Introduction
This integration is aimed at streamlining operations, and improving real time data exchange between platforms to enhance customer experience as well as operations for internal teams for a leading company in the EdTech space.
Objectives
- To enable near real time data flow between e-commerce and ERP.
- To implement scalable, maintainable, and cost effective solution.
- To automate deployment process using Infrastructure as Code (IaC).
Challenges
- Previously existing processes were prone to frequent errors, and based on infrastructure which required a lot of manual maintenance.
- Need for reliable synchronization between e-commerce and ERP.
- Ensuring robust solution which will guarantee continuity of operations.
Solutions Architecture Overview
The solution involves serverless microservices architecture, with the following AWS services:
- AWS Lambda: Handles business logic and processing.
- Amazon SQS: Decouples services and manages message queues.
- API Gateway: Provides scalable endpoints for microservices.
- DynamoDB: Stores configuration and state data.
Integration Process
- Microservices Development: Developed Lambda functions for specific tasks such as order processing, quote building, customer data management, and various third party integrations.
- Message Queuing: Implemented SQS to ensure message
delivery between services. - API Endpoints: Configured API Gateway for secure
communication between BigCommerce webhooks and Lambda
functions. - Data Storage: Used DynamoDB for storing data.
- CloudWatch: Implemented essential for capturing
microservices logs and troubleshooting.
Infrastructure as Code (IaC) Provisioning
- Used Terraform to script the entire infrastructure, allowing for version controlling and repeatable deployments.
- Enabled quick environment replication for testing and staging purposes.
Results
- Achieved real time data synchronization between BigCommerce and NetSuite.
- Reduced manual intervention and errors, leading to increased operational efficiency.
- Improved customer satisfaction through faster order processing and accurate inventory levels.
Conclusion
The integration project achieved success using AWS cloud microservices and Terraform to create a robust, scalable, and efficient link between the e-commerce and ERP platforms, setting new standard in operations for online selling and increasing the share of sales going through the e-comm by over 500%.