How to Integrate Technology With Ecosystems

I've worked with 3 early-stage apps in the HubSpot ecosystems in the last 21 days (+ led growth at one for 2 years before that). Here are the 3 things companies keep asking for help with: 1. How should I think about content strategy and channels? Issue → Most companies start at the top of the funnel (drive traffic to my integration). When you’re going to market in an ecosystem like HubSpot - they own the majority of high-traffic searches and have features for the broad use cases. What I suggest → Win by creating "with" the community to target the long tail “{use case} in HubSpot”, “how to { job to be done } in HubSpot” searches. You’ll still likely find these searches owned by pages either from HubSpot or the HS Community. Leverage YouTube videos both to rank for the featured video snippet on the results page but also to embed in your community answer and owner website page to increase content visibility. Side note: you need a way to ship and learn quickly with your target audience. Prioritizing channels where conversations already exist is going to be the fastest path here. eg Comments on LinkedIn, questions in HS community, or vertical Slack groups. 2. How should I position my product as a HubSpot specific app? Issue → Most integrations stop at functionally having data flowing. Often they're extractive vs enriching of the HubSpot experience. The model is inverted from what makes a platform-centric solution for customers. What I suggest → Win by influencing a holistic job-to-be-done (eg. customer success in HubSpot ) via both your product and content. The reality with an ecosystem app is your users (and the teams that interact with them) are going to do work in your app, in HubSpot, and likely elsewhere. Help them build the “better together” business case where your product is an “oh by the way” opportunity to solve their challenge. Side note → Design your experience around the context the customer already has about the tool they already use (HubSpot). Name things explicitly to include HubSpot (see #1 to solve for distribution challenges there). 3. How can I work with HubSpot solutions partners to sell to their clients? Issue → There are more than 7,000 solutions partners in the HubSpot ecosystem, who have relationships with a much larger number of HubSpot customers. But, ultimately for solutions partners to use public apps (especially in client portals) they need to have a clear value proposition for them. What I suggest → Either 1) build product with solutions partners as a primary customer (increase effective rates, improve client perception, save time) or 2) I create roundtables and go ask my peers in the industries my clients sell into to bring back insights, language, and feedback from the only people whose opinion counts...the people who can buy your stuff. Side note → The more your app provides visibility and enables workflows inside HubSpot the easier this motion will be.

Partnering with Epic, one of the largest and most dominant electronic health record (EHR) providers, can be a significant growth opportunity for startups in the healthcare space. However, it’s no secret that collaborating with Epic can be challenging due to its stringent requirements, complex technology stack, and the high standards it maintains for integrations. To successfully create a joint go-to-market (GTM) strategy, integration plan, and long-term partnership with Epic, startups need to approach this process with insider knowledge and strategy. Here are some industry secrets for making this collaboration work: 1. Understand Epic’s Ecosystem and Priorities • Target Key Modules: Epic has several specialized modules (e.g., EpicCare for ambulatory care, MyChart for patient engagement, and Cogito for data analytics). Startups must identify which modules align with their solution and focus on those areas. Understanding which Epic products are growing or receiving internal investment is key to aligning with Epic’s strategic priorities. • Follow Their Roadmap: Epic’s focus can shift over time based on industry trends and regulatory requirements. By tracking Epic’s product roadmap, startups can position their technology to solve emerging challenges in areas like interoperability, patient experience, or value-based care. 2. Develop an Epic-Compatible Integration Strategy • Utilize Epic’s API Ecosystem (App Orchard): Epic’s App Orchard is the official marketplace for third-party integrations. Becoming part of App Orchard is the most direct route for startups to integrate with Epic. Although the process can be time-consuming and expensive (membership fees, plus technical requirements), it’s crucial to build an Epic-compliant API integration. • Epic APIs and FHIR: Use Epic’s APIs or FHIR-based standards to connect your solution to Epic. Familiarize yourself with their documentation and stay updated on changes, as Epic is constantly evolving its API infrastructure. • Integration Testing in a Sandbox: Epic provides testing environments where developers can validate their solutions against the Epic infrastructure. Be diligent about testing in these sandboxes, as any issues discovered during a production rollout can lead to delays or severed partnerships.

Yesterday, Zachary Lipton CTO @ Abridge dropped what might be one of the most important strategic insights for AI builders entering complex ecosystems: “We didn’t want to be the new EHR. We wanted to find our swim lane — the conversation — and go deep. Not compete. Integrate.” So many startups walk into entrenched, regulated markets with the mindset that they’re going to take over the space. ‘We’ll rebuild the system from scratch. We’ll be the platform.’ And that’s why they fail. In regulated industries like healthcare, banking, insurance, or enterprise IT — your ability to integrate is often more important than your ability to innovate. This was Abridge’s playbook: Build around the edge, find a specific wedge (clinical conversations) that wasn’t being handled well, and then invest heavily in deep partnerships. Years of relationship-building and co-development with Epic — the dominant EHR — allowed Abridge to go from being “another AI tool” to becoming part of the clinical workflow. If you’re building for real enterprise systems, especially in regulated environments:  ✅ Don’t try to rebuild the core.  ✅ Find your edge.  ✅ Go deep on integration.  ✅ Build trust before you build market share. 🎧 Listen to the full conversation wherever you get your podcasts. (Link in comments)

Legacy Won’t Scale. Innovation Will. 7 Key points to remember when building a Technology stack for Payors and risk-bearing entities. 1. Align Tech to Business Outcomes "No roadmap survives without strategy." > Growth-driven KPIs >Product-market fit (MA, DSNP, Medicaid) >Value-based care enablement 2. Modernize the Core Stack "Break the legacy. Build the backbone." > Composable architecture > Cloud-native systems > Scalable claims + enrollment engine 3. Supercharge with Analytics & AI "From dashboards to decisions." >Predictive modeling (RAF, STARS, HEDIS) >AI-powered care insights >Member 360 in real time 4. Make Security Your Superpower "Fast is good. Safe is essential." >Zero Trust design >CMS/NCQA-ready compliance >Scalable audit trail 5. Be Vendor-Smart, Not Vendor-Locked "Partners, not crutches." > Open APIs & data ownership > Modular contracts > Integration-first ecosystem 6. Grow Your Internal A-Team "You can’t outsource your DNA." > Product thinkers + tech builders > Cross-functional talent hubs > PMO and enterprise architecture muscle 7. Operationalize Innovation "Pilot less. Scale more." > Fund innovation sprints > Measure ROI fast > Embed test-and-learn culture Bottom Line: Build systems that adapt, not just react. This is how fast-growing payors become market-makers

There is an execution sweet spot in B2BSaaS that virtually no vendor gets right - orchestrating the interactions between you, your ISV/Tech Partners and your Channel/Services Partners - working together as an ecosystem to serve joint customers. (see picture below). The core source of failure to execute on something simple - like you and your alliance partner successfully selling through a joint channel- is that vendor programs are: 1️⃣ Silo'd (one program for tech and one for channel) 2️⃣ Architected poorly (built on the wrong touch point - 'you vs the ecosystem') 3️⃣ Not Orchestrated (no accountability for ensuring the win/win/win). Here's the fix: INTEGRATION. If you calculate the amount of ecosystem unlock available when the upstream (Tech Partner + Tech Partner) is properly connected to the downstream (VAR or SI selling better together Tech Partner solutions), you would blow up the silo's solely on the opportunity to monetize the ecosystem unlock. 👉 CTA: Partner Programs must be INTEGRATED across the partner types to ensure that GTMs are integrated across the ecosystem. ARCHITECTURE. Most partner program processes were built back when the channel was its own department and PRM solutions (aka portals) were the way to go. Today, it's no longer possible to bypass platform architecture that allow the partner programs to LIVE IN THE ECOSYSTEM rather than forcing the partners to come to our vendor portals for all motions. 👉 CTA: Partner GTMs must be ARCHITECTED to meet in the ecosystem (with platform technology) not forcing partners to come to the vendor (with portal technology). ORCHESTRATION. Today, no one is accountable for ensuring ecosystem success. You simply can't manage an ecosystem with narcissism, you have to find a process (perhaps by outsourcing) that allows a vendor to ensure that the ecosystem wins which by definition means that the vendor will win much more $$$s. 👉 CTA: Partner Execution must be ORCHESTRATED to ensure success for the customer and the partner ecosystem. #ecosystemorchestration