What does the term "exception handling" refer to in RPA?

The term "exception handling" in RPA specifically refers to the procedures for managing errors or deviations that occur during automation execution. In the context of robotic process automation, exception handling is critical as it ensures that automated processes can respond to unexpected issues—such as data mismatches, system outages, or unanticipated user inputs—effectively without causing major disruptions.

By implementing robust exception handling practices, RPA solutions can maintain their reliability and stability. This might involve defining specific workflows to troubleshoot errors, logging incidents for future analysis, or triggering alerts for human intervention when an automation cannot proceed due to an error. Such measures are essential to safeguard the processes against failures and to enable smooth operations, minimizing the impact of any issues that arise.

This understanding highlights the importance of having well-defined exception handling strategies in any RPA initiative, as it directly influences the automation's performance and efficiency, distinguishing it from basic monitoring, efficiency analysis, or documentation tasks which do not directly address error management.