Ecosystem Integration is the modern way to integrate

Ecosystem Integration: Driving Business Outcomes

Ecosystem integration takes an "outside-in" approach to orchestrating end-to-end integrations with a dynamic network of trading partners, applications, suppliers, customers, and marketplaces.

Simply put, ecosystem integration is a strategy that connects and integrates a company's key revenue-generating business processes with those of its ecosystem partners by combining B2B and EDI, data and application integration, and secure file transfer technologies into a single software platform. It aids the development of automated systems that can quickly react to market disruptions.

This modern approach to multi-enterprise integration empowers organizations to drive business outcomes and value, such as faster partner or application onboarding, business process optimization, improved agility, and identification of new digital revenue streams.

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Ecosystem integration

Encompasses existing technologies and approaches to create and extend value and enable digital transformation

ecosystem image
Ecosystem Integration Combines Integration Technology with Persona-based Insights
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Ecosystem Integration Combines Integration Technology with Persona-based Insights

Ecosystem integration solutions combine B2B / EDI, application and data integration, and secure file transfer technologies with intuitive, persona-based insights into a single software platform.

The core consists of data movement and routing, data mapping and transformation, and integration design and development capabilities – enabling organizations to design, deploy, operate, and optimize integrations between business (external) and operational (internal) ecosystems to deliver specific technical and business outcomes.

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Ecosystem Integration is more than just EDI or iPaaS

Ecosystem integration blends the capabilities of traditional EDI and iPaaS to deliver business outcomes. Explore the difference yourself.

Integration design time and deployment
Capability Ecosystem Integration Platform Legacy EDI Software / Toolkits Integration Brokerages (IB) iPaaS
Onboarding (Communications)
Industry certified support for any and all communications standards and protocols
Often requires 3rd-party technology or solutions
Industry certified support for any and all communications standards and protocols
Uncertified or basic support for limited protocols
Onboarding (Maps)
Based on existing standards and templates; scalable wth multiple re-uses
Based on custom scripting and code
Outsourced to IB with minimal input from customers and partners
Minimal support with basic templates
EDI Integration
Dynamic and adaptive EDI and non-EDI capabilities with any-to-any transformation and integration
Rigid and non-adaptive EDI transformation and integration capability based on custom scripting and code
Black box as a fully-managed service
Minimal support or requires 3rd-party technology or service
Application Integration
Library of application, infrastructure, protocol connectors and robust API framework
Based on custom scripting and code
Based on custom scripting and code
Library of application connectors and robust API framework
Business process design and automation
Intuitive wizard-driven end-to-end process creation, testing and execution
Out of scope
Out of scope or black box as a fully-managed value added service
Intuitive wizard-driven end-to-end process creation, testing and execution
Operational governance and runtime
Capability Ecosystem Integration Platform Legacy EDI Software / Toolkits Integration Brokerages (IB) iPaaS
Management & Control
Self-service exception monitoring, interactive and transparent support with automated alert notifications
Out of scope
Black box as a fully-managed value added service
Out of scope or requires 3rd-party technologies or service
Visibility & Analytics
Self-service, real-time operational dashboards, analytics, and auditable reporting
Requires 3rd party technologies or domain expertise
Bolt on or as ad hoc value added service
Out of the box general reporting tool available for visibility
Persona-based Experiences
Configurable operational dashboards and controls for business, operational, and technical users
Out of scope
Out of scope
Out of scope

Frequently Asked Questions

Ecosystem integration is an advanced approach to multi-enterprise B2B/EDI integration that subsumes internal application integration and ecommerce integration patterns, allowing for the creation of seamless end-to-end integrations that connect partners, applications, systems, and marketplaces.

Ecosystem integration requires an outside-in approach to solving complex and modern integration challenges. It is a way of focusing on revenue, growth, and opportunity to contextualize and prioritize integration around the core ecosystem components -- namely partners, systems, and applications -- that make up the majority of revenue-driving end-to-end business processes.

Cleo Integration Cloud, Cleo’s flagship ecosystem integration offering, is a powerful single platform that enables your business to connect, transform, integrate, orchestrate, and analyze B2B/EDI, application, and e-commerce dataflows. Cleo Integration Cloud offers businesses a rich blend of self-service and managed-service options available in the cloud or in private on-premise deployments.

  • Reduce complexity: Make integration easier, enhance visibility, and improve operational control and governance
  • Streamline integration processes: Consolidate B2B and application integration requirements to a single unified integration platform
  • Optimize core business processes: Design, implement, and automate critical processes including order-to-cash, procure-to-pay, load tender-to-invoice, and many more
  • Lower solution TCO: Improve the accuracy of your data to eliminate penalties due to integration errors and unreliable transactions
  • Accelerate time to value: Reduce effort and complexity of trading partner and application onboarding
  • Proactive exception management: Centralized exception management, collaborative support, and hands-on troubleshooting speed the time to resolution
  • Research shows that companies can eliminate up to $500,000 year of lost revenue due to poor integrations by taking an ecosystem integration approach and consolidating to a single platform for integration.
  • See how much your business can save: Ecosystem Integration ROI calculator

The unique approach to ecosystem integration facilitates real-time access to operational visibility across end-to-end integration flows with appeal to both business and technical personas.

  • Executive teams get a global view of all revenue-generating transactions in a single, consolidated dashboard to optimize and uncover new growth opportunities.
  • Line-of-business managers can onboard trading partners faster, assess the health of existing relationships quickly, and proactively act on errors through "one-click" transaction reprocessing.
  • Operational teams, integration specialists, and technical users can easily manage key revenue-driving integrations, with the ability to view, interact, and manage end-to-end integration processes that connect business partners, applications, and data to their internal enterprise ecosystems.
  • Customers, partners, and suppliers can be granted secure access to operational performance metrics and visibility to enhance the value and depth of insight into ecosystem data for improved transparency and trust between businesses.

Ecosystem integration helps position companies operating across the supply chain for success in a variety of ways. By implementing adaptive integration technology that allows for flexible and agile responsiveness to rapidly shifting business requirements, businesses can:

  • Rapidly grow their ecosystem of partners and applications
  • Scale new revenue-driving business models
  • Modernize integration to remaster business processes
  • Discover new ways to leverage the value in data for business benefit

Additionally, there are industry-specific benefits originating in ecosystem integration capabilities that companies can achieve. For example:

  • Retailers: Can diversify their business models and remain competitive through fully-realized omnichannel and unified commerce outcomes
    • Meet modern fulfillment requirements – including pick-up, drop-off, and in-store
    • Improve stock and inventory predictability
    • Expand ecosystem of logistics partners and services to operationalize digital selling
  • Manufacturers: Can optimize their supply chains and operationalize digital presence
    • Reduce dependency on traditional selling channels (e.g., big box retail)
    • Launch new business models through e-commerce/marketplaces
    • Enter new markets and expand regionally
    • Push products to market faster to reduce cost
  • Logistics: Can provide a scalable, flexible, and intelligent way to handle increased integration, informational, and operational complexity
    • Deliver information-centric services
    • Meet or exceed elevated expectations around accuracy and speed of services
  • B2B/EDI integration: Multi-enterprise data movement and integration with extensive support for EDI and non-EDI formats, backed by any-to-any data transformation capabilities and industry, infrastructure and business protocols to support all file-based integration scenarios.
  • Application integration: Rich application connectors, platform APIs, and API integration management capabilities to support internal and cloud application integration across ERP, CRM, SCM, ecommerce platforms and digital marketplaces, as well as payment and financial management systems.
  • Data integration: Support a variety of data integration patterns tied to ecosystems that drive digital remastering of multi-enterprise supply chain interactions, including file-based data integration, data replication, storage, and integration to core business systems and applications.
  • Embedded integration: Embedded data movement and data transformation to power info – and data-centric SaaS offering. Enhance solution quality through seamless movement and integration of data between the customer base and the SaaS platform.
  • E-commerce integration: Operationalize and intelligently scale ecommerce and marketplace selling strategy, opening new business channels while reducing dependence on traditional customers to reach new markets and bring products markets faster and give brands an expanded global reach.

The following high-frequency business processes are composed of interconnected interactions across multi-enterprise supply chain businesses, external applications, and internal systems – endpoints that require integration at various points in the end-to-end life cycle of the process.

  • Order-to-cash
  • Procure-to-pay
  • Load tender-to-invoice

As trends both big and small influence the standards, regulations, competitive forces, and operating models of businesses, new data sources, more complex data patterns, and more and more technologies are required to facilitate these critical business processes.

Ecosystem Integration helps bring the increased complexity under control -- optimizing the underlying integration of end-to-end business processes by streamlining and automating dataflows and strengthening the connective tissue between businesses, applications, and data.

To learn more or request a personalized demo today, talk to us.

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