An iPaaS - meaning ‘integration Platform as a Service' - also known as a cloud integration platform, enables companies to connect any two or more software, systems, cloud applications, APIs, data points, business processes, or other digital business solutions, via one user-friendly interface. An iPaaS is essentially a web-based no-code solution that presents a user-friendly interface to create, monitor or manage cloud integrations, without any coding expertise.
Alumio’s iPaaS definition: a cloud-based integration Platform as a Service or ‘Middleware’ that simplifies connecting software, systems and business processes, via a user-friendly interface
While the advisory firm Gartner is credited for coining the term iPaaS in November 2011, the company Boomi is known to have used the term even earlier in 2008.
Understanding the basics of next-gen system integrations for digital growth
The traditional way to integrate software is through custom code or by using plugins, which involves expensive and extensive projects, as well as third-party dependency. In contrast, an iPaaS is a no-code cloud integration platform that helps create integrations via a user-friendly interface, without deep coding expertise or programming knowledge. This means non-developers, data experts or even project managers can configure, monitor and manage software integrations from one dashboard.
An iPaaS integrates the APIs of your software or even the APIs of your relations to connect them via JSON, cXML, EDI or other formats. Integrating APIs via an iPaaS allows users the advantage of adding, replacing, or interchanging software seamlessly via its graphical user interface, and without the loss of data integrity. Centralizing all integrations on one central platform, an iPaaS prevents data silos and allows you full data control across all connected software, and this is also how an iPaaS helps businesses be compliant and secure.
Digitalize your business, accelerate growth and achieve operational excellence by automating your business processes, using an iPaaS. By helping you integrate with software, systems or RPA (Robotic Process Automation), an iPaaS enables you to streamline and automate repetitive manual processes such as mails to systems, excel work, invoice processing, hiring & onboarding, inventory management, payroll or customer support processes.
By automating the monitoring and logging of your integrations, an iPaaS saves you the trouble of having to manually detect integration errors or API conflicts, and it also offers automatic updates. Apart from helping you troubleshoot integrations and reducing integration error costs, the iPaaS also offers 360-degree customer insights across all connections. There are many more key benefits of an iPaaS and integration tools that it offers, which enables organizations to steadily expand their system integrations in a scalable, sustainable and future-proof way.
According to Gartner, “the iPaaS market growth slowed from a historical trajectory yet was over four times faster than the overall software markets, at 48%.
From integrating enterprise systems to eCommerce, to being ready to integrate with AI & ML
It is important to emphasize that an iPaaS is not just a key next-gen tool, but rather a holistic, future-proof cloud integration solution that’s here to stay. Explore the advantages that an iPaaS provides organizations directly or helps agencies and system integrators to benefit their clients with.
Build an API-led and scalable IT landscape with an iPaaS
Digitalize rapidly by integrating with all kinds software, systems or data points to automate your business processes.
Benefit from improved data access across your IT landscape, as the iPaaS continues to evolve with predictive technology.
Integrate with the APIs of just about any software or system with an iPaaS, to expand your business’ digital growth.
Interchange or modify your software integrations flexibly to match your evolving business needs.
An iPaaS makes it easier to comply with privacy legislation like GDPR, SOC2, CCPA, FERPA, and HIPAA.
Benefit from a three-pronged security approach to safeguard your data across all connected systems.
Upscale and organize your integrations as you grow via the iPaaS, to create a future-proof IT landscape.
Get 360-degree customer insights across all connected systems, allowing you to calculate the total lifetime value of a customer.
Discover how much ROI you can earn on your integrations
Looking to discover more on how to develop and maintain cost-effective integrations? Read more in-depth discussions about how an iPaaS helps increase ROI and reduce budget overruns:
Creating integrations without custom code and via a user-friendly interface
Once you recognize an iPaaS as a middleware that helps create connections with software, systems or data points on one central platform, how do you actually administer an iPaaS in your IT landscape? How quickly can you create a basic integration between two systems via the iPaaS interface? How less technically skilled does a professional have to be to create or manage an integration using an iPaaS? And what advanced tools does an iPaaS offer skilled senior developers to create complex and custom integrations?
Alumio’s iPaaS is designed to simplify creating and managing software integrations in a fast and flexible way.Based on headless Symfony technology, it also providing an open framework to create customizations and tackle edge cases. It comes fully equipped with integration tools and SDK (software development kit) to help customize integration to suit evolving business needs.
To explore detailed demos on how an iPaaS works from a Beginner’s or Expert’s perspective, feel free to watch Alumio's 'Experience iPaaS' webinars on demand, to experience how an iPaaS actually looks and works first-hand: