Integrating SaaS and legacy apps: 5 steps for success

While the task of integrating on-premises systems with software-as-a-service, platform-as-a-service or cloud computing services might seem daunting, the process is a simpler than you might imagine.

The secret is focusing on why the business will benefit from integration, what problem integration will solve and how to keep the costs in line. Here are the key steps in an integration project.

Step 1 - Define the business process. Work with the business to define the processes from the user perspective that requires integration so you can figure out the answers to the following questions:

-- How are employees using the on-demand system? Will it be the main portal or just used for particular tasks?

-- Is integration driven by the need to leverage a shared business process? For example, some organizations must vet all accounts before they are officially added to the account master file. If users are constantly creating accounts in a system such as salesforce.com, the organization may have a strong need for integration.

-- Will integration involve connecting the on-demand application to a larger workflow that extends across many departments and systems, say an order-to-cash and fulfillment process?

-- Will the project require active or passive integration? Active integration requires data to be moved between systems at the specific request of the user. Passive integration moves data at scheduled times, without any users triggering the process. Active integration requires different technology than passive integration, and the efforts can vary widely in cost and time.

Step 2 - Calculate the value. Determine the value of the integration to the business, not by building a complex ROI model but by simply outlining basics such as:

-- How will the integration improve adoption of the business process?

-- How will automating the process reduce operating costs?

-- How will it drive higher sales or profit margin, and by roughly how much?

-- How quickly do users need this and why?

-- What is the cost of not integrating? In wasted hours? In incomplete data? Dollars?

Step 3 - Determine technical requirements. Now that you've examined the business issues, it's time to think about technical solutions. The first thing to remember is that, for the most part, on-demand systems have APIs that are programming language and tool agnostic (SOAP, REST, XML over HTTP, etc). Confirm this with the vendor, ask yourself the following questions and move on to Step 4.

-- How are you integrating your premises-based systems today?

-- Do you already have an ETL, ESB, EAI tool or have you been thinking about getting one?

-- Are you a custom development house?

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