--- title: "API Integration and Process Automation" canonical: https://wavect.io/services/api-integration/ language: en description: "Connect business systems with scoped API integration and process automation. Clarify data ownership, failed transfers, monitoring and handover." image: "https://wavect.io/img/general/bak/open_graph_preview.jpg" --- API Integration and Process Automation # Connect your systems around the way your team works. When staff copy orders, customer details or invoices between tools, the problem is usually the handoff. We help define and build that connection, including workflows that do not need AI. EXAMPLE WORKFLOW ## One order. One invoice. A traceable handoff. 1. **Order accepted** The order system owns the customer reference and order ID. 2. **Rules applied** Validate required fields and check whether this order was already processed. 3. **Result reconciled** Record the invoice ID or route the exception to a named owner. DIRECT ANSWER API integration moves agreed data between existing systems. Start with the workflow, the authoritative record and the failure cases, then choose a connector, an automation platform or custom code. Best for - Operations teams reconciling data across tools - A defined transfer with an owner who can accept the result Consider another approach - A standard connector already covers the workflow - No authorized access to the systems or representative data // 01 ## Choose the smallest solution that fits An existing connector fits a supported, predictable transfer. A low-code workflow can suit several steps when its permissions, error handling and operating model fit. Custom integration becomes useful when business rules, reconciliation or recovery exceed those options. Compare vendor usage costs and maintenance as well as build work. This decision needs no maturity score or project-data upload. | Your situation | Start with | Verify before committing | | --- | --- | --- | | Standard fields and one supported direction | Existing connector | Coverage, ownership and error visibility | | Several routine steps with manageable exceptions | Automation platform | Access, usage costs and who fixes failures | | Distinct rules or complex recovery | Scoped custom integration | Representative records, retries and operating owner | // 02 ## What the connection needs beyond a successful API call A transfer is useful when the receiving team can trust it and recover it. We define these outputs against one agreed business workflow, so the implementation has an acceptance boundary rather than an open-ended list of connectors. A field and ownership map For each field: source, target, required format, validation rule and system of record. Agree how changed customers, cancelled orders, currencies and missing values are represented. Explicit recovery rules Separate retryable outages from records that need a person. Specify duplicate prevention, retry limits, a safe replay path and the point at which a failed transfer becomes an alert. A reconciliation view Compare eligible source records with accepted target records. Keep business identifiers and status history so operations can find a missing invoice without reading raw application logs. An operating handover Document credential ownership, access renewal, deployment, monitoring and vendor-change responsibilities. Walk through a failed transfer with the person who will actually resolve it. // 03 ## Bring one workflow, not your entire system landscape List the source and destination, API or export access, allowed read/write actions, sample fields, expected volume and the person responsible for exceptions. We map ownership, agree acceptance checks, implement the scoped path and test normal, duplicate and failed records. The handover should identify monitoring, retry controls and operating responsibilities. For older systems, see [integration without an API](/blog/legacy-erp-integration-without-api/) and [Software Takeover](/services/software-takeover/). Read [what discovery includes](/software-development-guide/what-is-a-discovery-phase/) before commissioning a connection with unresolved requirements. // 04 ## Illustrative mapping: order to invoice Synthetic example, not a delivered client integration: order `DEMO-104` belongs to the order system; its customer reference maps to the invoice account and its order ID becomes the duplicate key. Check the target before creating another invoice after a timeout. An invalid tax field goes to a named finance owner; a temporary outage waits for a bounded retry. Reconciliation compares accepted orders with created invoices so silent gaps can be investigated. | Test input | Expected behavior | Evidence to inspect | | --- | --- | --- | | The same order arrives twice | The second event does not create another invoice. | One invoice linked to the original order ID. | | The request times out after submission | Check the target before deciding to submit again. | A recovered status rather than a blind duplicate. | | A required tax field is missing | Quarantine the record for the finance owner. | An actionable reason and corrected replay history. | | The vendor is unavailable | Retry within agreed limits and surface the unresolved backlog. | Visible age and count of waiting records. | // 05 ## Test the unpleasant path before switching it on These are proposed delivery stages for a scoped integration, not a claim about a named client implementation. A sandbox is useful, but production access, representative records and vendor behavior still need checking. 1. **Trace one real business event** - Follow an order from creation through correction and cancellation. Capture expected volume, peak bursts and the deadline by which the destination needs the result. 2. **Prove the boundary in a safe environment** - Exercise authentication expiry, duplicate events, malformed records and interrupted transfers. Have the business owner accept the field map and exception behavior. 3. **Release with a recovery plan** - Agree a limited first rollout, reconciliation checks and a way to pause writes. Hand over unresolved exceptions explicitly rather than declaring success because the deployment completed. // 06 ## Evidence and commercial scope [MyMerch](/case-studies/mymerch/) describes operational automation and Shopify work. It supports the process-improvement contribution, not a claim that we connected your particular ERP. A product backend belongs with [Web Apps](/services/web-apps/). Build work, vendor subscriptions, hosting and ongoing operations are separate scope questions; agree responsibilities and applicable [delivery terms](/pricing/) before implementation. // proof ## Operational automation in a live storefront MyMerch combines Shopify engineering with automation of recurring operational work. It shows how we approach connected workflows; the exact systems and rules for your integration are assessed separately. ### [MyMerch](/case-studies/mymerch/) - **Status:** Live - **Outcome:** ~50% - Efficiency Gain (Client-Reported) - **Summary:** ~50% efficiency gain (client-reported). Delivery errors reduced, Shopify storefront conversion lifted, no rewrite. - **Stack:** Shopify, Shopify Liquid, JavaScript These are selected projects, not our full portfolio. We have shipped 75+ products since 2018. ## Questions before you start ### What if a system has no API? Check supported exports, imports and approved access first. Feasibility depends on the vendor, access rights and acceptable failure risk; a missing API does not automatically justify screen automation. ### Who maintains the connection? Agree the owner of credentials, monitoring, failed-record handling and changes before handover. Ongoing support is scoped separately; it is not an implied subscription. ### What do you need for an estimate? One concrete workflow, systems and access constraints, representative records, volume, business rules and acceptance criteria. [Discovery](/services/software-discovery/) can resolve the unknowns first. ## Continue with the decision you need - [Broader software development](/services/software-development/) - [A customer-facing portal](/services/customer-portals/) - [Integrating an ERP without an API](/blog/legacy-erp-integration-without-api/) ## Structured Data ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ], "employee": [ { "@id": "https://wavect.io/team/kevin-riedl/#person", "@type": "Person", "jobTitle": "Managing Director", "name": "Kevin Riedl", "url": "https://wavect.io/team/kevin-riedl/", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] } }, { "@id": "https://wavect.io/team/christof-jori/#person", "@type": "Person", "jobTitle": "Managing Director", "name": "Christof Jori", "url": "https://wavect.io/team/christof-jori/", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] } } ], "founder": [ { "@id": "https://wavect.io/team/kevin-riedl/#person", "@type": "Person", "jobTitle": "Managing Director", "name": "Kevin Riedl", "url": "https://wavect.io/team/kevin-riedl/", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] } }, { "@id": "https://wavect.io/team/christof-jori/#person", "@type": "Person", "jobTitle": "Managing Director", "name": "Christof Jori", "url": "https://wavect.io/team/christof-jori/", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] } } ], "legalRepresentative": [ { "@id": "https://wavect.io/team/kevin-riedl/#person", "@type": "Person", "jobTitle": "Managing Director", "name": "Kevin Riedl", "url": "https://wavect.io/team/kevin-riedl/", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] } }, { "@id": "https://wavect.io/team/christof-jori/#person", "@type": "Person", "jobTitle": "Managing Director", "name": "Christof Jori", "url": "https://wavect.io/team/christof-jori/", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] } } ], "name": "Wavect GmbH", "subjectOf": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/verified-claims.json#dataset", "@type": "Dataset", "creator": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] }, "description": "A machine-readable registry of quantitative and qualitative claims published by Wavect, with review dates, localized page appearances and public third-party citations where available.", "inLanguage": "en", "isAccessibleForFree": true, "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "name": "Wavect verified publication claims", "url": "https://wavect.io/verified-claims.json" }, "url": "https://wavect.io/" }, { "@id": "https://wavect.io/team/kevin-riedl/#person", "@type": "Person", "jobTitle": "Managing Director", "name": "Kevin Riedl", "sameAs": [ "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q139796365", "https://www.linkedin.com/in/wsdt", "https://github.com/wsdt" ], "url": "https://wavect.io/team/kevin-riedl/", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] } }, { "@id": "https://wavect.io/team/christof-jori/#person", "@type": "Person", "jobTitle": "Managing Director", "name": "Christof Jori", "sameAs": [ "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q139796367", "https://www.linkedin.com/in/jocr77/", "https://github.com/jo-chris" ], "url": "https://wavect.io/team/christof-jori/", "worksFor": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] } }, { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#website", "@type": "WebSite", "inLanguage": [ "en", "de", "es", "zh" ], "name": "Wavect", "potentialAction": { "@type": "SearchAction", "query-input": "required name=search_term_string", "target": { "@type": "EntryPoint", "urlTemplate": "https://wavect.io/search/?q={search_term_string}" } }, "publisher": { "@id": "https://wavect.io/#organization", "@type": [ "Organization", "ProfessionalService", "LocalBusiness" ] }, "url": "https://wavect.io/" } ] } ``` ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@id": "https://wavect.io/services/api-integration/#service", "@type": "Service", "areaServed": [ { "@type": "Country", "name": "Austria" }, { "@type": "Place", "name": "Worldwide" } ], "category": "Software Development", "dateModified": "2026-10-19", "description": "Connect business systems with scoped API integration and process automation. 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