Running a modern-day business of any size www.businessintergation.com/2020/05/17/digital-integration-is-essential-for-modern-business is a challenging thing. Even small businesses have tens of thousands of different marketing, business, and operational applications.
These applications need to be integrated to support the outcomes most important to the business. Business integration aims to achieve this by connecting and enabling members of an ecosystem to work as one cohesive whole.
The correct design is essential to a successful business integration. All too often integrations are created in the way that makes it difficult to alter the design. These poor design choices can result in a system which is difficult to maintain and manage, as well as expensive to operate.
In the past, business integrations predominantly focused on the integration of IT systems and software like ERP and CRM solutions. This type of integration is called application integration, and is usually achieved using APIs or other tools that allow connectivity between systems. These kinds of integrations tend to be limited in their capabilities and typically require a team of dedicated technical staff on site to manage and maintain them.
The essential element to modern business integration success is an approach that is holistic and focuses primarily on the integration of business services. This is achieved by mapping the business processes to the right technology. This also includes the creation of the essential components needed for integration, including connectors and data mappings. A rigorous testing and deployment process is also required in a controlled environment. Following that, a monitoring process and optimization process is put into place to ensure that the business integration is able to meet its objectives.
