In my last column, instead of talking about XML as a technology, I discussed the business benefits of this wonderful and distinctly different language and focused on B2B applications as that's where XML has established a firm foothold. Now I'd like to continue the discussion in that vein.

XML's Business Benefit
Two years ago my co-workers taught my then 4-year-old daughter to tell people that "XML is all about data." Besides being undeniably precocious, it serves as a noteworthy milestone. Understanding what XML can do with data leads to its technological benefits: XML is flexible enough to represent any information, and extensible enough to handle change. It can manage any unpredictable and odd thing coming or going.

So much for the technical benefits. What does this mean to the business analyst? The safe answer is to say that XML is just a better mousetrap that improves cost and efficiency by x% across the board. But XML offers revolutionary - not evolutionary - benefits. Because XML can handle anything, anywhere, anytime, it can play the role of universal integrator. And this is key.

Integration can happen anywhere: between systems, applications, and even businesses. Integrating two (or more) entities does more than improve the abilities of each of them. It allows businesses to achieve higher-level goals. Or, put mathematically, the sum of the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. For example, instead of focusing on a single inventory system, you can strategize for a more efficient supply chain. Instead of developing a good app, such as a customer retail site or help center, you can manage the entire customer experience.

Because of XML's flexibility and extensibility, greater integration at all levels is practical, allowing business analysts to look at a bigger picture. Being able to take a step back means they can sharpen their focus and work toward the bigger goal: making the business more competitive.

Integrating at the Application Level
XML enables integration at the application level, which has led to a couple of new types of applications and a new spin on an old one.

Portals
Portals are a massive exercise in integration anyway you slice it, so it's no wonder that most portals are XML-based.

Portals involve the integration of information, or content. Employees going to their EIP (enterprise information portal) want to see marketing information, organizational charts, presentations, and HR policies. Special- interest group members who come to a community portal want timely news, product and event listings, multimedia previews, and discussions. Needless to say, content varies widely, so XML has a natural role.

Portals also involve the integration of services. Consumers who visit an e-commerce portal want to know not only what color the sweater comes in, but whether the right size is in stock. Customers who come to a service Web site want information only on the products they purchased and the status of reported requests. No application can live in a vacuum, and portals are no exception. Again, a straightforward role for XML.

B2B integration
I elaborated on B2Bi in my last column, so I won't dwell on it too much here.

Before XML, if two companies wanted to connect electronically, they had to get a one-to-one T1 line, develop a proprietary protocol, and hard-wire a system that was impervious to change. Needless to say, this "EDI generation" was limited to companies that could afford to make such a large investment. Or ones that could count on the strategic importance of an unchanging relationship for many years in the future.

XML, which makes any connection cheaper and easier, could be thought of as an evolutionary improvement. But that would be to miss the bigger picture. The barriers to entry are significantly lower, and an XML-based solution supports dynamic change. Organizations can move away from having a few key connections set in stone to having an entire trading network that can fluidly change based on business criteria.

By having a great integrator, the scope of interest is broadened so that B2B communities, e-markets, and information supply chains have sprung up as new industries. This is because who you work with and how you work with them is something you can fluidly control. The difference is having business driving technical decisions, rather than technology driving business decisions.

EAI
Ironically enough, EAI (enterprise application integration) hasn't embraced XML to its core. EAI systems have been able to be built around proprietary and nonextensible data formats because they've lived within the protection of the four walls of the enterprise.

XML is appearing on the periphery. EAI applications have XML adaptors at the edge so that information can be shared across the firewall. As businesses work together and become closely integrated, the enterprise and the extraprise will in many ways become one and the same. And the line between EAI and B2B systems will become decidedly blurred. All thanks to XML, the great integrator.

Integrating at the Enterprise Level
The punch line, of course, is not how much XML can pull together to aid the applications described here. The fun begins when all those applications are integrated. Neither portals, B2B networks, nor EAI systems can reach their potential existing as isolated applications.

Enterprise e-business is all about integrating at every level. Because this is now possible, organizations can focus on larger problems. The best (if not scientific) measure of that can be found by looking at the list of new buzzwords. Two of the trendiest are eCRM and B2Bi.

eCRM (electronic Customer Relationship Management) is all about having a unified effort across all systems to manage the customer's experience effectively. How irritating is it to place a large order only to find a week later when the box arrives that the one item you really wanted is on back-order? Or that the shipping partner is two days behind schedule at their West Coast hub? Only if all applications are integrated can loftier goals be achieved.

Business-to-business integration is a step above point-to-point connections. It's not so much about ERP-to-ERP data sharing as it is about building an extraprise out of discrete organizations. If they're well integrated, they can be managed for optimization in much the same way a COO manages operations within the four walls. Should an e-market look like one company or a mishmash of hundreds?

Building a Better E-Business
The quality of e-business strategies is rising at an exciting rate. (At this point no one should wonder why I didn't say e-business applications!) Benefits come from integration, and XML is obviously the key.