The right IT solutions can help companies grow and remain competitive in the marketplace. If a business can count on an all-in-one solution to address its many automation needs, this can result in cost savings and ease of use. Microsoft offers such a solution: BizTalk.
Microsoft BizTalk is an integrated solution that can manage many aspects of a business operations cycle: supply chain management, payment processing, decision making, reporting, and interactions with customers and other companies.
A comprehensive solution like BizTalk is essential for businesses, especially when they have the need to have several different systems communicate. The files must be exchanged between several companies: they can come from branches or partners abroad or they can simply be processed by different applications in varied formats.
BizTalk ensures seamless communication with a series of third-party adapter and adapter packages designed to work with all popular business software packages.
The role of BizTalk in the communication process is simple: takes files whatever their format and makes sure they arrive at their destination in a format that can be recognized by the receiver.
When a file arrives from an application or elsewhere, BizTalk receives it and unmounts it. The file goes through party resolution (where BizTalk looks at the sender’s security identifier (SID) or sender’s certificate) and is basically decompressed into “messages,” the basic form of information that BizTalk handles.
The messages then travel to the BizTalk message box from where they are sent to the orchestration. This is a crucial function of BizTalk, as it is basically where all the automated processes are coordinated and organized. Files are inspected and processed according to the rules dictated by the business rules engine.
The last step is the reassembly of messages into files that are now ready to be processed through the “Send Port” where they can be captured by the applications for which they are intended.
This process ensures that applications can use files with different formats and receive information in a way that they understand, able to communicate with each other.
BizTalk works as a kind of translator.
However, the solution is not only a means to improve electronic data interchange (EDI), it is also capable of automating a number of business processes such as invoicing, ordering and payment.
Other benefits of integrating BizTalk into an enterprise IT infrastructure are the reliability of the system that can seamlessly manage a series of operations without errors or delays. The system ensures the security of the data it processes and enables a company to comply with many business standards and regulations, including the all-important Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT) and the US Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. . (HIPAA) rules.
BizTalk is flexible as it can be integrated into existing enterprise IT infrastructures and with cloud technology such as Windows Azure. The latest version, in fact, enables hybrid connectivity through an enterprise-class hybrid application that integrates an existing enterprise IT setup and a private cloud with a public cloud.
In addition, BizTalk has demonstrated its scalability thanks to the infrastructure as a service (IaaS) capability that enables companies to access applications in the cloud. Platform as a service (PaaS) is also possible with BizTalk capable of integrating Microsoft Azure and is suitable for software as a service (SaaS) applications, business-to-business (B2B) tools, and on-premises software.
With so many options available, configuring BizTalk in the most efficient way for business automation is essential to ensure maximum profit for a business that decides to implement the system. An IT consulting service can be invaluable in calibrating software to meet a business’s needs by integrating it into existing infrastructure, establishing appropriate business rules, and providing the initial training and 24/7 support that can really make a difference.