III. Agents Join, Don't Replace

Agents are participants in existing workflows, not products that own them

Enterprise AI succeeds by augmenting existing systems, not replacing them. Agents must integrate with current workflows in Salesforce, SAP, Workday, and other platforms rather than demanding enterprises rebuild around AI.

Participation means agents act as intelligent actors within established business processes. They respect existing data ownership, security models, and compliance requirements while adding intelligence to each step.

The Integration Reality

Your enterprise runs on:

• Salesforce for customer relationships
• SAP for enterprise resources
• Workday for human capital
• ServiceNow for IT operations
• Box/SharePoint for documents

Agents must work within these systems, not around them.

Successful Integration Patterns

Native Enhancement

Agents that live inside existing platforms:

• Salesforce Einstein enhancing CRM workflows
• SAP’s AI augmenting supply chain decisions
• Workday’s ML improving HR processes

API Integration

Agents that connect through existing interfaces:

• Using platform webhooks for event triggers
• Respecting rate limits and quotas
• Maintaining platform-specific context

Sidecar Pattern

Agents that run alongside existing systems:

• Reading from platform APIs
• Providing recommendations, not commands
• Allowing human override always

What This Means Practically

1. Start with platform capabilities - Use Salesforce’s AI before building custom
2. Respect boundaries - Don’t try to own data that belongs to other systems
3. Enhance, don’t replace - Add intelligence to existing workflows
4. Maintain reversibility - Ensure workflows continue if agents fail

The Platform Advantage

Platform vendors have:

• Better data access than external agents
• Native security models already in place
• Existing user trust and training
• Compliance certifications you’d need to match

Expect your first agents to come from your existing vendors. They have every advantage. External agents should focus on coordination between platforms, not replacing platform functionality.