Business Systems & Data IntegrationPlan the right next step

Cross-platform integration connects a business process, not just two APIs. Start with the record that crosses teams: an accepted quote, approved order, customer update or stock movement. Identify the source of truth, required fields, receiving system and the action that confirms the transfer worked.

For a UK CRM-to-ERP workflow, an approved deal might create a customer and draft order without automatically posting an invoice. Document entity, currency, date and reporting rules with the operations and finance owners. Confirm supported APIs, access rights, vendor contracts and versions before promising a connection.

Interfaces fail in ordinary ways: expired credentials, rate limits, unavailable services, changed fields and duplicate delivery. Define idempotent handling so a retry does not create a second order. Decide which failures retry automatically, which enter a review queue and how an operator can see and resolve them.

Reconciliation is a separate requirement from successful delivery. Compare record counts, identifiers and agreed totals over a defined period. Log operational metadata without exposing sensitive payloads unnecessarily, and agree retention, permissions and escalation. A dashboard showing a green response code cannot establish that business records match.

An existing vendor connector or integration platform may cover the workflow adequately. Evaluate that option against a custom service using transformation complexity, event volume, reliability requirements, vendor constraints and ongoing cost. Avoid introducing a new platform for a small connection that a supported product already handles.

Before rollout, agree a field-mapping specification, failure tests, monitoring, runbook and named operational owner. Phase the launch using a limited workflow and reconciled sample records. Provide system names and requirements for scoping; do not send credentials or customer exports through the enquiry form.