Modern business integration has become a key accelerator for organizations that are looking to improve customer experience, accelerate growth and unlock new revenue streams. It allows companies take advantage of their current technology, people and process to stay on top of competitors.
Many companies have traditionally used a combination of on-premises software and legacy systems, as well as cloud-based solutions. These disparate technology and their associated data are not inherently communicative, which is the reason why businesses need a robust business-integration strategy.
Modern integration, which allows these systems to communicate with each other and exchange vital data across and within business lines, makes these business relationships much easier in the digital age. This is sometimes referred to B2B integration, and can involve a variety of advanced protocols – from AS2, SFTP and HTTPs to Web Services and proprietary high-speed files transfer methods.
Financial services and healthcare are examples of common use cases. These industries require robust security, governance capabilities, and audit trails to securely connect with multiple trading partners.
Another common application is horizontal integration. This is where two or more companies from the same industry combine their efforts to offer a broader range of services or products. For example a women’s fashion company could integrate with a brand that serves teens and young adult to introduce it to new market segments.
Modern integration techniques enable these companies extract the right data and convert it to a form compatible with their partner’s central organisation device. This data can be sent to the application of choice for processing. This can help automate processes, improve business communication, and decrease the risk of human errors or delays.