David Linthicum, CTO of Blue Mountain Labs, discussed 5 critical success factors for Data Integration projects. Although all 5 are important, one jumped out at me and it may not be the one most successful cloud technology individuals gravitate towards first....
"Understand your business" is sometimes lost in the race to generate the best data integration product or project. The thought that , "Well, if we understand the data, understand the rules, and have the mechanisms, that should be enough" has typically been the mantra I have seen in many integration projects.
I am glad David pointed out the importance of understanding the business, because it is something I do first in every engagement. Understanding and mapping the inherent business processes that touch each data integration point is key in understanding and developing an effective integration plan. Each piece of data being integrated touches and more importantly, supports business processes. Understanding those business processes will help you avoid any lost integration points and will more importantly allow you to anticipate needs your customer may not even know they have.
