All about Workato: answering your frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Workato is an Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS) that’s mainly used to automate certain time-consuming tasks that would otherwise create unnecessary overhead for the organisation. In this article, we will clarify some of the common doubts and questions about the platform (Workato FAQs). Understanding some of Workato’s features and subtleties is a great starting point for people and companies who are interested in securing the technology. 

Answering common questions about Workato: Workato FAQs

We have attempted to explore ten oft-repeated questions in order to tackle common user knowledge gaps in this Workato FAQs article.   

1. What is the use of Workato?

Primarily, Workato is an automation platform that allows companies to reduce the manual workload needed to coordinate data and tasks between multiple IT systems. The goal of Workato is to increase organisational efficiency in handling all kinds of business operations. 

If you want to know more about the benefits of using Workato, this article may interest you: 7 reasons why you should Integrate, Automate & Orchestrate with Workato

2. What type of software is Workato?

Workato falls under the category of an Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS) technology. It provides a variety of cloud services that enables seamless communication between disparate applications, systems, and data sources, whether they reside on-premises or in the cloud. Workato’s automation capabilities support the execution and management of simple, complex, pre-built, and custom-built integration flows alike. 

3. Is Workato easy to use?

Workato is designed to be easy for a large user base to wield. Through its low-code interface, both technical and non-technical users can benefit from its strengths. To add to this, having a basic level of automation experience can go a long way with Workato. 

4. What is a Workato recipe?

A Workato recipe defines a single automation workflow in Workato. It describes the steps that the platform takes to transmit data between different applications and systems to perform some task. Recipes do not need coding knowledge to build as they can be designed and personalised using Workato’s drag-and-drop interface. 

5. Who are Workato’s competitors?

Some noteworthy competitors of Workato in the iPaaS and automation realm are Zapier, Mulesoft, Boomi, SnapLogic, Jitterbit, Tray.io, Talend, and so on. While all these iPaaS offerings have their own pros and cons, Workato distinguishes itself from the rest due to the following benefits and more:

• Complexities simplified for citizen integrators: while Workato is well-suited for intricate workflow automation and the integration of complex business processes, it makes it effortless to achieve through its unified, visual platform offering both capabilities. 
• Real-time synchronisation of data: to ensure that data always stays updated, Workato offers live data synchronisation features.  
• AI-powered automation insights: using concepts such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, Workato can predictively analyse how processes can be improved through automation and integration, minimising room for errors overall.    

You might find this article interesting: “Top 10 iPaaS solutions: the best ones to cover your integration needs”

6. Can Workato integrate with NetSuite? What other applications can it integrate with?

Yes, Workato can connect with NetSuite and other similar ERP systems. In fact, Workato comes with a set of pre-built connectors that merge popular applications with your existing systems. Some of these applications include:

• CRMs (Salesforce, Hubspot).
• Marketing automation tools (Marketo).
• HR systems (Workday). 
• Communication and collaboration technologies (Slack, Jira). 
• E-commerce (Shopify). 
• Business and office suites (Zoho, Google Workspace).  

7. Is Workato an RPA?

Workato is not considered a traditional Robotic Process Automation (RPA) tool. An RPA automates simple, rule-based tasks. It operates at the user-interface level using bots that mimic human interaction. They also do not need APIs for their implementation. As an iPaaS, Workato is more concerned with enterprise workflows. These happen across multiple organisational functions, data sources, and teams. Workflow automations also require APIs to connect various systems together. They are triggered by some business event that must initially take place (for instance, updating client information in a database). 

However, Workato can act as a bridge between RPA and workflow automations. Workato can connect with RPA software such as UiPath to leverage its distinct benefits in tandem with the execution of more complex, API-driven automation.

8. What is Workato’s security model?

Workato takes security very seriously and implements the following practices:

• Base-level Encryption: Workato follows cryptographic protocols like SSL/ TLS to ensure safe data transmission across diverse channels. 
• Access controls: Workato implements principles such as IAM to ensure that users access data that is allocated to them.
• Regulatory compliance: Workato subscribes to standards like GDPR and HIPAA so that organisations can build workflows that comply with general and industry-specific security requirements.
• Logs and activity tracking: user actions are consistently logged for regular checks and audits.  
• Region-specific security: by allowing users to specify their geographical location, Workato can align with data storage mandates covering that area. 

9. What are some real-world use cases of Workato? 

In the real world, especially within a running business, Workato plays a major role in the following activities: 

• HR: talent acquisition, onboarding, offboarding, allocation of leaves.
• Finance: invoicing, expense approvals, reporting of financial data.
• Customer support: ticket management, managing communication channels like emails, feedback forms, and so on. 
• Marketing: campaign generation, lead delivery management, timing marketing materials. 

These types of activities are pervasive across multiple industries like: 

• Healthcare: Workato can oversee patient records, schedule appointments, and handle billing procedures. 
• Education: the platform can streamline grade processing, enrollment, and classroom scheduling activities. 
• Retail: in retail, Workato can be used to process orders and keep track of customer rewards programs. 
• Manufacturing: production and supply chain management tasks can be simplified using the power of Workato automation. 
• Technology: the process of software development can be made more agile using Workato by simplifying support and issue detection activities. 

10. How much does Workato cost? What are Workato’s pricing plans?

Workato has a quote-based pricing model. It divides its costs into two tiers: business and product. On top of the base payment in the business plan, recipes can be bought as required or upon use. You can buy just one recipe or packs of them. Packs come in 10, 25, 50, and 100 recipes. You can reach out to Workato for a demo and a quotation.  

Chakray: Your official Workato Partner for robust workflow automations

Team up with Chakray to get customised Workato support and implementation. We have an excellent track record and a strong team of experts to assist you with Workato, no matter what the scenario. Our expertise not only shines in the UK but also in locations such as Spain, Canada, LATAM, Africa and APAC. With Workato, we have helped our customers become efficient through the integration of their systems, reducing human intervention and improving the cleanliness of organisational data. Our experts recognise the particulars of the Workato platform: its low-code interface, SDK, ready-to-use connectors, its capabilities for different business functions like HR and finance automation, and so on. What’s more, our solutions are never generic; we know that the ultimate goal of every company is different and work towards providing unique solutions for each one. 

You might find this page useful: “Workato – Systems Integrator partner”

Conclusion to Workato FAQs 

If you’re new to the world of digital-business transformation, Workato is a great tool to get you started with the reformation of your IT systems. By allowing non-technical personnel to automate simple and complex workflows that help run a company, Workato can bring about long-standing, positive changes to your business. We hope this Workato FAQs article helps you stay well-informed and updated before you take your final step towards welcoming Workato into your organisation.  

Do you have questions that go beyond the scope of this article? There’s no need to fret! Contact Chakray for whatever it is you need to know!