Cloud Integration Transforms CIOs from Gatekeepers to Barrier Breakers

of the hurdles to implementation for complex systems– such as lack of IT personnel, high up-front costs, and commitment risk and deployment time. CIOs have been particularly attracted by three key characteristics of cloud-based solutions: they can get everything up and running quickly, scale up or down as needed and can stay up-to-date without draining IT resources. But as companies have quickly adopted a wide range of cloud applications to take advantage of these benefits, CIOs have had to figure out a way to keep all the solutions working together. Instead of buying fully integrated on-premise software to cover all business process, CIOs now need to integrate cloud solutions with each other and to legacy on-premise systems to achieve the full value of each application. CIOs Turn to Cloud Integration to Manage New Solutions Ecosystem Traditional on-premise integration was extremely difficult, but when it’s done in the cloud it becomes much faster and easier. Major software vendors would spend months with squads of dedicated developers to integrate their suite of applications to ensure that data and info could flow seamlessly across the organization. Enterprise software companies that wanted to connect solutions from different providers would go through the time-consuming and resource-draining process of coding and deploying legacy integration solutions. In both cases this often meant pulling in consulting firms to help design, deploy and manage these integrations. When their software solutions changed or were upgraded, the integration code would have to change too. Traditional integrations often fail because they have five major downsides: • Varied and inconsistent, point-to-point, connections

• Focused on individual process needs

• Expensive and time consuming

• Require hard coding processes • Difficult to update and modify However, cloud-based integration removes all of these headaches for the CIO. With cloud integration platforms, CIOs don’t have to worry about how to stitch together all of their technology investments, but can instead focus on how connected apps and processes can be used across departments, partners and customers. For example, Jitterbit designed out-of-the-box integrations for NetSuite and AutoDesk PLM360 that enable business users to easily manage product changes, supplier collaboration, new product introduction, quality control and materials oversight across both platforms. For NetSuite and AutoDesk customers, this led to streamlined digital processes, better customer intelligence and more accurate pricing and order data. Furthermore, integrating these solutions in the cloud minimizes the demand on IT, and eliminates the need for complex and expensive server-based perpetual licenses. Instead of managing servers and software, CIOs can focus on creating new processes and innovative products for the company. Finally, cloud-based integration prepared CIOs for the next wave of collaboration: connecting to partners and customers beyond the walls of the organization. Easy-to-manage cloud integration platforms enable CIOs to open up their systems in a controlled and secure manner. This paves the way for radical new business processes, such as crowd-sourced designs and immediate partnerships with small start-ups offering disruptive technologies. Today’s CIO is no longer a gatekeeper; the modern CIO’s job is to remove barriers across departments and connect siloed processes. As more CIOs break down walls in their companies, integrated cloud solutions become even more essential because they facilitate easy collaboration and new cross-departmental processes. The cloud enables good ideas to become widely accessible, and a more democratized environment leads to greater innovation.