How we design the integration map before the first line of code

Most missed deadlines in automation projects are caused not by the interface or the logic, but by integrations. It turns out a system has no suitable API, that data in two sources contradict each other, or that nobody knows who may change the exchange format.

That is why every Korveniq Technologies project starts with an integration map — a document that describes all systems, data flows and owners before the first line of code. It turns unknown dependencies into a manageable list of risks.

Discovery: which systems are involved

First, together with the client, we list every system the product will connect to: CRM, ERP, accounting databases, messengers, payment and internal services. For each we record the access method, load limits and API version.

An important part of discovery is talking to the people who work in those systems every day. They know where data has to be corrected by hand and which exceptions appear in no documentation.

Data owners and sources of truth

For each data object — a customer, an order, a contract — we define a source of truth and a person responsible for it. When two sources disagree, the team already has a rule for which one to trust.

Without this, integration turns into endless reconciliation. With the map, a field change in one system propagates predictably to the others, and disputed cases follow a pre-agreed scenario.

SLAs, errors and failure scenarios

An integration is only as reliable as its weakest point. So the map states expected response times, acceptable downtime and what must happen on failure: retry, queue, notify the owner.

These agreements are carried into monitoring and tests up front, rather than discovered in the first week of operation.

The map shows systems, data flows and owners in one diagram.

What the client gets

The integration map becomes a shared language between business and engineering. It is used to estimate project complexity, plan stages and decide which integrations belong in the first release and which can wait.

After launch the same document supports operations: when a new system appears or a vendor changes, the team sees which flows are affected and can assess the impact before work begins.