We’ve all got used to real-time inputs from social media and the convenience of online ordering, remote working, curbside pickup, and instant payment transfers from our mobile phones. Like any other piece of efficient machinery, the applications that drive many of these experiences are often hidden away from the public eye and only become visible when they fail, which is why it is critical that they do not.
In the early days, when there were only a few applications, it was common to connect them directly to each other (“point-to-point” connections). The next stage of architectural evolution was the “bus” architecture where the applications each connected to a shared information bus that was responsible for the integration between applications. This is the technology behind the world’s biggest banks, stock exchanges, insurance companies, hospitals, manufacturers, etc. However, this architectural pattern still involves a lot of complexity and requires considerable amount of investment and effort to maintain and enhance.
The next stage of evolution was the widespread use of APIs (application programming interfaces) to expose the functionality of each application. APIs can be complex in terms of the amount of functionality they expose, or they can be simple and self-contained. Keeping them simple and self-contained allows the APIs to be easily deployed, managed and scaled out in response to number of requests or other such parameters. This is what is commonly referred to as a microservices architecture.
Microservices are a technology pattern that haves proven useful for rapid innovation and scale-up of business functionality. If the Enterprise Service Bus (ESB) is the Meccano™ platform, then microservices can be seen more as the Lego™. The idea is to build complex models from simpler components that are easy to create and combine in a repeatable manner. There are several platforms today that provide technology and features to support enterprise integration through microservices. One such platform is MuleSoft, recognized as a leader in APIs and integration. Persistent is proud to be a global partner of MuleSoft.
MuleSoft empowers organizations to innovate faster using this modern API-led approach. This helps us build solutions that deliver a single view of the customer, automate business processes, and build connected experiences quickly. We have successfully implemented solutions using MuleSoft at large banks, insurance companies, healthcare organizations, etc. Unlike the old world with expensive and time-consuming point-to-point integration, the MuleSoft approach is quick to implement and quick to realize meaningful ROI. We also enable our customers to adopt MuleSoft’s Center of Enablement (C4E) approach, a cross-functional team designed to align technology and business strategy, allowing IT to become even more productive and deliver ROI through technology projects. If you have not already looked at MuleSoft, now may be a good time to explore how MuleSoft and its ecosystem of partner solutions can help you innovate faster and modernize to API-led integrations.
For more information on our platform integration practice.
