Expertise

Enterprise Integration

I connect systems that don't talk to each other. Unified data flows without duplication.

Every point-to-point integration is technical debt. When a company has 5 systems and 10 connections between them — that’s manageable. When there are 15 systems and 40 connections — it’s a web that can’t be maintained, documented, or evolved. One failure causes a cascade, and only the developer who built it three years ago can find the cause.

I don’t configure ESBs — that’s for engineers. My job is to build a map of the company’s information landscape and design the target integration architecture. To define which system is the master source for each entity. To standardize API contracts so that connecting a new system is a predictable process, not a research project. To build in monitoring that detects a failure before the client does.

In Central Asia, the integration challenge is compounded by the fact that companies have historically grown through the acquisition of disparate systems from different vendors. Core banking from one supplier, CRM from another, billing from a third, HR entirely homegrown. Between them — people manually transferring data from one window to another. A properly designed integration layer not only eliminates double entry but opens up capabilities that didn’t exist before: cross-sectional analytics, automated triggers, a unified customer profile.

The key principle of my approach: don’t touch the core systems. The integration layer works on top of the existing landscape, connecting to systems through their standard APIs or adapters. This means the company gets a unified data picture without the risk of breaking what works.

Target Model

How It Should Work

The integration layer must ensure a unified data flow between systems: each fact recorded once and accessible to everyone who needs it.

Common Mistakes

Where Companies Typically Go Wrong

Point-to-point integrations — each pair of systems connected separately, creating a web

No API standards — every time the exchange format is invented from scratch

Data syncs once daily — already outdated by morning

No monitoring — integration errors are discovered by clients, not the system

Integration knowledge in one developer's head — when they leave, everything stops

File exchange instead of API — data loss, delays, manual fixes

Approach

What I Do in These Situations

I start with a map of the information landscape: what systems exist, what data flows between them, how frequently. I identify the master system for each entity — the single source of truth. I design the target integration model: API contracts, formats, sync frequency, error handling. And I build in monitoring from day one — so the system detects failures, not the client.

Team role: The team implements adapters, configures ESB/API Gateway, and tests data flows.

Results