Manufacturers won’t make the move to cloud computing until they can easily integrate off-site edge applications with on-premise legacy data. Now, it appears there are some easier ways to do just that.
Earlier this month, Jitterbit released a new version of its enterprise integration tool that it says makes connecting on-premise systems with cloud-based applications as easy as point and click.
I can just hear you snarling, “Integration is never that easy.” And, honestly, I have never tried Jitterbit 4.0, with its “revamped interface” and “no-code graphical drag-and-drop data mapping,” so I’m not going to be the one to try to convince you that the days of painful programming are gone. But I for one am convinced that cloud computing’s infrastructure has created an opportunity for middleware vendors to deliver new ways to port on-site applications to off-site data centers. And the only way they can create a following of cloud-based believers, is to make it easy.
Indeed, with the manufacturing industry short on start-ups these days, legacy data is the stuff most businesses are built on, and finding simple ways to port that data to the Web is the key to cloud computing adoption.
That opportunity has spawned new types of enterprise integrators. Companies like Jitterbit, CloudSwitch (named one of Managing Automation’s “Companies to Watch” in 2011), Boomi (a 2008 “Company to Watch”), and Cast Iron Systems are storming onto the scene to help manufacturers and others move to a hybrid cloud business model, in which mission-critical applications typically remain on-premise and edge applications are managed remotely.
These vendors are an important piece in the SaaS puzzle. A new Forrester Research report on 2011 integration trends says that integration challenges are the second most common reason, after security concerns, for firms not to adopt SaaS applications.
According the report: “Forrester has discussed these integration challenges with many clients through inquiries, and today most are using labor-intensive custom programming to surmount these obstacles, with some limited help from integration adapters. Fortunately, emerging on-premises solutions for data services, comprehensive integration, or integration appliances are beginning to deliver more features for integrating on-premises apps with SaaS apps. So expect to see increasing demand for integration coupled with improved integration capabilities fueling more integration and more SaaS adoption in a virtuous circle.”
It is worth noting, too, that last year IBM acquired Cast Iron and Dell acquired Boomi. These behemoths are no strangers to application integration, yet they bought the technology and expertise needed to ensure they have the strongest cloud migration tools available. That is a clear indication that these cloud integration offerings add value. It also signals that other application and system vendors may be on the acquisition path. Keep a close eye on Jitterbit and CloudSwitch over the next few months.
Who do you consider the other cloud integration vendors worth watching in 2011?
2 Trackbacks
[...] has to wonder whether some of the new integration appliances and brokering services emerging, including Jitterbit, CloudSwitch, Cast Iron, Boomi, and Vordel, will address these challenges. [...]
[...] has to wonder whether some of the new integration appliances and brokering services emerging, including Jitterbit, CloudSwitch, Cast Iron, Boomi, and Vordel, will address these challenges. [...]