ONEiO's State of Integration Solutions 2025 report shows that companies now manage over 100 SaaS apps on average. This app's growth creates integration problems that could drain your resources and delay business results.

Application integration services could offer a solution, as they connect your separate systems automatically. 

This is why in this article, we cover what you need to know about application integration services. 

You'll understand what they are, their benefits, their challenges, and how to make the best decision on your integration service providers.

What is an application integration service?

An application integration service is a service that connects your different software applications so they can share data and work together smoothly. 

Application integration services eliminate manual data entry between systems, automate workflows across platforms, and ensure consistent information flow throughout your organization. 

Also, the application integration service handles the technical complexity of linking apps through APIs, middleware, or custom connections. This allows your business applications to function as a unified ecosystem.

What are the key benefits of application integration services? 

When requesting application integration services, you get 5 main benefits:

1. Improved efficiency

Application integration services automate repetitive tasks between your systems. You don't manually copy customer data from your CRM to your ticketing platform anymore. 

Integrated apps handle transfers automatically. 

• This cuts out duplicate work
• It reduces human errors
• And your team can focus on strategic work instead of data management.

2. Reduced costs

Integration services cut your operating costs. They eliminate manual processes and reduce system upkeep overhead. 

• You avoid hiring extra staff for data entry tasks. 
• Your current team becomes more productive. 
• They don't spend time on repetitive work. 
• Long-term savings build up through better accuracy and faster processing.

3. Enhanced collaboration

Connected apps let teams access consistent data across departments. 

• Sales updates in your CRM show up instantly in customer support systems.
• Marketing campaigns automatically trigger follow-up workflows in sales platforms.
• Everyone works with the same accurate, current info. 
  

This improves coordination and reduces miscommunication.

4. Better decision-making

Integrated systems give you complete data visibility for smart decisions. 

• You can analyze customer interactions across multiple touchpoints. 
• You can track project progress through various tools. 
• You can create reports combining data from different sources.

Real-time info access enables faster, more accurate business decisions.

5. Increased agility

Application integration services enable quick adaptation to changing business needs.

• You can rapidly add new apps to your ecosystem. 
• You don't need to rebuild existing connections. 
• When market conditions change, your integrated systems can respond faster than competitors using manual processes.

What are the common types of application integration services?

The common types of application integration services are: 

• Enterprise application integration (EAI): Connects large business systems like ERP, CRM, and HRM platforms
• Business-to-Business (B2B) integration: Links your systems with external partner and supplier apps
• Cloud application integration: Connects cloud-based apps with on-site systems
• Data integration services: Syncs info between databases and data warehouses
• API integration services: Uses programming interfaces to enable system communication
• Legacy system integration: Connects older systems with modern apps

What are some examples of application integration approaches?

Some examples of application integration approaches are: 

• Point-to-Point Integration: Direct connections between two specific apps
• Hub-and-spoke model: Central hub manages all app connections
• Enterprise Service Bus (ESB): Standard communication layer for multiple apps
• API-led integration: Uses APIs as the primary connection method between systems
• Event-driven integration: Apps respond to real-time events and triggers
• Database-level integration: Direct data sharing between app databases

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Typical challenges with application integration services

Here are some typical challenges with application integration services: 

• Complex technical needs: Application integration projects often involve difficult technical specs. These need specialized expertise and extensive planning phases.
• Cost overruns and timeline delays: Application integration projects often exceed budgets and planned completion dates. This happens due to unexpected problems and scope changes.
• Ongoing maintenance: Connected systems need continuous monitoring, updates, and troubleshooting. This strains your IT resources and budgets.
• Vendor dependency: Reliance on external integration providers creates risks. Problems arise when consultants leave or when you need urgent changes to existing connections.

How application integration services work

Application integration services work by following a structured process, which includes these steps: 

1. Providers analyze your current apps

2. They create integration strategies

3. They build necessary connections

4. They provide ongoing support to ensure reliable data flow between your systems.

The old way of application integration services

This is how the old way of application integration services would typically work: 

• Discovery and requirements gathering: Extensive analysis of existing systems and business needs
• Custom integration development: Building unique connections tailored to specific apps
• Extensive testing phases: Validating integrations before deployment to production environments
• Documentation and training: Creating technical specs and user guidance materials
• Handoff to internal teams: Transferring maintenance responsibility to client IT departments

The problem with the old way of application integration 

Some problems with the old way of application integration are: 

• Unpredictable costs from project scope changes and emergency maintenance needs
• Extended timelines that delay business benefits and create operational disruptions
• Technical debt buildup from custom-built solutions needing specialized maintenance expertise
• Knowledge transfer gaps occur when consultants rotate off projects, leaving internal teams without proper support

The new way of application integration: Integration Ops

Integration Ops treats your application integration as a continuous operational capability. It's not isolated project-based implementations.

Benefits of integration ops:

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• Predictable operational costs: Fixed monthly subscriptions replace unpredictable project fees and emergency maintenance charges that strain your budgets.
• Faster time-to-value: Application integration services go live in days or weeks instead of months. You get immediate access to critical business functionality and operational improvements.
• Automatic adaptation: Your application integrations adapt automatically when vendors change data formats, APIs, or authentication methods. This eliminates costly downtime and emergency repairs.
• Reduced management overhead: Your technical teams focus on strategic initiatives instead of maintaining integration pipelines. They don't troubleshoot application connection failures that consume valuable resources.
• Scalable growth architecture: Adding new apps or customers doesn't require rebuilding the integration infrastructure. This allows rapid business expansion without technical constraints.

Integration Ops is the next evolution in ITSM. ONEiO leads this transformation. We ensure your integration operations are future-ready, automated, and scalable.

Why ONEiO is the ideal application integration partner for IT service management

ONEiO provides Integration Ops as a comprehensive managed service. 

We designed it specifically for IT and technology service providers. Unlike traditional integration providers who create custom solutions and transfer responsibility, ONEiO manages your application integrations as an ongoing operational service.

With ONEiO Integration Ops, you have:

• Complete lifecycle automation: ONEAI® ensures your application integrations adapt to changes without manual intervention. This eliminates operational bottlenecks that slow service delivery.
• Simplified management: You manage integrations easily without technical complexity. This enables faster responses to business needs and operational changes.
• Growth-ready scalability: Your integration operations scale automatically as your business grows. This removes technical barriers from expansion plans and new app adoption.
• Cost predictability: You receive fixed subscription pricing that replaces unpredictable project costs and lengthy implementations that strain budgets.

ONEiO Case Study Example: Bayer

In this case study, we will show you how ONEiO supported Europe's largest IT outsourcing project for Bayer. 

Driven by the desire to allow their IT personnel to be freed from serving their infrastructure, Bayer launched an outsourcing program to run the IT for their global operations. 

They were redesigning their entire IT service delivery, and in turn flipping their current integration landscape upside down. 

As Bayer’s Service Integration Project Lead, Marco Peetz, put it: “We are a life science company, not an IT technology company – and that’s what we want to focus on.” 

The contract, which began on January 1, 2020, started with one of the program’s suppliers, Capgemini, partnering with us at ONEiO to lead the integration of Bayer’s entire supplier ecosystem.

What challenges did ONEiO solve for Bayer? 

Bayer had the target of a 6-month project. It was described as a “workable ecosystem”, where providers should work independently from each other and exchange transactional data like incidents or requests seamlessly across their systems. 

How did we make it happen? 

After a proof of concept of 3-5 key endpoints, work quickly began on building Bayer’s IT ecosystem. 

However, as the project progressed, the complexity of the project increased as new instances needed to be incorporated.

Bayer decided they wanted a green field instance that was being built for the service integration part of the provider ecosystem. 

With that in mind, they were facing a challenge: they needed to synchronize the current productive instance with the greenfield instance.

Without ONEiO, this task would likely have been a large project spanning several months. 

With ONEiO, Bayer was able to achieve synchronization of incidents, problems, and change requests between the existing and greenfield ServiceNow instances within 1 to 2 weeks.

Bayer also easily integrated a legacy Remedy system, to ensure that legacy services could also be integrated into the future mode of operation. 

In the end, the integration of the legacy Remedy solution happened through the existing and greenfield ServiceNow instances to an actual provider instance. 

Here are some of the positive reviews that Bayer left for ONEiO:

• High-quality, continued support 

“We also get support along with it whenever we need it. That wasn’t just an empty promise, we actually got all the support that we needed and when we needed it.”

Marco Peetz concludes:

"I didn’t know how we could achieve that with native integrations because it’s so complex. But with ONEiO that was just a matter of configuring it. It was really awesome”

Read the complete case study with Bayer here.

The bottom line on application integration services

You still need application integration services to connect your business apps. They help your operations run smoothly. But old project-based methods don't work anymore. DIY iPaaS tools also fall short.

Your business needs: 

• Agility
• Predictable costs
• Continuous adaptation. 

Traditional approaches can't provide these things.

You need managed integration services instead. These give you: 

• Ongoing support
• Automatic maintenance
• Scalable growth capabilities.

Integration Ops is the future of application integration. It treats your connections as operational capabilities. It's not about one-time technical projects anymore.

‍Discover how ONEiO's Integration Ops approach can accelerate your service delivery and reduce operational complexity. Your customers (and your team) will thank you.

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