The Single Source of Truth Fallacy
Everyone talks about a 'single source of truth.' But if you're integrating multiple systems into one platform, that's not a single source — that's a fancy aggregator.
The Problem
That's not a single source. That's an aggregator.
Everyone talks about having a 'single source of truth.' Software vendors pitch it as the solution: 'Integrate everything into our platform and you'll finally have that unified view.' But hold on. If you're integrating multiple systems into one platform, that's not a single source of truth — that's multiple sources passing information to a central hub. You've just created a fancy aggregator with a nice dashboard.
The Disconnect
Humans are copying data between systems.
The real problem isn't that you have multiple systems. It's that humans are copying data between them. Someone fills out a paper form. Another person types it into a spreadsheet. Someone else manually enters it into the system. Every manual handoff is an opportunity for errors, delays, and data that can't be traced back to its source.
The Solution
Remove the human data entry between systems.
You don't need everything in one system. You need to remove the human data entry between systems. Workers capture operational data at source — it's recorded and structured immediately. That data then flows automatically to the systems that need it. No copying. No re-entering. No spreadsheet in between. Your ERP gets the dockets directly from the field.
The Insight
Capture once. Flow everywhere.
A 'single source of truth' from a vendor perspective just means they're the central aggregator. But the truth still originated somewhere else. What you actually need is data captured once at the source, then flowing automatically to wherever it's needed. That's about removing humans from data transport — so the operational truth moves through your business without getting corrupted.