RPA Blue Prism Basics

Blue Prism is an enterprise-grade RPA platform founded in the UK in 2001 — one of the earliest RPA vendors. It targets large organisations in regulated industries like banking, insurance, government, and healthcare. Blue Prism is known for its strong security controls, governance framework, and auditability.

Unlike UiPath and Automation Anywhere, Blue Prism has traditionally been built for IT professionals and is less beginner-friendly. However, its newer versions have improved the developer experience significantly.

Blue Prism Architecture

Diagram: Blue Prism Core Structure

 ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
 │                  BLUE PRISM PLATFORM                   │
 │                                                        │
 │  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────┐    │
 │  │             CONTROL ROOM (Hub)                 │    │
 │  │  Schedule | Monitor | Audit | Users | Alerts   │    │
 │  └────────────────────┬───────────────────────────┘    │
 │                       │                                │
 │          ┌────────────┴────────────┐                   │
 │          ▼                         ▼                   │
 │  ┌──────────────┐         ┌─────────────────┐          │
 │  │  Blue Prism  │         │  Runtime        │          │
 │  │  Studio      │         │  Resources      │          │
 │  │  (Build)     │         │  (Bots on VMs)  │          │
 │  └──────────────┘         └─────────────────┘          │
 │                                                        │
 │  ┌──────────────┐         ┌─────────────────┐          │
 │  │  Application │         │  Work Queues    │          │
 │  │  Manager     │         │  (Task lists)   │          │
 │  │ (Spying tool)│         │                 │          │
 │  └──────────────┘         └─────────────────┘          │
 └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Key Blue Prism Concepts

Process Studio

Process Studio is where you build the high-level logic of your automation — the overall flow of what the bot will do. It uses a flowchart-style diagram with stages connected by arrows. The process defines the sequence of steps, the decisions, and the loops.

Object Studio

Object Studio is where you build the connections to the applications the bot interacts with. Each application (SAP, a web browser, an Excel file) gets its own "Business Object" — a reusable module that contains all the actions for that application, such as clicking a button or reading a field.

Process vs Object — The Key Distinction

 PROCESS STUDIO                       OBJECT STUDIO
 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 Defines WHAT the bot does            Defines HOW the bot
 at a high level                      interacts with each app

 Example:                             Example:
 1. Get invoice from queue            SAP_Business_Object
 2. Open SAP                           └── Login to SAP
 3. Enter invoice data                 └── Open Invoice Screen
 4. Post invoice                       └── Enter Invoice Number
 5. Log result                         └── Click Post Button
 6. Get next invoice                   └── Logout from SAP

This separation is Blue Prism's core design philosophy: keep the business logic separate from the application interaction. When an application's interface changes, you update only the Object, not the entire Process.

Application Modeller (Spy Tool)

The Application Modeller is Blue Prism's tool for identifying UI elements on the screen. It works similarly to UiPath's selector — it captures the properties of a screen element (like a button or text field) so the bot knows exactly what to click or read.

Work Queues

Work Queues hold lists of items that bots need to process, similar to UiPath's Queue system. Each item has a status (Pending, Completed, Failed, Locked). Multiple bots can pull items from the same queue simultaneously, enabling parallel processing.

Building a Simple Blue Prism Process

Step 1: Create a New Process

Open Blue Prism Studio → Right-click "Processes" in the navigation tree → Select "Create Process" → Name it and click OK.

Step 2: Build the Flow in Process Studio

The Process Studio canvas opens with a Start stage and an End stage connected. You add stages between them:

• Action Stage: Calls an action from a Business Object (e.g., "SAP Object → Login")
• Decision Stage: A diamond shape with Yes/No branches (like an IF condition)
• Loop Stage: Marks the start and end of a loop
• Data Item: A variable that stores a value during execution

Diagram: Simple Blue Prism Process Flow

 [START]
    │
    ▼
 [Get Next Item from Work Queue]
    │
    ▼
 [Item found?] ──NO──▶ [END]
    │
   YES
    │
    ▼
 [Open SAP Application]   ◀── Calls SAP Business Object
    │
    ▼
 [Navigate to Invoice Screen]
    │
    ▼
 [Enter Invoice Data]
    │
    ▼
 [Click Post]
    │
    ▼
 [Mark Queue Item as Completed]
    │
    ▼
 [Log Success]
    │
    └──────────▶ Loop back to [Get Next Item]

Blue Prism Security Features

Blue Prism is preferred in regulated industries precisely because of its security architecture:

• Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): Every user in Blue Prism has defined permissions. Not everyone can run, edit, or deploy bots.
• Complete Audit Trail: Every action taken by a bot, and every action taken by a user in the platform, is logged with a timestamp.
• No Passwords in Code: Blue Prism stores credentials in an encrypted credential manager — bots never have passwords written directly in their code.
• Process Versioning: All changes to a process are tracked with version numbers, so you can roll back to any previous version.

Blue Prism vs UiPath vs Automation Anywhere

Blue Prism Learning Resources

• Blue Prism Digital Exchange: Marketplace for pre-built components and connectors
• Blue Prism University: Training courses and certifications (paid)
• ROM (Robotic Operating Model): Blue Prism's framework for implementing RPA at scale — a key differentiator for governance-focused projects

Summary

Blue Prism separates automation logic (Process Studio) from application interaction (Object Studio), making it maintainable and scalable. Its strong security controls, audit trails, and governance model make it the tool of choice in regulated industries. While its learning curve is steeper than UiPath, Blue Prism's architecture rewards that investment with robust, enterprise-grade automation deployments.