Platforms and partnerships

Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Apple dominate the global economy. The business model of the so-called GAFA companies is based on an ecosystem using a digital platform. DATEV also applies this partner model on behalf of its members and clients.

The cooperative ecosystem is part of the digital transformation concept for the business world and links the economic issues relevant to DATEV's members with consistent digitalisation, automation and networking. The focus is on digital consulting as a central partner and service provider. DATEV is at the heart of this platform economy. Since 2015, the DATEV-Marktplatz (DATEV Marketplace) has listed software solutions from DATEV software partners and providers with a DATEV interface that complements DATEV products. There are more than 200 partner solutions, and the number is growing.

Like an actual marketplace, the DATEV-Marktplatz is also very busy. In addition to digitisation within the ecosystem, the main focus is on integrating with other ecosystems. For example, connecting to the payment service providers PayPal and Amazon for business customers improves cooperation between our members and their clients.

All participants in DATEV-Marktplatz benefit equally: DATEV closes the gap for collaboration with partners for products that DATEV doesn't offer, and the partners provide their solution on a platform they don't have to host themselves. The software-based cooperation is stable thanks to regular technical interface checks. Above all, the partner solution offers DATEV members consistent collaboration with their clients. But the potential of the platform economy is far from exhausted. The next stage of expansion is currently being developed. Clients expect integrated process support, innovative ideas and access to corporate data that enable new digital business models and consulting approaches.

Comprehensive support for business processes

DATEV does not have to and cannot develop everything itself. Partners can sometimes realise innovations faster and more quickly than the cooperative. Why not use the innovation potential of partners? DATEV must concentrate on its core competencies, i.e., everything to do with accounting and business issues. Partners can supplement everything else.

This means not only including partner solutions in the DATEV-Marktplatz alongside DATEV's solutions and integrating them into the DATEV world via interfaces such as DATEV-Datenservices (DATEV Data services). It also means inviting partners to participate with ideas and to find solutions that consistently support the entire supply chain of consultancy–client collaboration. As the administrator, DATEV provides the platform with all partners bearing the main innovation risk. DATEV has taken the first step. The DATEV developer portal provides technical specifications for developing interfaces to DATEV programs. In this way, interfaces can be programmed for automated data transfer of payroll data or receipts from other applications or connected to accounting systems that transmit receipts to the DATEV computer centre for further processing.