New software rarely runs on its own. Most of the effort in a project goes into connecting it to the systems that are already there.
Map what already exists
List every system the new software needs to read from or write to, who owns it and how it exposes data. Surprises here are the most common cause of delays.
Agree the source of truth
Decide which system owns each piece of data. When two systems both think they own a customer record, they will drift apart.
Use APIs, not exports
Scheduled spreadsheet exports work until someone changes a column. A proper API integration fails loudly and can be monitored.
Test with real data
Sample data hides edge cases. Test integrations with a copy of production data before go-live.
