies.

This lightweight integration approach unlocks legacy data and functions without risky modernization projects. It delivers value in weeks at a fraction of the cost of alternatives. RPA integration helps bridge the gap between vintage platforms and digital transformation.

In 2023 and beyond, intelligent automation will only grow more crucial as a pragmatic path to optimizing legacy investments rather than abandoning them. With RPA, you can overcome integration roadblocks to confidently shape your digital future.