Introduction
The GDSN Challenge IT Teams Must Solve Today
IT organizations play a critical role in enabling the flow of trusted product information across the enterprise and beyond. As organizations expand their product syndication initiatives through the Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN), IT teams become responsible not only for connecting to GDSN-certified data pools, but also for integrating enterprise systems, securing product data exchanges, and maintaining the infrastructure that supports reliable and scalable synchronization with trading partners.
Meeting these requirements extends well beyond establishing connectivity with a GDSN-certified data pool. IT organizations must integrate product information from multiple enterprise applications, support secure and reliable data exchange, maintain performance as product portfolios grow, adapt to evolving GS1 standards, and minimize the long-term operational and maintenance burden of supporting product syndication.
The right GDSN solution should enable IT teams to deliver secure, reliable, and scalable product syndication while minimizing system complexity. By leveraging existing systems of record, simplifying integrations, reducing infrastructure ownership, and continuously supporting evolving GS1 standards, organizations can lower the total cost of ownership and streamline ongoing GDSN operations.
This eBook outlines the key capabilities IT professionals should evaluate when selecting a GDSN solution and how Innovit helps organizations support enterprise-scale product syndication while minimizing complexity, operational overhead, and long-term maintenance requirements.
Table of Contents
This eBook is structured to help you quickly navigate the key areas IT professionals should evaluate in a GDSN data syndication solution. Each section focuses on a specific requirement, outlining what to look for, how Innovit delivers, and why it matters.
Use the table of contents to jump directly to the sections most relevant to your priorities or current challenges.
Executive Summary
System Integration & Data Aggregation
System Integration & Data Aggregation
Data Management and Approval Workflows
Ease of Use
Audit Trail & Traceability
Submission Control & Visibility
M2M Data Submission
Compliance Standards and System Validation
Implementation Speed & Cost Efficiency
Support and Ongoing Maintenance
Reliable Partner with Deep Healthcare Expertise
Conclusion
Executive Summary
As organizations expand product portfolios, trading partner networks, and global market presence, IT teams must support increasingly complex product syndication requirements without extensive infrastructure, integration, or maintenance overhead. Innovit helps organizations simplify GDSN product syndication through enterprise-grade integration capabilities, native data pool connectivity, scalable architecture, and continuous alignment with GDSN standards.
Integrate with Existing Enterprise Applications
Innovit integrates with ERP, PLM, PIM, MDM, and other enterprise systems, enabling organizations to leverage existing systems of record while simplifying data aggregation and transformation.
Reduce Infrastructure Ownership
Flexible SaaS deployment options, automated upgrades, high availability, and disaster recovery capabilities help reduce operational overhead and infrastructure management responsibilities.
Support Enterprise Security Requirements
Role-based access controls, audit trails, secure authentication, and compliance with industry security standards help protect product information and support enterprise governance.
Simplify Data Pool Connectivity
Native connectivity to leading GDSN-certified data pools, including atrify and NPC, reduces custom integration effort and simplifies product synchronization activities.
Scale with Business Growth
Enterprise-grade architecture supports growing product catalogs, increasing synchronization volumes, additional data pools, and expanding trading partner networks.
Minimize Long-Term Maintenance Effort
Continuous updates aligned with evolving GS1 standards and data pool requirements help reduce ongoing maintenance and support burdens.
Data Integration & Interoperability
Data Integration & Interoperability
Can Your GDSN Solution Integrate With Your Enterprise Applications Without Added Complexity?
What IT Teams Need
IT organizations already manage complex application landscapes. A GDSN data syndication solution should integrate seamlessly with existing enterprise systems rather than introducing additional data silos or duplicate maintenance processes.
Key Concerns:
- Complex integration projects
- Duplicate product data repositories
- Custom development requirements
- Increased architectural complexity
IT teams need a GDSN solution that:
- Easily integrates with existing enterprise applications
- Provides flexible integration options and file formats
- Leverages existing systems of record
- Enables transformation of source data into GDSN-compliant structures
A GDSN data syndication solution should have the flexibility to fit into your existing IT ecosystem.
How Innovit Delivers
Innovit is designed to integrate into existing enterprise environments. This includes:
- Integration with ERP, PLM, PIM, MDM, and other source systems
- Flexible integration options and file formats
- Native data mapping & transformation capabilities into GDSN formats
- Automated import scheduling
- Centralized staging area for data aggregation and harmonization
Product data can be leveraged from existing systems without introducing duplicate repositories or complex integrations.
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Lower integration complexity
2
Faster implementation
3
Reduced maintenance burden
Product data is sourced from existing systems and prepared for GDSN data syndication without complex and costly integrations.
Why This Matters
Integration flexibility allows organizations to leverage existing enterprise investments, eliminate data duplication, and reduce the complexity of supporting product data syndication via GDSN.
Hosting, Deployment & Infrastructure Management
Hosting, Deployment & Infrastructure Management
Can the Solution Be Operated Without Adding Infrastructure Burden?
What IT Teams Need
IT teams are responsible for maintaining secure, reliable, and scalable business applications for the enterprise. Supporting GDSN product syndication should not require organizations to deploy additional infrastructure, manage complex upgrades, or dedicate resources to ongoing platform administration.
As product portfolios, trading partner networks, and synchronization volumes grow, organizations need a solution that can scale without increasing infrastructure ownership or operational complexity.
Key Concerns:
- Infrastructure management overhead
- Upgrade and maintenance complexity
- Availability and disaster recovery
- Limited IT resources and operational capacity
IT teams need a GDSN solution that:
- Minimizes infrastructure ownership and administration
- Supports enterprise availability and performance requirements
- Provides business continuity and disaster recovery capabilities
- Reduces ongoing operational overhead
Product syndication via GDSN should not create additional infrastructure and operational burden for IT teams.
How Innovit Delivers
Innovit provides a native SaaS solution for GDSN data syndication designed to reduce infrastructure and operational overhead. This includes:
- Flexible SaaS hosting models
- Managed platform upgrades and maintenance
- High-availability architecture
- Disaster recovery and business continuity capabilities
- Ongoing performance, security, and platform monitoring
Organizations can support GDSN data syndication without dedicating internal resources to platform administration, upgrades, or infrastructure management.
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Reduced maintenance costs
2
Improved reliability
3
Lower operational overhead
Innovit’s GDSN solution remains available, secure, and current without creating additional infrastructure burden.
Why This Matters
Reducing infrastructure ownership and operational administration allows IT teams to focus on strategic initiatives rather than supporting and maintaining GDSN syndication platforms.
Security & Access Control
Security & Access Control
Can Your GDSN Solution Meet Enterprise Security Requirements?
What IT Teams Need
GDSN platforms manage and syndicate key product and packaging information across data pools, trading partners, and target markets. IT teams need confidence that product information is secure, user access is controlled, and all activities are governed through enterprise-grade security and monitoring capabilities.
Key Concerns:
- Unauthorized access to product information
- Security vulnerabilities and cyber threats
- Enterprise compliance and governance requirements
- Limited visibility into user activity and system usage
IT teams need a GDSN solution that:
- Supports enterprise security controls
- Provides role-based access management
- Protects sensitive product data
- Enables monitoring and governance of user activity
A GDSN platform should ensure application and data security, not introduce new risks.
How Innovit Delivers
Innovit provides enterprise-grade security and governance controls. This includes:
- Role-based access controls
- Segregation of duties
- Secure authentication mechanisms
- Comprehensive audit trails
- Compliance with industry standards including SOC 2 & ISO 27001
Organizations maintain visibility and control over product information while ensuring only authorized users can access, manage, and publish data.
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Stronger security control
2
Compliance with security standards
3
Reduced operational risk
Security controls are embedded in Innovit’s GDSN solution and are supported by the security, reliability, and compliance capabilities of AWS cloud infrastructure.
Why This Matters
Strong security and governance controls help IT teams protect product information, reduce operational risk, and support enterprise security requirements for product data syndication.
Automation & Native Data Pool Connectivity
Automation & Native Data Pool Connectivity
Can Connectivity to GDSN Data Pools Be Simplified and Automated?
What IT Teams Need
Many organizations rely on custom integrations or manual uploads to exchange product information via GDSN-certified data pools. These approaches often require ongoing development, maintenance, and specialized knowledge of data pool-specific technical requirements.
Key Concerns:
- Custom integration development and maintenance
- Data pool-specific technical requirements
- Manual data upload and synchronization processes
- Dependence on specialized GDSN expertise
IT teams need a GDSN solution that:
- Provides out-of-the-box connectivity to GDSN-certified data pools
- Reduces reliance on custom-developed integrations
- Provides visibility into data exchange activities
- Maintains alignment with evolving GDSN and data pool requirements
Native connectivity to GDSN data pools reduces integration complexity and improves long-term maintainability.
How Innovit Delivers
Innovit simplifies product syndication through built-in connectivity to leading GDSN-certified data pools. This includes:
- Out-of-the-box connectivity to data pools including atrify, NPC, and others
- Automated generation of data pool-specific XML formats
- Built-in support for data pool-specific exchange protocols
- Monitoring of data upload, publication status, and trading partner acknowledgements
- Continuous updates aligned with evolving GS1 standards and data pool requirements
Data pool connectivity is native within the platform, eliminating the need for custom-built integrations and manual publication processes.
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Reduced integration effort
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Lower maintenance costs
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Faster data synchronization
Product information can be exchanged via GDSN through out-of-the-box connectivity that reduces custom development and ongoing support requirements.
Why This Matters
Native data pool connectivity helps IT teams reduce integration complexity, minimize custom development, and support scalable product syndication operations.
Scalability, Performance & Global Readiness
Scalability, Performance & Global Readiness
Can the Platform Scale as Your GDSN Data Syndication Requirements Grow?
What IT Teams Need
As organizations expand product portfolios, onboard new trading partners, and enter new markets, GDSN solutions must support increasing volumes of product information and synchronization activity without compromising performance, reliability, or operational efficiency.
IT teams need confidence that their GDSN solution can scale with business growth while maintaining consistent performance across products, markets, data pools, and trading partner networks.
Key Concerns:
- Growing product volumes
- Expanding trading partner and market requirements
- Increasing region-specific data pools
- Platform performance and scalability limitations
IT teams need a GDSN solution that:
- Scales with business growth
- Supports global product syndication initiatives
- Maintains performance at high volumes
- Standardizes operations across data pools and markets
Your GDSN platform should scale with your business and data syndication requirements, not constrain it.
How Innovit Delivers
Innovit’s GDSN solution leverages the same enterprise-grade Genesis platform that powers its PIM and MDM products, supporting millions of product records and enterprise-scale product data operations. This includes:
- Support for large product records and attributes
- Reusable integration architecture
- Native connectivity to multiple GDSN data pools
- Standardized data management & synchronization processes
- Continuous platform optimization
Organizations can expand product syndication activities across products, markets, and trading partner networks without compromising performance or scalability.
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Enterprise scalability
2
Global readiness
3
Consistent performance
Innovit’s GDSN solution supports continued growth across product portfolios, trading partner networks, and global markets while maintaining operational efficiency and performance.
Why This Matters
Scalability ensures product syndication processes can grow alongside business requirements without increasing operational complexity or infrastructure constraints.
Supportability & Ongoing Maintenance
Supportability & Ongoing Maintenance
Can IT Reduce Long-Term Ownership and Maintenance Costs?
What IT Teams Need
IT teams need a GDSN solution that remains aligned with evolving GS1 standards, data pool requirements, and product syndication needs without requiring ongoing custom development, standards monitoring, or significant maintenance effort.
Key Concerns:
- Evolving GS1 standards and data pool requirements
- Ongoing platform maintenance and upgrades
- Increasing IT support demands
- Growing operational and integration overhead
IT teams need a GDSN solution that:
- Maintains alignment with evolving GS1 and data pool requirements
- Simplifies data pool and syndication complexity
- Minimizes maintenance and support effort
- Provides responsive support and ongoing updates
IT teams need a GDSN solution that stays current without creating ongoing maintenance burdens.
How Innovit Delivers
Innovit reduces the long-term burden of supporting GDSN data syndication by continuously aligning with standards updates, delivering timely product updates, and providing operational support. This includes:
- Updates aligned with evolving GS1 standards and data pool requirements
- Platform maintenance and managed upgrades
- Performance and availability monitoring
- Security and infrastructure updates
- Responsive technical support and expert guidance
Organizations can maintain efficient product syndication operations without dedicating resources to standards monitoring, custom development, or ongoing platform maintenance.
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Continuous data syndication
2
Reduced IT burden
3
Reliable support
Innovit’s GDSN solution remains current, supported, and aligned with evolving data pool requirements while minimizing long-term ownership and maintenance costs.
Why This Matters
Continuous updates and responsive support help IT teams reduce maintenance effort, lower ownership costs, and maintain alignment with evolving GS1 and data pool requirements.
Trusted Partner with Deep Healthcare Expertise
Trusted Partner with Deep Healthcare Expertise
Do You Have a Partner That Reduces Technical and Operational Risk?
What IT Teams Need
Successful product syndication initiatives require more than technology. Organizations need a partner that understands healthcare product data, GS1 standards, GDSN processes, enterprise integration architectures, and the operational realities of managing product information at scale.
Key Concerns:
- Implementation risk
- Long-term scalability
- Ongoing supportability
- Limited GDSN domain expertise
IT teams need a GDSN solution partner that:
- Understands healthcare technology environments
- Brings deep expertise in GDSN, GS1 standards, PIM, and MDM
- Supports enterprise-scale product syndication initiatives
- Provides ongoing guidance and reduces technical risk
The right GDSN solution partner helps reduce technical complexity and operational risk.
How Innovit Delivers
Innovit combines deep healthcare expertise with proven experience in product data management and GDSN data syndication. This includes:
- 25+ years of healthcare and life sciences experience
- Proven expertise in GDSN, GS1 standards, PIM, and MDM
- Strategic partnerships with GS1, atrify, NPC, and other industry organizations
- Support for enterprise-scale product data syndication initiatives
- Ongoing product updates, guidance, and customer support
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Reduced implementation risk
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Trusted partnership
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Long-term support
Organizations gain access to proven healthcare, product data management, and GDSN expertise that supports successful implementation and long-term operational success.
Why This Matters
Deep healthcare and GDSN expertise helps organizations navigate evolving GDSN data syndication requirements with confidence.
Conclusion
Final Takeaways for IT & Enterprise Architecture Teams
Successful product syndication via GDSN requires more than data pool connectivity. IT teams need secure integrations, scalable architecture, enterprise-grade security, and ongoing alignment with evolving GS1 standards and data pool requirements. Innovit helps organizations leverage existing enterprise systems for sourcing product data while reducing infrastructure, integration, and maintenance overhead to support reliable, scalable, and secure GDSN data synchronization.
IT Teams must be able to:
- Integrate with existing enterprise applications and systems of record
- Reduce infrastructure ownership and operational overhead
- Support enterprise security, governance, and compliance requirements
- Simplify connectivity to GDSN-certified data pools
- Scale across products, markets, and trading partner networks
- Reduce long-term ownership and support costs
Innovit helps organizations support enterprise-scale product syndication through secure, scalable, and maintainable GDSN synchronization capabilities without increasing IT complexity, infrastructure burden, or long-term ownership costs.
