{"id":2300,"date":"2021-02-02T10:36:40","date_gmt":"2021-02-01T23:36:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-au\/blog\/?p=2300"},"modified":"2024-07-25T00:52:06","modified_gmt":"2024-07-24T14:52:06","slug":"will-your-financial-management-solution-play-well-with-salesforce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-au\/blog\/will-your-financial-management-solution-play-well-with-salesforce\/","title":{"rendered":"The best of both worlds: Will your financial management solution play well with Salesforce?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTechnology & Innovation<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThe best of both worlds: Will your financial management solution play well with Salesforce?\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\t

\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\tBruce Minty<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Gaining a unified view of financial data from across the business is vital for today\u2019s CFO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a previous post, we explored how finance leaders can gain this business-wide view<\/a>, along with many other benefits, by integrating their financial management solution with Salesforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If your organisation is looking to undertake such an integration, there are several considerations you must first make to ensure its success. When choosing a financial management solution, it\u2019s important to carefully evaluate how it connects with Salesforce, to ensure data flows seamlessly between the two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s take a look at what you need to consider when choosing a financial management solution, to ensure it can successfully integrate with Salesforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Separate fact from fiction<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First, don\u2019t be caught unawares. Some financial management solution vendors create confusion by implying that connections with Salesforce are virtually automatic for products built on the Salesforce1 platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In reality, a Salesforce integration consists of a select set of data passed between sales and finance\u2014regardless of platform. To make sure your needs are met, you need to understand how data flows between a financial management solution and Salesforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Whitepaper: The Business Case for Integrating Salesforce CRM and Cloud Financials <\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

Learn how deep, pre-built, vendor-maintained integration between Sage Intacct and Salesforce is transforming how finance and sales align, collaborate, and execute to create greater efficiencies, speed, and accuracy.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDownload Whitepaper<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

Start with (your) Salesforce<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We recommend starting with your Salesforce implementation, because this is generally the first place information is captured in your opportunity-to-cash process. And because each implementation of Salesforce is unique, no real evaluation is possible until you understand your Salesforce workflows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examine your Quote-to-Cash process, or perhaps your Project-to-Cash Process, and understand which Salesforce Objects (fields) you use today. For example, do you use Customer Records? Do you use Opportunities? What Custom Objects do you have?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you know which information fields you capture in Salesforce, you can then evaluate how different financial management solutions connect with Salesforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understand pre-built Salesforce connectors<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Many financial management solution vendors offer pre-built connectivity to Salesforce. (Note that some vendors who offer competing CRM products may choose not to support native connectivity to Salesforce.) When evaluating how financial management solutions connect to Salesforce, remember that every pre-built connector assumes a certain set of Salesforce workflow configurations. Simply ask yourself how well these assumed workflows match your specific implementations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evaluate tailored salesforce connectivity<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you discover that a vendor\u2019s standard Salesforce connector isn\u2019t an exact match for your workflows, you generally have two choices:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Modify the existing Salesforce connector for your needs. This can be a cost-effective solution, providing a lot of standard functionality while still enabling you to achieve just the right connectivity you need.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Create your own connections, leveraging Open APIs. This gives you the most flexibility, with the trade-off being a longer implementation. If you\u2019re more flexible on the timing, this can be a great option to choose.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Other considerations<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    In addition to the foundations mentioned above, here are a few more questions to ask a financial management solution vendor about Salesforce connections:<\/p>\n\n\n\n