AI & integrations
Connect an AI assistant to business tools with MCP
Model Context Protocol structures exchanges between AI clients and services exposing capabilities. It can make selected business information and actions available through a defined interface.
Locate the connector in the system
MCP services can expose tools and resources to compatible clients. Actual behaviour depends on the client, server and versions selected.
Identify intended consumers and their work first. An internal assistant and an externally offered integration may need different deployment and access arrangements.
Design narrow business capabilities
Prefer checking a case status over unrestricted data access. Describe parameters, limits and meaningful errors so missing information is recognisable.
Separate reading, preparation and writing. Keep required approval inside the application rather than assuming every agent request is permitted to take effect.
Enforce existing permissions
Tie requests to identities and authorised organisations, roles and records. The connector must not bypass the ordinary application’s access rules.
Use authentication supported by the deployment and clients, following current documentation. Plan revocation and role changes instead of sharing an all-powerful credential.
Test the connector as an interface
Try missing parameters, inaccessible cases, duplicates and service failures. Inspect actual effects and useful error responses rather than relying on tool descriptions.
Test from the target client as well. Record supported versions and reference cases to manage changes in tools and protocol behaviour.
Assign limits and ongoing ownership
Monitor useful failures and volumes, with appropriate access to traces. Set spending or request limits and the ability to disable capabilities.
Begin with a few tools for a defined journey. Custom integration can map MCP to existing services while retaining documented responsibilities and a handover path.
Your checklist
- Identify clients and supported capabilities.
- Expose bounded business actions.
- Enforce identity and permissions.
- Test errors, versions and recovery.
- Plan monitoring, limits and revocation.
Frequently asked questions
Does MCP replace application APIs?
Not necessarily. A connector can use existing APIs and business services while presenting selected capabilities to compatible AI clients.
Does the protocol automatically secure actions?
No. Authentication, authorisation and business controls need designing and testing for the intended scope.
A project to explore
Pare-Brise Éco
Pare-Brise Éco’s integrations illustrate the responsibilities and data boundaries to define before exposing business capabilities to an assistant.
Explore the project