Data is the lifeblood of informed decision-making for a business. McKinsey’s research on data-driven organizations indicates that they are 23 times more likely to acquire customers, six times more likely to retain them, and 19 times more likely to be profitable. Yet, for many organizations, crucial insights remain trapped within siloed systems particularly within complex ERP environments.
A case of too many data points
NJM Insurance Group’s journey from data fragmentation to integration mastery offers valuable lessons for enterprises grappling with similar challenges. When their marketing team needed to analyze campaign performance across more than ten advertising platforms, they faced a familiar enterprise dilemma: how to efficiently connect disparate data sources without burning through resources or compromising data integrity.
Initially, NJM’s data engineering team estimated a staggering 9-12 month timeline to build the necessary data pipelines. The challenge wasn’t just about connecting to multiple marketing channels like Google Ads, Facebook Ads, Youtube Ads, etc. – it was about creating a sustainable, scalable approach to data integration that could grow with their business needs.
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“Each platform required deep API knowledge and extensive documentation review,” explains Ameya Narvekar, Data Insights Supervisor at NJM. “Our first two test integrations alone took two months, and we were looking at 200-300 days to complete the entire project manually.”
This extended timeline entailed inflated costs, longer time-to-market, and the possibility of foregoing the competitive advantage that this data could deliver.
Streamlining data integration
Recognizing the unsustainable nature of this manual approach, NJM sought a software solution that could provide ready-to-go connectors for their advertising platforms. The solution had to include:
- Rapid pipeline deployment
- Enterprise-grade scalability
- Robust data transformation capabilities
- Being agnostic to any data source or target data store
- Cost-effectiveness
To achieve these goals, NJM chose Cdata Sync, which offered a low-code/no-code interface that eliminated the need for extensive API documentation research.
The platform’s structure, which replicated data as SQL tables, provided a familiar format for the data team, facilitating standardization. CData Sync’s fixed-cost pricing model, based on the number of connections, also allowed NJM to scale their data integration efforts without incurring exorbitant costs.
Speedy timeline, lower costs
The implementation of CData Sync delivered immediate and substantial results. The projected 200-300 days integration timeline plummeted to a mere 20-30 days, representing a tenfold increase in speed.
This dramatic reduction in time allowed the marketing team to quickly access aggregated ad data, enabling them to analyze campaign impact effectively. NJM also leveraged CData Sync to ingest policy, claims, and third-party data into their lakehouse, providing a comprehensive view of business performance and enhancing customer service.
Moreover, utilizing CData Sync resulted in a 66% reduction in costs compared to the manual pipeline-building approach. This efficiency allowed NJM to expand its data integration efforts, and it now manages over 20 connections within Sync.
Narvekar highlighted the platform’s ease of use, stating, “It [now] takes four hours max for any client to get up and running, and we can start looking at the data.”
The implications stretched far beyond marketing analytics. NJM now leverages their enhanced data integration capabilities across multiple business functions. Real-time risk assessment, geographic risk analysis, enhanced fraud detection, and usage-based insurance offerings have all become reality. Their comprehensive customer engagement initiatives now draw from a unified data foundation, enabling more personalized and effective interactions.
What this means for ERP Insiders
CData solutions streamline ERP data access and integration. This is crucial for organizations because ERPs often hold vital business data locked within complex, proprietary systems. CData’s solutions act as a bridge, enabling seamless data flow to various analytics platforms, databases, and applications. This empowers users to gain deeper insights from their ERP data without needing extensive technical expertise. By adopting a low-code integration platform, organizations can redirect valuable technical resources from routine integration work to higher-value initiatives.
Enhance your data integration for comprehensive analysis. ERPs rarely operate in isolation. Organizations rely on a multitude of other applications, such as CRM, marketing automation, and e-commerce platforms, to operate their businesses. Integration agility has become a competitive necessity—organizations simply can’t wait months for critical data integrations. CData facilitates the integration of ERP data with these disparate sources, creating a unified view of business operations and enabling more accurate and insightful analysis.
Building custom integrations for ERP systems can be costly. However, CData’s pre-built connectors and low-code/no-code solutions significantly reduce the development effort required for these integrations, allowing ERP users to quickly access and utilize their data. This standardized integration model provides better cost control and ROI visibility compared to traditional custom integration projects. This is particularly beneficial for businesses seeking agility and efficiency in their data management practices.
