Businesses today depend on several applications for managing their business activities such as sales, accounting, inventory, customer relations, human resource management, and others. If these applications work individually, then it becomes difficult for employees to transfer data from one application to another. There is a possibility that the data may not be consistent across applications.
The concept of enterprise application integration can solve this problem. With a proper approach, companies can integrate their applications and allow them to communicate with each other. It will not be necessary for companies to implement new applications.
Enterprise application integration (EAI) is the integration of enterprise applications and databases that enables them to exchange data and collaborate. The applications may be based on different platforms, formats, communication methods, and deployment platforms.
As opposed to using a common platform for all departments, IA allows the collaboration of the current systems. It would be possible for a company to integrate its CRM with its ERP so that the confirmation of an order results in updating the client records, inventories, and accounting processes.
The integration process typically comprises four phases:
Thus, if a customer makes an order, through the integrated process, the inventory will be updated, the warehouse will be informed about that, the invoice will be created, and order confirmation will be sent.
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The advantages of enterprise application integration are not limited to the reduction of manual data entry. Proper integration may enhance collaboration between departments, customer service, and business process management.
Due to the use of independent records by different applications, inconsistencies may appear regarding customer information, product information, and transaction status. Integration enables data sharing and the implementation of certain standards of information exchange. This will prevent the duplication of records and will help to operate with reliable information.
Still, rules for the ownership and handling of conflicts should be created by organizations.
Many employees are frequently occupied with transferring spreadsheets, moving data, and reconciling documents in applications. For example, an approved purchase order can trigger the update of data within procurement and financial applications, thus accelerating the process of placing the order, its delivery, and payment.
Integration of applications makes it easier for customer-oriented teams to access a consolidated database that contains data about orders, payments, support requests, and activities within customer accounts. It means that a customer service manager will have no need to contact different departments to learn about the status of an order.
Integrated reporting allows getting access to information that is collected from different systems, thus providing managers with a better understanding of operations. Managers won't need to rely only on manually prepared reports that contain data about sales, inventories, expenses, and customer activities. However, the timeliness of data will depend on integration and reporting methods used.
A well-designed integration strategy will make the implementation of new software solutions, cloud services, and other systems much easier because there will be no need to establish new integrations each time.
There are various types of integration methods that businesses can select, according to their architecture, limitations, and needs. In many companies, multiple integration methods coexist rather than just using one integration strategy for all processes.
Point-to-point integration creates a link between two applications. The method can prove effective when there are a few applications with simple integration requirements. As applications increase in number, the number of connections increases fast. Every connection might need to be individually configured, maintained, and managed separately.
Middleware is the connecting link between applications and helps coordinate the communication, transformation, routing, and execution of business logic. Middleware may assist in reducing the need for individual connections among applications.
The strategy of integration would be more effective in cases where different protocols are used by applications.
An API makes applications request or send data by means of specified interfaces. API integration is beneficial when real-time queries are needed, for partnerships between applications and systems, mobile applications, and cloud applications.
API management is critical since teams require a standard way to perform authentication, authorization, versioning, rate limiting, and documentation.
Event-driven integration occurs when an application generates an event due to some specific action (e.g., completion of the order or payment process). The systems receive the events and react according to them.
It works well with decoupled applications and asynchronous processes. Nevertheless, teams should consider duplication of events, delayed delivery, and cases when the systems are not available at all.
Data-Centric integration presupposes sharing, syncing, and consolidation of information within databases, data warehouses, and other types of data platforms. It is helpful in analytics and reports. It may not fit each operational process, especially if applications need immediate reaction.
Architecture of enterprise application integration includes definition of application connections, information flows, transformation, security, orchestration, and monitoring points. Good architecture meets current requirements but is flexible enough not to require significant changes in the future.
Typical components of an architecture are:
Centralized, distributed, and hybrid architectures can be used depending on the company. Centralized integration simplifies governance. Distributed architecture might allow operating independent teams and domain services.
Which one is better can depend on dependencies of a system, volume of transactions, latency requirements, resilience goals, and capabilities of running integration infrastructure.
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Integration begins not with the technology, but with business requirements. The steps below will allow companies to approach integration in a more systematic manner.
Develop a list of applications in use within an organization, their owners, their data stores, and work processes that rely on them. Determine duplication, legacy limitations, undocumented links, and important data flows.
State the purpose of each link. Look at the amount of data, rate of updates, tolerable latency, transactions, availability, security, and regulations. Determine which systems serve as authoritative sources for each type of data.
Select API, middleware, event-driven messaging, direct connect, or synchronization based on the use case. A low-throughput link between two dependable applications can use a less complex solution than a mission-critical process running across multiple applications.
Analyze enterprise application integration solutions in terms of available connectors, deployment options, API management, transformation support, monitoring facilities, security features, and maintainability. Enterprise Application Integration software package may provide ready-to-use workflows and integrated governance capabilities, but the final decision will depend on the current infrastructure and competencies of IT staff.
Licensing expenses, integration effort, vendor relationship, and the risks of reliance on proprietary elements have to be considered when making decisions.
Build and test an important and manageable workflow first. Test normal transactions, transactions with invalid data, duplicated messages, failure of network communication, permissions problems, and recovery processes. Make sure that information is consistent within interconnected applications.
Track failed transactions, processing delays, API errors, data mismatches, and system availability. Establish alerts and assign clear ownership for investigating incidents. Review integrations regularly as business processes, applications, and security requirements change.
Enterprise application integration allows companies to integrate their existing applications, automate cross-functional business processes, and gain access to accurate information. The best way is when a proper architecture is combined with proper data management, secure connectivity, extensive testing, and monitoring. Starting from the business process of high value for the company and making further steps gradually will allow you to create a connected IT environment.
Some common ones include connecting CRM with ERP systems, connecting e-commerce solutions with inventory and shipping software, integrating HR and payroll information, and combining procurement with financial processes. All of them make it possible to minimize manual work and help with information exchange between departments.
Not quite. API integration is only one way of integrating applications via a specific interface. Enterprise application integration, on the other hand, may include API integration, as well as many other approaches to connecting and coordinating processes in different enterprise applications.
There are such criteria as connector support, API availability, data transformation, workflow management, security, monitoring, scalability, deployment possibilities, and overall cost of ownership. This list includes everything that an application integration product has to offer.
Yes. Legacy systems can often be connected through existing APIs, adapters, middleware, supported file exchanges, or other controlled interfaces. The best method depends on the system's capabilities, security limitations, and data-access requirements.
Track metrics such as failed transactions, processing time, data discrepancies, workflow completion time, manual effort reduced, and integration availability. Compare results with a baseline and review whether the connections improve the business processes they were designed to support.
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