Third-Party Integration Capabilities

SAP CPI Integration Using Salesforce Adapter with a Third-Party System: Think of SAP CPI as a multilingual translator and courier between two people who need to work together but speak different languages. In this case: Salesforce is your customer database—it holds all your leads, accounts, and opportunities. The third-party system could be anything: an ERP (like SAP), a marketing tool, or even a legacy database. It needs Salesforce data but can’t directly "talk" to it. Here’s how SAP CPI makes this work smoothly: Listening to Salesforce: Using its built-in Salesforce adapter, CPI automatically detects changes—like a new lead or updated contact—just like a assistant who watches your CRM for important updates. Translating the Message: Salesforce stores data in its own format (e.g., "Lead_Status__c"), while the external system might expect something different (e.g., "STATUS_CODE"). CPI converts these terms so both systems understand each other, eliminating manual reformatting. Delivering Securely: Once translated, CPI sends the data to the third-party system using the method it prefers—whether that’s an API call (like a digital handshake), a file drop (like an encrypted email), or even a direct database update. Handling Errors Gracefully: If something fails (e.g., the external system is down), CPI doesn’t just give up. It retries, sends alerts, and logs the issue—like a persistent courier who ensures your package isn’t lost. Why This Matters: No More Manual Work: Sales teams can trust that data entered in Salesforce automatically flows where it’s needed, without spreadsheets or copy-pasting. Real-Time Accuracy: The external system always has the latest customer info, reducing errors from outdated records. One Less Headache: IT teams save months of custom coding, since CPI’s pre-built adapters do the heavy lifting. In short, SAP CPI acts like an invisible bridge between Salesforce and other critical tools, keeping data in sync so people can focus on their jobs instead of fixing broken connections.

As SaaS vendors scale, integration requirements shift from “nice to have” to mission-critical. But in parallel, the demands of enterprise IT - data residency, compliance, performance, and cost predictability, only become more stringent. At Integration App, we’re addressing this tension head-on by delivering a universal integration layer that runs directly within your infrastructure. Unlike hosted integration solutions or embedded iPaaS platforms that introduce new data flows, latency layers, and vendor-side operational dependencies, our model prioritizes infrastructure sovereignty. You retain full control over how and where integrations execute while benefiting from a platform that automates and abstracts the complexity of connecting to thousands of third-party systems. Here's what that unlocks: 1. Data Sovereignty by Default No proxies. No data egress. Customer data never leaves your environment. Whether you’re in a private VPC, on-prem, or operating under industry-specific compliance regimes (HIPAA, SOC 2, GDPR, FedRAMP), our deployment model ensures your security posture isn’t compromised by integration complexity. 2. Security and Compliance-First Architecture Deploy integrations in line with your own IAM policies, access control frameworks, and encryption standards. All executions occur in your trusted compute environment, enabling full auditability and adherence to internal and external governance requirements. 3. Infrastructure-Native Deployment The integration layer is designed to be deployed alongside your core application stack, whether containerized via Kubernetes or integrated into a custom CI/CD pipeline. 4. Performance Without Penalties Since integration flows run at the edge of your application stack, you avoid the latency and variability introduced by centralized middleware or external orchestration layers. 5. Predictable, Scalable Economics No usage-based throttling. No per-flow billing. With a flat pricing model and no API call metering, you can scale integration volume without introducing infrastructure cost uncertainty. This predictability becomes critical as integration use cases grow across customers, tenants, and third-party systems. AI-Augmented, API-Agnostic By decoupling Integration App logic from specific APIs, and using AI to generate contextual, app-specific execution paths, we eliminate the bottlenecks of manual, one-off integrations.

Integrating SAP systems with Third-Party Logistics Providers (3PLs) involves establishing interfaces that enable seamless communication and data exchange between the systems. Here are some key considerations and methods for creating SAP interfaces to 3PLs: Key Considerations 1. Data Types: Identify the types of data to be exchanged, such as inventory levels, order details, shipping notifications, and delivery confirmations. 2. Communication Protocols: Determine the appropriate communication protocols, such as EDI (Electronic Data Interchange), API (Application Programming Interface), or IDoc (Intermediate Document) for data exchange. 3. Security: Ensure secure data transmission through encryption and authentication mechanisms. 4. Real-Time vs. Batch Processing: Decide whether the integration should occur in real-time or through scheduled batch processes. 5. Error Handling: Implement robust error-handling and logging mechanisms to address data exchange issues promptly. 6. Compliance: Ensure that the integration complies with industry standards and regulations, such as GDPR or specific trade compliance requirements. Integration Methods 1. EDI Integration: • Use EDI standards like ANSI X12 or EDIFACT to exchange documents such as purchase orders, invoices, and shipping notices. • Set up an EDI gateway or use a VAN (Value-Added Network) for secure transmission. 2. API Integration: • Leverage REST or SOAP APIs to facilitate real-time data exchange between SAP and 3PL systems. • Use SAP API Management or third-party API platforms to manage and secure API interactions. 3. IDoc Integration: • Utilize SAP IDocs for standard document exchange with 3PLs that support SAP integration. • Configure IDoc interfaces in SAP to send and receive transactional data. 4. SAP Cloud Platform Integration: • Use SAP Cloud Platform Integration (CPI) to create custom integration flows for connecting SAP S/4HANA with 3PL systems. • Benefit from pre-built integration content for common 3PL providers. 5. Middleware Solutions: • Employ middleware tools like SAP PI/PO (Process Integration/Orchestration) to manage complex integrations. • Integrate through middleware to handle data transformation and routing. 6. Custom Development: • Develop custom ABAP programs or use SAP BTP (Business Technology Platform) to build bespoke integration solutions tailored to specific 3PL requirements. Implementation Steps 1. Requirements Gathering: Collaborate with 3PLs to understand their system capabilities and integration needs. 2. System Mapping: Map the data fields and processes between SAP and 3PL systems. 3. Development and Configuration: Develop or configure the necessary interfaces and data mappings. 4. Testing: Conduct thorough testing to ensure data accuracy and reliability across interfaces. 5. Deployment and Monitoring: Deploy the interfaces and establish monitoring processes to ensure smooth operation and quick issue resolution.

🔗 How to Integrate Dynamics 365 with Third-Party APIs Using Azure Functions In many businesses, Dynamics 365 sits at the core of operations. But success often depends on how well it connects with other platforms—billing systems, shipping providers, marketing tools, and more. When these systems don’t communicate: ❌ Teams waste time on manual data entry ❌ Customers face delays ❌ Leaders work with outdated or incomplete information 👉 The fix? Azure Functions. Azure Functions provides a serverless, cost-efficient way to integrate Dynamics 365 with third-party APIs. Instead of building heavy integrations, you can deploy lightweight code snippets that run only when triggered—keeping costs low and workflows smooth. 💡 Why this matters: Real-time data sharing between systems Accurate and connected business operations Faster insights for decision-making Scalable without expensive custom development In my latest guide, I walk through the practical steps to set up this integration, starting with: ✅ Registering an application for secure authentication in Azure AD …and continuing through the full process. 📘 Full step-by-step guide here: 👉 https://lnkd.in/g_jHakDM #Dynamics365 #Azure #AzureFunctions #APIIntegration #DigitalTransformation #Microsoft

Workday Bite No13: The Workday Integration Landscape One of Workday’s core strengths is the overall integration landscape with so many options to pull out data or feed it into Workday and seamlessly integrate Workday in your overall IT landscape. Having so many options can make it hard to keep an overview of what is available and also picking the right one for a certain use case. With this graphic I tried to create some sort of guidance, but I can say upfront, it is not complete. See it more as your entry gate into the Workday integration area, because aspects like authentication or messages queues etc. are not listed here. They are worth another bite. So, all the magic happens in the Workday cloud, where your integrations will live. The Workday Cloud is tied to the Workday applications on one side, and can be accessed on the other side via user interfaces and external systems. An integration system consists of three main components which are a Data Source – APIs to retrieve data from Workday or push it into Workday, Transformations – integration tools like connectors or document transformation to process output/input further and then Transport Instructions – delivering or retrieving data to/from external endpoints. Depending on your choice of tools you can combine sometimes transformations and transport instructions. This overall setup is valid for inbound and outbound integrations – safe harbour applies. Shall we go into further detail? – Of course. SOAP and REST APIs are delivered and supported as part of the Workday product and basically an industry standard. RaaS (Report as a Service); Custom Reports can be exposed as a Web Service to provide tailormade data. Supported formats such as JSON, XML, CSV etc. Certified Connectors (packaged integration, certified connector, End to End connectors) built to a specific system, fully designed end-to-end integration between Workday and a specific named third party service, e.g. Kronos, VSP Vision etc. Generic Connector – not built to a specific system, designed to integrate with common applications and service providers (e.g. 3rd party payroll integrations => PECI connector etc.) built-in change detection and usually paired with document transformation logic (Doc Transformation Connector or Workday Studio) to manipulate the output format. Document Transformation – used with connectors to transform the output for a target system. EIB – used for simple custom integrations, user friendly interface to build inbound and outbound integrations. Workday Studio - Eclipse-based IDE, which can handle multiple inputs and outputs over multiple transports, complex routing, branching and looping, scalable and efficient processing of large data sets, complex error scenarios and error handling, testing ability and debugging, highly extensible. Basically a jack of all trades. Did I miss something? #workdaybites #workday #haveagreatworkday #peterbauer