An Integration Architect works to streamline the everyday life of different organizations and to make data flow more transparent. Lauri Toivanen, Integration Architect at Frends, describes what the role is like and to whom it is most suitable.

Lauri Toivanen has worked at Frends for 13 years and since 2015 as an Integration Architect. “The transition towards an architect role was natural as I had done programming in the same fields and gained lots of experience from various projects”, Toivanen says.

For Toivanen, the work is about designing processes, gathering data and sorting out different systems and interfaces. It all comes down to understanding what the organization wants to automate and why. In addition, the goal is to support customers’ businesses by merging data located in different systems efficiently and safely.

In his role, Toivanen does not have much time to do programming. The focus is more on design as well as visual and technical documentation. Coding skills are extremely useful, though.

“One does not have to be a top programmer, but a broad interest towards technologies is needed to stay ahead in the ever-changing integration world.”

Toivanen estimates that the integration field suits a person with strong deductive skills, an ability to see the big picture and interest in comprehending how the society and different organizations function at the process level. 

In addition, you must be willing to develop and challenge yourself as various industries and technologies constantly change. Therefore, the job opportunities related to integrations are indeed not decreasing.

“Integrations are becoming more and more common – the need for experts is growing simultaneously. You face integrations in pretty much any technical role, so it is beneficial to have some basic knowledge about them.”

An integration platform such as Frends decreases the amount of manual work and makes the data flow transparent for any team member. As a result, integrations simplify people’s lives.

For Toivanen, it is most rewarding to build complex solutions and see how well they work out. One of the success stories is the cooperation with Aalto University. Frends played a crucial role in the university’s change strategy and implementation. 

“It is quite amazing to see how something works as planned, and the result is rewarding for all parties”, Toivanen grins.

Excellent communication skills are needed both when working together with colleagues or customers. 

“Right questions need to be presented to reach the desired goal. Sometimes you must dare to challenge a bit, too”, says Toivanen.

Read more about the Aalto case.