Integrated Suites Vs. Best of Breed

Computerworld - The inherent data integration problem makes the question of whether to use best-of-breed CRM analytic products or ones integrated within application suites knottier to answer. For David Gadra, CIO at Ikon Office Solutions, who was already running an Oracle Corp. data warehouse, adopting the analytics in Oracle 11i "was very attractive."

Other users argue that the nature of the data needed to feed CRM analytic software, from e-mail to call reports written on personal digital assistants, is too diverse and unstructured to be managed in an integrated way.

"Best-of-breed apps will do best," says Tom Sultenfuss, vice president of operations and customer development at Spherion Corp. "There's just not much of a convergence of data sources, which means a tremendous amount of integration work still has to be done."

Going with vendors of best-of-breed applications has risks in a technology segment that's consolidating, but analysts and users agree that IT can minimize those risks by:

• Defining standard data formats, such as XML for data presentation or Open Database Connectivity for database-to-database exchanges.
  
• Ensuring data integrity through proven and published processes.
  
• Establishing data migration processes, such as storing procedures for graphical data.
  
• Choosing CRM analytics tools that support Web browser access.
  

Integrated Tools

Oracle packages its business intelligence products with Oracle E-Business Suite. It offers impressive integration with Oracle applications.

PeopleSoft Inc. in Pleasanton, Calif., has been in the analytics game since 1997. It targets vertical markets for "cross-chain analysis."

Siebel Systems Inc.'s offering lacks financial, manufacturing, human resources and other applications; however, the San Mateo-Calif.-based company's vast number of integrated vertical market offerings make it the next closest thing to an integrated provider.

Best-of-Breed Products

Dozens of small companies offer tools for a wide range of niches (for a listing, see www.computerworld.com/q?26892). Guy Crease, an analyst at Aberdeen Group Inc. in Boston, says that with so many business models in so many industries, specialized CRM analytic tools will always be necessary. Many are compatible with the integrated enterprise application suites.

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