Cloud-in-the-Corner Syndrome: SaaS Integration Strategies for Salesforce.com and Workday

Cloud-based service delivery methods  are accelerating. Simply look at the growing enterprise adoption of Salesforce SFA/CRM, Workday HR, Netsuite ERP, Oracle on Demand, Force.com for apps and Amazon Web Services (AWS) for e-commerce.

However the growing adoption creates one of the biggest challenges facing CIOs today – how do you implement new SaaS delivery models while still integrating with the the mission-critical apps you’ve invested in for years?

If SaaS integration is not planned properly, it creates a “cloud in the corner” syndrome – a condition where new cloud-based SaaS solutions are disconnected from existing IT resources. The result: fragmented enterprise data scattered across the cloud.

Clearly, automating the moving, monitoring, securing and synchronization of data across clouds is no longer a “nice-to-have” but “must-have” capability. However, few firms are preparing for this emerging challenge.