Making the right connections: be wary of application vendors touting "open" integration platforms.(Information technology innovation & insights)

MSI, September, 2003 by Hill, Sidney, Jr.

0n its way to completing the biggest merger in high-tech history--the $19-billion acquisition of Compaq Computer--Hewlett-Packard (HP) consolidated its information systems. As much as possible, HP wants business functions performed on a single system delivered by a single vendor. This promotes consistency in the way functions are performed across the enterprise, according to Mike Overly, who as vice president of marketing is overseeing the consolidation of HP's CRM applications.

The single-vendor approach also minimizes the need for large-scale system integration projects, but it does not eliminate it. In fact, manufacturers both large and small are learning that the need to integrate systems is a fact of contemporary business life. The big...

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