An API is a set of protocols and tools that help build application software. Param Soni, deputy administrator and deputy director at the U.S. Department of Labor, told MeriTalk he found the agency had multiple legacy applications that carried out similar functions. He found a commercially available platform that would enable common activities the department needed in an application. Then, the IT team added APIs to meet the specific needs of the department.
“The goal is to always use existing services,” Mr. Soni said.
With APIs, the agency can build what the customer needs rather than working around what the organization does, Joe Paiva, CIO of the International Trade Administration, told MeriTalk.
“As a government person you have to say, ‘Is this something the government has to do?'” Mr. Paiva said.
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