After working on an integration between Clari and Salesforce Sales Cloud, I noticed most issues weren’t technical limitations, they were data alignment problems.
Opportunity Stage mapping to Forecast Categories was the first challenge. Even slight inconsistencies in stage definitions caused reporting mismatches. Field-level ownership also needed clear rules; without defining a system of record, updates created confusion and occasional overwrites.
I found it critical to standardize picklist values, validate required fields before sync, and carefully review how Amount, Close Date, and Forecast Category rollups behave. Monitoring sync logs regularly helped catch discrepancies early.
Overall, the integration works well when governance, stage discipline, and data hygiene are prioritized before enabling full synchronization.