Why Choose Breadwinner?

Breadwinner is not just another integration tool. It’s a comprehensive solution designed to connect your sales data from Salesforce with your financial data in Xero. This connection provides monumental gains in workflow automation without the monumental task typically associated with such integrations. Breadwinner’s robust automation tools are built with flexibility, security, efficacy, and ease-of-use in mind.

Whether you’re an admin, a power user, a consultant, or a developer, Breadwinner’s automation solutions are designed for all user experience levels. This inclusivity ensures that integrating Xero and Salesforce is not a time-consuming or costly endeavour, adding value to your business in hours or days, rather than weeks or months.

The Breadwinner Advantage

Streamlined Workflows

With Breadwinner, repetitive and tedious tasks that consume your teams’ time become a thing of the past. The integration allows sales and finance teams to access and edit Xero contact details directly within Salesforce. This two-way sync ensures any changes made are automatically reflected in Xero, eliminating the need to switch between multiple platforms for simple data entry tasks.

Quick and Secure Integration

Implementing Breadwinner is a breeze. Its out-of-the-box functionality means you can unlock the benefits of integration without hours of setup. Secure operations are a priority, with features like Read-Only mode and user permissions sets ensuring data integrity and security.

Real-Time Data for Informed Decisions

The real-time mirroring of data between Salesforce and Xero can significantly enhance your revenue growth. Access to up-to-date financial and sales data empowers team members to make informed decisions, thereby increasing revenue and transforming your organisation’s productivity.

Purpose-Built for Efficiency

While iPaaS platforms may offer a wide range of integrations, they often overlook the specific needs of each application, leading to frustration and inefficiency. Breadwinner’s purpose-built solution for Xero and Salesforce integration addresses this issue, providing a streamlined and efficient experience without the need for technical expertise.

Key Benefits and Outcomes

• Improved Productivity: Save valuable staff time by eliminating double data entry and allowing team members to edit client contact details directly from Salesforce.
• Accelerated Sales Cycle: Create Xero invoices directly from Salesforce, speeding up the time-to-payment.
• Increased Accuracy: Access critical data in real-time and pre-populate fields in your Xero invoices from Salesforce, ensuring accuracy and efficiency.
• Enhanced Tracking: Track invoice status within Salesforce, making it easier and faster to manage payment collections.

A Success Story: Scout Talent

Scout Talent, a client of NetEngine, has successfully utilised the integration of Xero and Salesforce via Breadwinner, aligning their sales and finance data seamlessly. This integration has empowered them to streamline their business processes, enhance productivity, and ultimately, drive growth.

Integrating Xero and Salesforce using Breadwinner offers a myriad of benefits, from improving productivity to enhancing decision-making with real-time data access. It’s a testament to the possibilities when sales and finance teams are perfectly in sync, facilitated by the right technology.

For an in-depth understanding and specifics on how Breadwinner achieves this seamless integration, please refer to the detailed information provided on their website at Breadwinner’s Xero Salesforce Integration.

The post How to Integrate Xero and Salesforce Using Breadwinner: A Guide for Streamlining Your Sales and Finance Teams first appeared on NetEngine.

As leaders, we must learn to answer these questions and be aware of the ethical challenges that face this innovation. We must collaborate across fields and sectors, ensuring transparency, accountability, and fairness in AI development and deployment.

Today we will tackle issues like data misuse, job displacement, and AI ethics frameworks. Let’s not just drive AI forward, let’s steer it toward a more equitable and ethical future together.

Data Misuse

Data is the fuel that drives AI’s engine. Data is shaping AI’s decisions and influencing its outcomes. If you’re fueling it with premium you’ll be great! But contaminated fuel corrupts your engine, causing it to lack power and performance – eventually leading to engine failure. Data Misuse poses a critical challenge to ethical AI for this reason.

Imagine a corrupted AI, trained by biased datasets perpetuating discrimination. Or AI fueled by stolen personal information, infringing on people’s privacy. The consequences can be extremely harmful to AI and to our users.

So how can we, as leaders, become champions of ethical data practices? One way is fostering Data Transparency. Demystify your data collection and usage for your users. Ensure you communicate what data is collected, how it’s used, and exactly who has access to it. Also, incorporate clear opt-in/opt-out options that give users control over their data. This builds trust and reassures your users.

Data transparency is just one way of becoming a champion of ethical data use. Leaders can always prioritise data security, promote ethical data culture, and address data bias. With transparency establishing a foundation of trust, let’s now explore the potential impact of AI on the workforce, specifically, the concern of job displacement.

Job Displacement

The automation of time-consuming tasks powered by AI shows significant gains in efficiency and productivity. The real neat thing about AI is that it never needs a break to complete these tasks. It’s always there, ready to work. However this progress comes with a trade off. Job displacement. As AI takes over repetitive and routine tasks, some jobs become obsolete, leading to unemployment for many employees and economic disruption. This change doesn’t just hurt the real people behind the job titles and their families, but could hurt the world as a whole.

This raises a massive ethical dilema. Business leaders must grapple with the responsibility of ensuring the security of their workers who may be impacted by automation. Reskilling and upskilling initiatives are key in minimising the negative impacts of AI automation being integrated into your workforce.

Reskilling and upskilling initiatives, such as training programs in data science or cybersecurity, equip individuals with the in-demand skills needed to remain competitive and adapt to new opportunities. The World Economic Forum estimates that by 2025, half of all employees will need reskilling due to automation, highlighting the urgency of investing in these initiatives. By providing individuals with the tools to navigate the changing landscape, we can ensure a smoother transition into the AI-driven future of work.

AI Ethics Frameworks

In light of the ethical challenges associated with AI, numerous bodies and organisations have adopted AI ethics frameworks. These are sets of rules and standards meant to direct the proper creation, application, and usage of AI.

The OECD’s AI Principles provide a comprehensive framework for responsible AI development and deployment. These principles emphasise human-centred values. They also advocate for fairness, transparency, accountability, robustness, safety, and societal benefit, guiding the creation of AI systems that are unbiased, understandable, answerable, reliable, secure, and ultimately, contribute positively to society.

These frameworks offer valuable guidance for organisations working with AI, but they remain dynamic and evolving. The field of AI ethics is constantly exploring new challenges and potential solutions, requiring continuous dialogue and adaptation.

By actively engaging with AI ethics frameworks and incorporating their principles into our practices, business leaders can contribute to a future where AI serves as a force for good, benefitting both employees and society as a whole.

Responsibly shaping AI’s future is our collective responsibility. Let’s build a world where this innovation serves as a force for good, driving progress towards a more ethical and equitable society.

The post The Future of AI: Ethical Considerations for Responsible Development and Deployment first appeared on NetEngine.

This blog exemplifies how we at NetEngine (your local face-to-face development house) seek to bring your digital vision to life. With a team comprised of front and back-end developers, a UI/UX designer, and a solutions architect, let’s plug into the future of tech leadership and innovation together.

Foundational Terms:

Minimum Viable Product (MVP)

Essence: Launching with the bare essentials to test and refine based on real user feedback.
Illustration: Launching a social networking app with just profile creation and messaging to gauge engagement and iterate rapidly.

Iterative Development

Essence: Evolving through rapid cycles of creation, feedback, and improvement.
Illustration: Developing a software in short sprints, allowing for frequent reassessment and adaptation to user needs and market dynamics.

Design Thinking (UI/UX)

Essence: Crafting solutions with a deep focus on user needs and experiences.
Illustration: Designing an e-commerce site where ease of navigation and aesthetic appeal lead to an engaging and seamless shopping experience.

API Integration

Essence: Seamlessly connecting different software components and services.
Illustration: Embedding a third-party payment system into an app to provide secure and diverse payment options.

Cloud Innovation

Essence: Leveraging cloud technologies for scalability and agility.
Illustration: Utilizing cloud platforms for deploying applications that automatically scale during peak traffic times.

Data-Driven Decision Making

Essence: Using insights from data analytics to guide strategic decisions.
Illustration: Analysing user interaction data to enhance feature sets or remove bottlenecks in an application.

Flexible Project Management

Essence: Adapting project plans in response to new insights and changes.
Illustration: Shifting priorities in a project based on user feedback or emerging tech trends without derailing timelines.

Engaging User Onboarding

Essence: Intuitively guiding users to effectively utilise new products.
Illustration: Interactive walkthroughs in a mobile app that educate users about key features through engagement rather than instruction.

Innovative Growth Strategies

Essence: Utilising creative and often unconventional methods to fuel rapid growth.
Illustration: Implementing a gamified referral system that rewards users for bringing in new users, creating a viral growth effect.

Minimum Lovable Product (MLP)

Essence: Building products that resonate emotionally with users.
Illustration: Incorporating unique, delightful features that turn first-time users into passionate advocates.

Advanced Terms:

Microservices Architecture

Essence: Developing applications as a suite of small, independent services.
Illustration: A video streaming service where components like user profiles, content catalog, and recommendations are independently scalable and maintainable.

DevOps Culture

Essence: Unifying software development and operations to enhance agility and reliability.
Illustration: Continuous integration and deployment pipelines that ensure rapid, reliable software releases.

Continuous Innovation (CI/CD)

Essence: Maintaining a steady flow of updates and improvements through automation.
Illustration: Automated testing and deployment workflows that enable frequent and hassle-free updates to applications.

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning

Essence: Embedding intelligent algorithms to enhance user experiences and efficiency.
Illustration: A customer service chatbot that learns from interactions to provide more accurate and helpful responses over time.

Big Data Insights

Essence: Harnessing vast datasets to uncover trends and inform strategies.
Illustration: Analyzing large-scale user data to predict market trends and inform product development directions.

Blockchain for Trust

Essence: Enhancing security and transparency with decentralised record-keeping.
Illustration: A decentralised app (dApp) for secure, transparent voting in organisational decisions.

Precision Targeting

Essence: Crafting personalised experiences for distinct user segments.
Illustration: Tailoring app interfaces and content based on user preferences and behaviors, enhancing relevance and engagement.

Achieving Product-Market Fit

Essence: Fine-tuning offerings to meet the exact needs of the target market.
Illustration: Iteratively refining a health app to align perfectly with the lifestyle and goals of fitness enthusiasts.

Leveraging Network Effects

Essence: Maximising value as the user base expands.
Illustration: A messaging app that becomes more indispensable to its users as more of their contacts join.

Bonus Insight:

Scrum Methodology

Essence: Agile framework for managing complex projects, emphasising flexibility and team collaboration.

Illustration: Using sprint cycles for a development team to tackle high-priority features first, ensuring rapid delivery and frequent reassessment.

Embracing these concepts will not only deepen your understanding of the technological landscape but also position you as a leader capable of driving meaningful innovation. Stay ahead of the curve, and lead your teams to new heights of success in the ever-changing world of technology. Stay tuned for more insights from NetEngine as we continue to empower Tech Leaders with the knowledge to thrive in the world of work-tech.

The post Tech Terms Glossary: Essential Concepts for Visionary Leaders first appeared on NetEngine.

Embarking on the journey to build a digital project in 2024 is an exciting venture, but you need to know what to look for in a developer. First things first, if you haven’t already, read our blog on ‘what you should consider before you start developing’. In that blog post, we explain the importance of market research, understanding your unique selling proposition, and what different developers can do.

Now that you have the groundwork you can get into the really fun stuff, finding a developer to bring your project to life. In this blog we’ll go over three things you should look for in your development partner – if they don’t have all three of these, keep looking!

Research: Tailoring solutions to your vision

Before diving into the development process, take a moment to find a partner that truly understands your unique needs. Whether you’re a startup with innovative ideas or an established corporate entity with a vision for growth, the emphasis is on finding a collaborator that aligns with your goals. Assess the fit between your vision and their capabilities, setting the foundation for a successful partnership that revolves around your aspirations.

If you’re looking for a local development partner you can meet face-to-face, NetEngine is a fantastic choice. We’re an Australian based team who value transparency and clarity on every project, and there’s no better way to achieve that, than being able to chat in person at our office. The NetEngine team love visiting clients Australia wide. Communication is critical to your project’s success and nothing beats being able to meet in person to discuss fixes, new ideas, or changes.

Team Members: Know the skills you’ll have access to

When looking for a development partner, make sure you ask them who you will access to. Your development team should consist of the following members, a Project Manager, who will spearhead your project and be your liaison throughout your development journey. Front end and back end developers, or a full stack developer with skills in both areas. This way you know the look and feel of your project has a dedicated team member on the front end, while the back end has someone who takes care of the site’s structure, system, date and logic. Full stack developers are skilled in both areas so if your choice of developer has them, then that’s a plus as well. You need to know if there is a UI/UX designer available as well. The UI/UX designer creates the user interface for your project, they understand user needs, and can help keep your interface in line with your brand needs.

Here at NetEngine the team comprises all of the above. With over 16 years of experience in work tech development. They are a highly skilled and experienced team that know how to listen to your goals and gain a deep understanding of your project. When you work with NetEngine you know you’re in capable hands, and have access to a team of specialists who can help bring your digital vision to life. You can watch our client case studies to get an idea of what working with NetEngine is like.

Competitive Pricing: How much does it all cost?

It’s important to understand your budget, and communicate this with your prospective developers to ensure your budget and their estate aligns. It’s crucial that you can have transparent conversations with your developer about what you can achieve with the budget you have available.

Here at NetEngine, we pride ourselves on providing cost effective development solutions. Our processes ensure we are clear with our clients about what the team can produce while staying within your budget, and our agile methodology approach to development allows us to be extremely flexible with what we prioritise working on, further helping us keep developing within budget.

Reach out to NetEngine today if you want to learn more about how we can help bring your digital vision to life.

The post 3 Things to look for in your development partner in 2024 first appeared on NetEngine.

The post Embracing agile innovation first appeared on NetEngine.

Q: Hi, Steve! Why don’t you tell us a little bit about your background? 

After graduating from the University of Queensland with a Physics degree, my professional career commenced as a Nuclear Physicist in the Physics Division at Ansto, where I developed new methods for the precise analysis of Beta and Gamma particles from radioactive materials. From early on I naturally gravitated towards innovation, coding, statistical modelling and software development.    

Throughout my career, I’ve enjoyed leading challenging R&D projects involving a mix of people, technology, data and process. Some of my past roles include: Research Scientist, Software Engineer, Data Scientist, Software Quality Manager, Process Improvement Lead and Six Sigma Black Belt. 

I’ve been fortunate to travel widely for work and have represented Australia on International Committees, Collaborative projects and Conferences. These rewarding experiences have enabled me to develop into a well-rounded and pragmatic leader in Software Engineering, Data Science and Innovation.  

Q: What attracted you to the world of software and web development?

Personally, I enjoy the technical challenge of software development and love collaborating with really smart, motivated people working on innovative solutions. I relish the opportunity to understand what customers really need and their constraints. I also enjoyed the practice of cross-discipline collaboration to deliver innovative solutions to meet those customer needs.  

Q: What has been your proudest moment in your career so far?

There have been many proud moments throughout my career. Over time these moments have shifted my personal accomplishments to being proud of my team’s achievements. I’m especially proud of the professional growth and achievements of former team members who I mentored from early in their careers; especially those I’m still in contact with as friends.     

Q: What are you most excited about in your role?

Developing high-performing teams, applying the amazing potential of AI and advanced data analytics to solving real-world problems, and developing expertise in the world of work tech.

Q: What excites you about NetEngine’s vision for the future?

I’m excited about NetEngine continuing to forge its place as a leader in work tech. Our work on AI, combined with a dynamic, global team that approaches client work with enthusiasm, makes me excited for NetEngine’s vision for growth. 

I’m also excited to speak with clients, new and old, about our workshop approach, bringing their digital visions to life, and supporting their projects. If you’d like to chat with me, you can get in touch here.

Q: Finally, a fun one to end – what’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Iterate. Be clear about your purpose, identify a goal, then give it a go. Don’t let perfection be the enemy of good. Course correct as you learn & things change. Trust your instincts. Use data to make good decisions, consult widely and don’t overthink it. Boldness has genius, magic and power in it. 

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has”  – Margaret Mead

The post Q&A with Steve Buckman first appeared on NetEngine.

Leading this project is frontend developer, Phil Cantrel, who shares his thoughts below on AI: what it is, what about it sparked his interest, and how it is transforming technology.

What is AI and how is it changing technology?

AI (Artificial Intelligence) is a rapidly developing field that encompasses a range of technologies that allow machines to learn and act without explicit programming. These fields include machine learning, natural language processing and computer vision. Instead of programmers needing a deep understanding of a problem and its underlying patterns, they can now ‘train’ neural networks, which are based loosely on the structure of the human brain.

The training process typically involves feeding large amounts of relevant data to the neural network, with modifications being made to its parameters via techniques such as supervised, unsupervised and reinforcement learning to optimise its output.

This new way of approaching computing has allowed for massive improvements in technologies that process and generate written content, contextualise and understand images and video, transcribe and synthesise human speech, write computer code and even generate original artwork.

According to the Harvard Business Review (Davenport and Ronanki, 2018, p. 110), AI can be categorised into three broad types, each of which supports one of these business needs: automating business processes, gaining insight through data analysis, and engaging with customers and employees. NetEngine’s initial phase of work with Scout Talent falls into process automation, allowing for automated content generation (such as job descriptions) as part of their end-to-end talent acquisition process.

What drove my interest in AI?

I’ve always had an interest in computing and the possibilities of disruptive fields in tech. As such, I’ve made a habit of keeping up to date with new ideas and development in the space.

My interest specifically in the field of AI was sparked in 2010 with Google’s driverless car endeavours, which used computer vision to enable the cars to navigate in real world spaces. After that, it was the development of AI systems that could beat human players in games like Go and DOTA2, along with more recent advancements in text and image generation, that prompted me to explore how I could use the technology in my work at NetEngine.

I got support from my team leaders to pursue research into AI, which culminated in my using the learnings from my personal development time to integrate GPT-3 into one of Scout Talent’s existing products to demonstrate its ability to automate content generation.

Who’s making big moves in AI?

Google, Amazon, Facebook, IBM, Microsoft, Tesla and Apple have all made significant investments in AI research and development to improve their products and services. For example, Google has been implementing AI over several years to provide better search results, create their Google Assistant, improve the accuracy of their language translation services, organise and tag images in Google Photos, and develop driverless cars (Waymo) – just to name a few.

There has been a recent emergence of new competitors in the field, the biggest of which is OpenAI, a company built with the sole purpose of developing useful AI models. Their DALLE-2 model has allowed users to generate original images and artwork based on text prompts while their GPT-3 language model has been used to create the very popular ChatGPT website which allows users to ask an AI chatbot to perform a variety of tasks, from answering questions to creating blog posts and much more with impressive results.

Microsoft are now considering a $10 billion investment in OpenAI, which is in addition to their current strong partnership. At present, Microsoft provides its Azure cloud infrastructure for the training and deployment of OpenAI’s models and has exclusive licence to some of OpenAI’s technology.

How can I get in on the action?

As researching, training and developing AI models requires significant capital investment, as well as experts in the machine learning field, smaller companies and startups are often unable to make their own proprietary AI models.

Many of these smaller companies have instead turned to established AI providers such as OpenAI and Google, leveraging their existing pre-trained AI models and cloud infrastructure, available via easy-to-use APIs, to develop new products and integrate AI technology into their software and services. Jasper, a recent AI startup with a $1.5B valuation, specialises in generating blogs, landing pages, video scripts, social media posts, images and more. It primarily uses OpenAI’s GPT-3 and DALL-E 2 products as its underlying technology to provide its services.

There are also alternative ‘open-source’ AI models such as BLOOM (a language model similar to GPT-3) and Stable Diffusion (a text-to-image model) which can be freely downloaded and deployed, removing the necessity to lock into a specific AI vendor and their pricing model.

The future that AI represents is vast and many of its potential applications are yet to be implemented and monetised. As AI evolves and improves, we will see more companies and startups capitalising on the opportunities it presents. Artificial Intelligence is on a path to significantly transform the way we live and work, making it important for companies to stay informed and ready to adapt in order to stay competitive.

Interested in implementing AI to fulfil your work tech business needs? Get in touch with us here.

About the Author

The post What is AI and how is it changing technology? first appeared on NetEngine.

:Recruit is a robust candidate management and applicant tracking system that enables organisations to manage their entire talent acquisition process. Through Scout Talent :Recruit, users can post jobs, track applications, review candidates, schedule interviews and store candidate data, all in one centralised place.

Building the Scout Talent App was a significant project led by Dan Tomasic, NetEngine Frontend Team Lead. Read on to learn more about his experience working on the app.

What was the brief for this project?

Dan T: The brief was for the App to be a mobile version of :Recruit that would allow hiring managers to access candidate applications and utilise other functions of the system on the go. Having a more accessible version of :Recruit would allow clients to reduce their time to hire and drive their talent acquisition process no matter where they are.

Our priorities were to make it easy to use, in order to facilitate a simple process for hiring managers to access, review and process candidate applications. We also had to consider app functionalities such as receiving notifications, to allow hiring managers–who are already so busy during the day–to view updates quickly and maximise their productivity.

The scope of the project was for the App to have the same complex functionality of the :Recruit module and work smoothly across both Android and Apple operating systems. 

What work did you do on this project?

DT: To start this project, we ran some workshops involving key stakeholders from NetEngine and Scout Talent; these included web developers, the CEO of Scout Talent, and :Recruit specialists who interacted with the software day in and day out. In these workshops, we discussed what we wanted the Scout Talent App to achieve, as well as what key functionalities it should have and what it should look like.

From these workshops, we split the work across our team of about 5-6 web developers working on the project. Usually, for a client project, we would do the work in sprints, but for this project, we did it in milestones – for example, we marked the project with major milestones such as full login flow created or video viewing functionality enabled.

We built the App in React Native, a coding framework that allowed us to simultaneously develop the App for both Android and Apple. Using this framework made the development process more efficient and allowed us to test and create fixes across both versions more easily.

In terms of UX/UI, the brief was for the Scout Talent App design to be consistent with :Recruit. The desktop :Recruit module is currently undergoing UX/UI updates, so the App was designed with that in mind, meaning the look and feel of it aligns with the new UX/UI of :Recruit. Essentially, the idea was that the transition from the desktop module to the App should be seamless for the user.

What were some challenges you encountered and how did you overcome them?

DT: The biggest challenge in creating this App was to make sure it ran quickly and was simple to use for hiring managers. The way we overcame both these challenges was to ensure we performed lots of tests, and put in a lot of consideration for the UX/UI.

We did a test at the end of each major milestone (which usually marked the completion of a major feature) using dummy data; these tests were done with internal stakeholders at Scout Talent, mainly people who used :Recruit frequently and are familiar with how it should work.

These tests checked that the new features of each milestone worked correctly, and that the App as a whole worked smoothly. As is typical with app development, challenges arose from these tests; for example, we had to ensure that the App supported specific older versions of Android. To make sure the App worked across so many versions of operating systems, we had to take our time, checking that we didn’t break the versions that did work by fixing the ones that didn’t. 

In terms of UX/UI, the only real challenge was time. Our UX/UI designer had lots of great ideas, but we had to consider what was viable within the project timelines. We had to consolidate all these ideas down to what was necessary for the App before it went to market, in order for us to get it done within the timeline.

What was your favourite part of working on this project?

DT: The best thing about this project was that it was quite a unique one to work on. Building the App completely from scratch with close input from the Scout Talent team was something I hadn’t done before. Being able to drive the project from an idea to what it is now, a fully-fledged App, was a lot of fun. 

Our team really enjoyed having influence over the look and feel of the App, and feeling ownership over the project. Overall, it was satisfying to see a final product that fulfilled the requirements set out in the brief.

What was the outcome?

DT: The outcome was that we created what the brief set out: the Scout Talent App available today is a mobile version of :Recruit that allows hiring managers to have oversight of their talent acquisition process no matter where they are. 

Between the start of the project and its completion, our initial ideas and designs definitely changed. App development is always an agile process. Similar to other projects, we found along the way that certain workflows didn’t quite make sense to the plan anymore, so we had to pivot to keep the App in line with our objectives.

Along the way, we also came up with extra functionalities and features that would enhance the user experience and achieve Scout Talent’s goal for the App to help connect people to grow companies, careers and communities. One example is that we included animations in the cards that appear when users are swiping through applicants; it’s a small addition, but one that enhances the interactivity and experience for the user.

All in all, the Scout Talent App we rolled out aligned closely with the initial project brief and scope – it was functional for both Android and Apple devices, and included all the key features of :Recruit, as well as additional mobile features, like push notifications.

Want to create your own app?

If reading about the Scout Talent App has inspired an app idea for your organisation, or if you have a digital vision you’d like to bring to life, get in touch with us here.

The post Building the Scout Talent App first appeared on NetEngine.

The problem magnifies at work if your internal and external teams use different apps day-to-day. If your apps don’t talk to one another, how much time is wasted circumventing these processes and manually shuttling data back and forth? Software integration is a common issue facing organisations, regardless of industry or size. If apps don’t have a way to speak to one another, this can lead to a siloed business, with vital information slipping through the cracks. 

Thankfully, software integration is now simple, straightforward, and cost-effective. There are countless solutions to help your organisation’s apps and data communicate with one another, and NetEngine is highly skilled at helping you achieve this. This article will focus on the basics of software integration, and how they can help your business run effectively and efficiently. 

What is software integration?

Before we dive into how integrating software can help your business achieve quantifiable goals, let’s unpack what we mean when we’re talking about software integration. 

Integration is the process of creating a system where two separate pieces of software can communicate with each other. It helps overcome the issue of isolated data by rerouting existing systems to talk to each other and share key information. Integrations can be scalable, so as a business grows, so can its tech capabilities. 

While integration approaches differ depending on the size of the organisation, smaller companies without internal development teams often opt for external Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions. This allows them to upgrade their business offering without having to manage the process themselves. 

Some organisations, like GO1, are large and have their own development teams but choose to outsource their integrations to teams like NetEngine in order to seamlessly integrate their content and expand their capacity while they prioritise scaling their business. 

Having dedicated SaaS specialists integrate your software architecture makes life easier, and as an added perk, many of them make their Application Programming Interface (API) public. This helps you scale the scope of your integrations as your business grows.

What kind of software can be integrated?

Long story short, there are few limits to what kind of software can be integrated into an existing platform. Before we explore that, let’s explore what an API is, and how this can expand your integration possibilities.

The HubSpot team put it very succinctly when they described apps as cities, and the APIs of each app as the directions to access that city. This is how we define native integrations; integrations that are built directly into the interface of the existing app. While native integrations are conveniently adapted into the existing app environment, they are time-consuming to complete and often internal teams only have the capacity to carry out integrations with a few apps.

Often, in order to complete native integrations efficiently and on scale, organisations will get some support from external web plug-ins and software, and won’t have their in-house development teams do that work. In times like this, when you need to integrate software internally to standardise best practice, you’ll need to use Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS), a form of middleware. 

An iPaaS specialises in integrating siloed software. When there are multiple widgets within an organisation that need to talk to one another, an iPaaS is highly effective to align databases and standardise data for everyone that needs to access it. NetEngine is an industry leader when it comes to iPaaS, and we love working with clients to find a tailored software integration solution that fits their needs. We take a hands-on approach to software integration, and believe that workshopping issues with a client helps set actionable goals to help your business grow. 

Integration solutions in action

If you think about the amount of personal information you volunteer for different platforms, you’ll get a good picture of the sheer amount of data we process daily. Integrations start by identifying which data is needed to create a cohesive client profile, and then flagging similar data across platforms to ensure all content is in sync. Using an iPaaS, also referred to as middleware, is our method of aligning all relevant content to create a fully integrated solution. 

Take GO1 for example, an existing NetEngine integration client. GO1 is a tech unicorn and has the largest e-learning library in the world, with an innovative format of making content discoverable and available through a subscription model. In order to make sure clients’ content was compatible with the e-learning library system, NetEngine used iPaaS to develop integration solutions so their course content would integrate seamlessly with GO1’s API. 

As GO1 is a large organisation with their own internal development team, you may think they have no need to outsource their integration solutions. But their strategy was to direct the majority of their internal resources to scaling the business and enriching their interface, and assigned their integrations to external software integrators like NetEngine to increase their capacity and complete work more quickly. NetEngine worked as a dedicated team that worked alongside GO1’s team, to complete integration solutions for GO1’s clients. 

This strategy was effective for GO1–through NetEngine, they gained an external software integrator team that allowed them to achieve development goals without compromising their service to their clients or the effectiveness of their software.

The reason they chose NetEngine over an overseas company or freelancer was that they wanted a team that was local, reliable, and great with clients and communication. Though GO1 is a global organisation, their head office is Brisbane, which matched well with our Australia-based developer team.

As we have demonstrated, NetEngine’s integration solutions are used by organisations large and small to increase their business’s capabilities without either managing the process themselves or allocating too much of their internal resources to it. 

If you need help scaling, advice on how to approach integrations internally, or a hands-on way to grow your business through our solutions, NetEngine can help. Contact us here to get started!

The post The Basics of Software Integration first appeared on NetEngine.

Recently, we hosted a webinar with Go1, a SaaS marketplace with e-learning content providers on one side and online consumers (businesses who use the content for compliance and professional development) on the other. Valued at over US$1 billion, Go1 has become Australia’s newest tech unicorn–and it’s easy to see why they shine. Their impressive pool of over 3.5 million learners is possible due to their unique main value proposition and their subscription model that gives users access to learning content all in one place. 

In our webinar, titled “Building trust and integration solutions”, Go1’s CIO Thomas Wythe and Senior Technical Project Manager, Ric Fry, spoke with NetEngine Project Lead, Mersija Mujic, and Senior Software Development and Team Leader, Eduardo Ramos, about their experience working together towards integration solutions and what that process looked like. 

As the world becomes more and more technology-driven, it’s become imperative that users have valuable experiences through seamless integrations on the platforms they use. As you will hear in the webinar, integrations have become stand-alone services that software development companies such as NetEngine can offer.

The context of the project

Go1 has the largest e-learning library in the world and an innovative format of making content discoverable and available through a subscription model. So, it only makes sense that they want to grow and make sure the user experience remains smooth. 

Thomas Wythe explained that after realising that they wanted their internal team’s priorities to be scaling and enriching their interfaces, they developed APIs on both sides of the marketplace, with the intention of outsourcing their integrations to external software integrators such as NetEngine. The desired outcome of this project was to develop solid middleware that would integrate the APIs of Go1 and the clients’, creating a seamless experience for users as the platform grew.

Some of the reasons tech companies like Go1 would outsource integrations are:

• To meet tight deadlines
• To focus on growth
• To increase capacity

Wythe detailed that Go1 wanted “to prove that this model of outsourcing some integrations would enable both sides of [their] marketplace to grow quickly, creating a flywheel of momentum”. They came up with their own system of how to work with external software integrators to enable this model–NetEngine fit within their build, as Go1 wanted a team that worked independently and reliably.

Our team worked almost as an extension of theirs, joining Go1 internal meetings and communication channels. NetEngine worked with Go1’s clients, specifically their learning resource providers, to integrate their content with the e-learning platform and make the client’s course creation interface customisable. Refining this user experience was an intensive, collaborative process: together with Go1, we pressure tested, improved and ‘sanded’ the developer experience.

The end result is that NetEngine helped Go1 realise their innovative vision of outsourcing their integration to facilitate a smooth user journey, allowing their internal team to focus on scaling and enriching their interfaces.

How you can work with NetEngine

Our webinar discussing our work with Go1 is a shining example of a successful partnership creating integration solutions. NetEngine is constantly working with our clients to create tailored integration solutions that achieve their goals.

We can help you achieve a range of goals through integrations, including:

• Increasing your team capacity to complete work faster
• Outsourcing your integrations to allow your team to focus on scaling
• Making your systems more efficient 
• Delivering microservices to increase your product’s functionality

An important deciding factor with all of our partnerships is whether our services will be a good fit for you. During our initial communications, we will discuss goals, the scope of your project and expectations to determine how we will progress.

The benefit of working with NetEngine is our process is extremely communicative and collaborative–as mentioned in the webinar, we are an in-house, Australia-based team that will work closely with you in local time to achieve your goals.

If you want to know more about how you can work with us, get in touch here.

You can also watch our Go1 webinar, Building trust and integration solutions, here.

The post Outsourcing Integration Solutions first appeared on NetEngine.