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Borrowed Genius – Cloud Integration Platforms Deliver Dramatic Benefits.

In this whitepaper series Jay Ethridge and Joe Jezior of Technology & Business Solutions (TBS) review the vulnerabilities associated with traditional custom software integrations, explore the facets of the integration lifecycle and how ETL technology delivers dramatic efficiencies, and itemize the benefits of today’s cloud- and platform-based integrators for organizations looking to connect their Accounting systems with their corporate HR, CRM or other systems.

 

When technology transforms business processes, the consequences at first are often hard to identify and appreciate. So it is with the maturation of data integrations from custom applications to standard appliances.

The transmission and transformation of corporate data from one software package to another can indeed be standardized. There are now reliable, cost-effective and powerful ETL tools that make this standardization a reality. When integrators leverage these tools as customer-empowering platforms, significant and ongoing time and investment are saved, and integrations become predictable and scalable business resources that deliver recurring value. This is a new and exciting paradigm.

In Part 1 of this whitepaper series, we catalogued the business vulnerabilities inherent with traditional custom data integrations. For easy comparison, here are the business-enhancing values delivered by today’s data integration platforms.

Integration platforms deliver:

  • A dynamic appliance that sees and connects data endpoints as objects. Over time, as an organization’s accounting procedures mature or its accounting software is upgraded, its integration platform adjusts automatically.
  • Unrivalled data security and regulatory compliance. The very best integration platforms are delivered via public Enterprise Clouds, so the transmission and transformation of data are handled in the most secure (256-bit AES encryption) and stringent environments (SSAE 16, SOX, ITAR, MA201, et.al.).

  • Web-enabled interfaces that put integration users in control. Cloud-based integration platforms, like TBS’s Integrated Cloud Exchange called I.C.E., empower users with an on-line control panel so they may order integrations on their own schedules or on demand. (Roll-based user security ensures that only personnel with the proper permissions may access the ICE interface.) This control panel approach also enhances data security because it processes integration requests separately from the data synchronization itself -- the ICE interface “calls” for integration services safely within the TBS Cloud. ICE users never directly access any corporate data.
  • Immediate dramatic cost savings and ongoing ROI. Because integration platforms leverage existing and reliable ETL tools for data transmission and transformation, these components – truly the heart of any integration – come at a fixed and reasonable price. The time required to capture an organization’s integration business rules and connect the platform to the two synchronization endpoints is the only additional cost borne by platform users. SaaS integrators, like TBS ICE, are available for a modest monthly platform subscription fee. No upfront or additional licensing is required.
  • Proactive lifetime maintenance and upgrades. SaaS integrators like TBS ICE are mature software appliances developed by technology companies (not by a single, busy, often-unavailable programmer). These companies retain ownership of their platforms and therefore are responsible for ongoing integration maintenance, fixes and improvements, in TBS’s case on a quarterly basis. These regular enhancements are the result of a robust multi-department design, development and QC process, and included within the monthly SaaS fee.

Cloud technology is transforming accounting software integrations, ushering in a new era of platform-based data synchronization that offers significant advantages over traditional and expensive custom programming. Because integration appliances are significantly different from custom applications, it’s important to understand their features and benefits before making an integration investment.


This whitepaper series from Technology & Business Solutions LLC (TBS) explores the dramatic benefits that a new breed of cloud- and platform-based integrators are now bringing to market. The paradigm shift from customized connectors to scalable platforms is moving the creation and support for integrations from talented individuals to sophisticated software companies, with all their attendant resources, quality control and support infrastructure. The difference is like night and day.

To learn more about a cost-effective integration plaftorm tailored to your organization's needs, visit our I.C.E. webpage (Integrated Cloud Exchange), contact TBS or call 703.444.6562.