Build an Enterprise Application Integration Strategy

Enterprises are entangled in application sprawl. The average organization uses close to 1,000 applications but over 70% of them aren’t fully integrated. Integration remains an afterthought, resulting in fragile point-to-point connections, brittle dependencies, siloed data – and missed opportunities: 95% of IT leaders cite integration as a barrier to AI adoption. Use our actionable research to connect systems with intention and create a scalable, flexible foundation for digital transformation and organizational agility.

Integrations are often done piecemeal, creating a spaghetti network of tangled connections that prevent the seamless sharing of data and workflows. Treating integration like a one-off task keeps your IT systems from evolving and hurts your organization’s ability to compete. IT leaders must approach integration as a continuous journey, shifting from reactive technical fixes to proactive, business-aligned integration.

1. Integration is not about connecting everything.

It’s about connecting the right things. Attempting to haphazardly integrate all your systems at once leads to big disappointment and rising costs. Focus on high-value integrations to solve real-world problems, lay a solid foundation from there, and expand incrementally. Start with something straightforward like API connections and tackle more complex orchestrations as your team gains experience.

2. The biggest integration failures don’t happen at go-live.

They rear their ugly heads much later, when a change in one system silently breaks an interface, or data drifts out of sync and nobody even notices. That’s why integration isn’t a “set and forget” item on your to-do list. It’s an ongoing practice that requires oversight, a strong testing regimen, and continuous monitoring.

3. Know when to reuse and when to retire stuff.

Reuse components wherever possible to accelerate integration and reduce costs. But don’t be afraid to let go of redundant or fragile integrations either. Deprecate old point-to-point scripts once a better integration solution is in place, to reduce overall complexity. Chase simplicity in design even as your application ecosystem grows.

Use this step-by-step framework to design an integration strategy that supports growth and resilience.

Our research offers a unified three-step methodology supported by two powerful resources: a comprehensive storyboard and a decision-support toolkit. Together, they lead you through the process of crafting a holistic integration strategy that can adapt to your organization’s changing needs.

• Ensure each connection has a purpose by identifying where integrations will deliver value before choosing how to implement them.
• Evaluate and select integration approaches for each use case based on variables such as messaging patterns, integration styles, and coupling (synchronous vs. asynchronous).
• Avoid integration chaos with a repeatable strategy and testing plan built for change.