How important is the 'hybrid' logic (visual + code) capability?

It's crucial for balancing speed and power. Visual builders handle 80% of tasks quickly, while code access ensures you're never blocked by complex edge cases. Tools lacking one or the other often lead to bottlenecks or force compromises.

Why is external lookup during validation so critical?

It allows real-time checks against master data (e.g., Does this customer ID exist in our CRM? Is this product SKU valid?). This catches critical errors that simple format or range checks miss, preventing data integrity issues downstream. Many basic tools lack this essential capability.

We handle large files. What specific performance metrics should we ask vendors about?

Ask for benchmarks or typical processing times for files similar in size and complexity to yours (e.g., 'Time to transform and validate 1 million rows with 50 columns and 10 validation rules'). Also inquire about memory usage and whether the tool uses streaming or loads entire files into memory.

How can we assess the true 'reusability' of templates?

Ask for a demo showing how a template is saved, loaded for a new project, and modified. Check if validation rules or specific logic components can be imported separately. True reusability significantly speeds up onboarding for similar clients or systems.

What security questions are most important regarding API/DB connectivity?

Ask how connection credentials are stored (encryption at rest?), how they are transmitted (encryption in transit?), what authentication methods are supported (OAuth2, API Keys, Basic Auth, DB users), and if access controls limit who can manage connections.