From Silos to Synergy: Integration Considerations
Air traffic control keeps our skies from descending into chaos, and a well-designed integration will do the same for CPQ and Billing. Without it, misaligned data, delayed invoicing, and manual workarounds cause back-office turbulence. In part four of our "Mastering the CPQ & Billing Balancing Act" series, we’ll explore how to design integrations that eliminate bottlenecks, automate data flow, and maintain system harmony. Whether you're leveraging a native connection or building a custom integration, the key is understanding where data needs to move, how it needs to transform, and who will maintain it. Time to roll up our sleeves!
A strong understanding of the data models and requirements for both CPQ and Billing is required to determine the best integration strategy and identify where data translation is needed. If a native connection exists between systems, translation ability in the integration may be restricted (meaning data manipulation in either source or target to true up differences could be needed). If a custom integration will be built, then there will be greater flexibility for data translations and calculations within the integration layer. Regardless of approach, the problems to solve remain the same.
Essential factors for CPQ-Billing Integrations:
How will data from CPQ be passed to the Billing system? When and how will the integration be triggered?
Are there timing considerations for either CPQ or Billing? How much lead time does Billing need from the time of integration to billing setup (this is increasingly important for auto-renewals)?
What transformations (if any) are needed to facilitate this data flow? Will transformations occur in the CPQ or Billing system (often through use of a staging table), in the integration layer, or have a mix of system and integration transformations?
Is all the selling data required by Billing captured in CPQ or are CPQ design/process tweaks required to ensure a full dataset? (see part one and part two of this series for more detail on aligning product, bundle, and pricing data structure and flow)
Will the product catalog match 1:1 between CPQ and Billing or are any catalog mappings based on attribution required? Are there nuances for mapping bundles?
How will data be captured and passed downstream for amendment changes? Will Billing consume only incremental changes or will old data be cancelled and replaced as a result of the amendment?
How will the integration be maintained into the future? Does your team have the skillset required for this maintenance? If not, will you hire internally or contract out?
The answers to these questions heavily depend on the data models of the CPQ and Billing systems as well as the capability of the integration layer and integration team. In some cases, process changes may be advised to simplify and future-proof the integration design. Arriving at the best solution requires input not only from technical resources for CPQ, Billing, and Integrations but also from business stakeholders to ensure scalability in the future. Without strong collaboration, you risk tech debt in both systems and/or the integration to solve for data or process misalignment.
An integration is more than just a data pipeline – it’s the backbone of a scalable revenue process. A thoughtful strategy, strong collaboration between teams, and a clear plan for maintenance will power an integration design that keeps your systems in sync. Coming up in our final installment of “Five Critical Insights for a Successful CPQ-Billing Transformation”, we’ll explore team structure and collaboration.
