Because this is such an important part of any business success, we wanted to provide some valuable data integration tips.  Formally known as Customer Data Integration or CDI, this process involves information from every source being consolidated and then managed.  Without data integration, a business will end up with public and private information everywhere, which creates a huge security risk, not to mention a serious challenge in being organized and effective.

One of the first data integration tips we wanted to address is that when we say all information within a company, we mean all information.  While some information may not seem relevant, it is.  Every successful business knows and understands just how critical it is for information about customers, vendors, owners, employees, technology, products, services, and so on to be stored and managed so it is accessible to the right people while being maintained in a safe environment.  Therefore, integration needs to include all company information.

Another of our data integration tips is that prior to pulling in the information and inputting it into a database for storage and distribution, you want to make certain the information is accurate.  Otherwise, you end up with a database filled with inaccuracies, omissions, and a variety of errors.  There are a number of data cleansing systems available that will help you through the process of cleaning house but this process can also be completed manually.  If possible, start your company in the right direction by capturing the right information and making sure it has been entered right.

Then, data integration tips involve using appropriate technology and systems specific to your business.  Unfortunately, many companies have lost a tremendous amount of money due to redundancy of information.  With this, employees pulling up information for one reason or another and finding more than one file on a single customer or vendor waste time researching which file is correct and current, not to mention the time spent removing the incorrect file.  Using the right system to help with integration will also give employees more time to focus on their job than to fix errors.

As a part of data integration tips for tools, remember to look at the options available.  This means identifying the right platform and even looking at the ranking of the solution to ensure you are getting the most for the money.  For instance, Pervasive Software is still considered one of the best choices for both effectiveness and ease of use, not to mention affordability.  Now, this particular solution works best for the smaller integration projects so if you have needs that are more high performance, it would probably not be the choice for you.

Again for data integration tips specific to software solutions, Microsoft is another recommendation.  Called SQL Server 2005 Integration Services or SSIS, the only real drawback is that additional software for the infrastructure would have to be purchased.  Even so, this is a good solution for numerous data integration projects.  You could even look at IBM and Informatica, which are designed for the more complex integration needs.

The final area of data integration tips we wanted to cover is the ways in which these applications offer benefit.

• Conversion and Migration
• Extraction
• Transformation
• Loading
• Management

Data integration is not a standalone solution but something that relates to other aspects of data governance.  Using the right type of software and having the integration process managed by a skilled/qualified individual equates to having a system for your business that will keep operations running in a seamless manner.  When it comes to data integration tips, you want to look at the big picture so all aspects can be identified and then handled.

The one area of business where many companies fail is not having systems that work cohesively.  Something as simple as data integration plays a huge role in your success by making all the company information working together.  Internal and external data, regardless of how menial it seems is vital.  As mentioned earlier, you have to have a means of capturing, storing, and using all information.  Otherwise, there will end up being big cracks in the system where information could be lost, forgotten, or simply overlooked.  When this happens, even insignificant information can create a huge challenge that could be costly to the business, not only for operations, but also from a financial aspect.