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Expert Know-How

April 20, 2010

Integration Success Tip

Rich Lyons , CEO of Lyons Consulting Group

Integration issues are the most common reasons for launch delays. The front-end gets all the attention - beautiful design, feature rich - but the real feat is integrating everything seamlessly

Here are 6 tips for integration success on your next project:


Create dataflow and workflow diagrams. - Before anyone writes any code, make sure that all parties understand the business processes and how technology supports them. Failure to get agreement here can lead to nasty surprises and longer development.

Pick a "system of record" and stick with it. - Identify one of the systems as the "owner" of the data. Without a sole system of record, data will likely grow out of sync, leading to problems that may be difficult to resolve.

Clean your data. - Integrating two dissimilar systems is always a challenge, but it can be doubly difficult if you have to fight with data. Clean your data before integration, or filter it through the system of record.

Automate everything you can. - Humans are fallible and every required point of human contact will make your system more error-prone and difficult to use. Automate things that don't require human judgment and minimize the intervention necessary for the things that do.

Assume that everything will fail someday.. - Computers are fallible, too, and your integration points should be tolerant of that fact. Use redundant systems where possible and establish rules for recovery in case a system is unavailable for a period of time.

Leave some headroom. - Your business is going to grow, maybe faster than you think! When setting up infrastructure for your integration, leave room for growth and you won't be blindsided by a sudden lack of capacity.



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