In this age digital strategy is the business strategy. Marketing means digital marketing; manufacturing means smart manufacturing and if your supply chain is not digitally optimized your business can’t survive long. Most sales happen in the digital marketplace. Since most of the business transactions are processed at middleware. Your middleware strategy should be a key part of your digital strategy. Although middleware has been the least exciting part of IT, it is the core of digital capability that provides integration capability across the enterprise and connectivity across partners and customers. Middleware provides partners and customers access to your digital marketplace, services, and products
What is middleware?
Everything that comes between the app and persistent store is middleware. Why is middleware important? Think about Kafka for LinkedIn. Zuul for Netflix. The complex interactions between microservices, legacy systems, commercial applications, devices, client-facing apps and even among businesses are all carried out by some sort of middleware. The messaging middleware, API gateways, integration platforms like ESB or iPaaS, process servers, and many more platforms all are part of the middleware stack.
Why middleware is important?
Middleware is where most chaos happens and most inefficiencies are found. This is the place where most resources are consumed and most of your digital action happens. Each user interaction results in many interactions in the middleware.
· Align Middleware Strategy with Digital Strategy
· Understand Business Priorities and Focus on outcomes
· Create inventory and Measure ROI
· Minimize the number of platforms
· Centralize Platform Management – One Platform, One Team, One Console
· Build Expertise
· Use Low Coding Approach
· Be cloud-agnostic – middleware should work the same on prem or in any cloud
· Minimize Spread – Don’t exist in seven clouds and numerous SaaS
· Avoid Vendor Locking – iPaaS should be used for stitching services into flows
· Monitor Systems, Integrations, and Processes
· Gather KPIs, Measure ROI, and Optimize Processes
Your Unique Reality
Your middleware strategy should be based on your unique business reality. A strategy devoid of reality will just stay in the documents. Different industries adopt technology each at a different pace. The pace of technology adoption and complexity of systems and processes in Banking, Insurance and HealthCare industries are different than in the manufacturing and technology space. Some businesses are inherently hitech.
Irrespective of the industry, leadership support is crucial to the success of any strategy. Many leaders dedicatedly do the yearly planning and strategy sessions but because of day-to-day responsibilities leave the execution to the team. The success of execution depends on leadership commitment and support all year round.