1. Service-oriented architecture: Realizing tangible benefit from SOA in the near term: SOA enables end-to-end application integration across the enterprise, giving organizations a flexible, "service-oriented" view of all business operations. This tip explains the meaning behind SOA and the benefits SOA bring to a company.
2. SOA muddying the CRM buy vs. build dilemma: According to one Gartner analyst, buy versus build is no longer an either/or question, thanks to SOA. SOA is giving CRM customers the "best of both worlds," allowing them to more easily integrate their custom-built applications with pre-packaged vendor products.
3. Oracle vs. SAP: The SOA factor: In 2007, SearchOracle.com interviewed one expert who said SAP was farther along than Oracle on the SOA front. He also pointed out that IBM had the edge over them both. Read his thoughts, hear more from a 2007 survey and find SOA predictions for the next few years.
4. SaaS CRM integration: is it still a deal killer?: Integrating Software as a Service (SaaS) applications has always been a pain point for companies of all sizes, but with vendors adding SOA to their offerings, integrating on-demand CRM products is getting easier.
5. Oracle and SAP diverge on path to SOA: A 2006 survey conducted by Forrester found that SOA adopters are generally unsure whether to go with a packaged application provider or a middleware provider to meet their SOA needs. Oracle is offering a middleware option, while SAP is providing an application platform.
6. CRM application integration using Web services: Web services is a cost-effective and efficient way to integrate CRM and other enterprise applications. Any integration using Web services requires SOA to bind the services.
7. SOA for pets uses REST and SOAP: A SOA-enabled e-commerce application provides pet owners an Ajax-based online ordering service for home delivery of veterinary medicines. The architecture allows for different Ajax user interfaces to serve veterinary hospitals, customers and its two call centers.
8. SOA is a diamond store's best friend: One diamond retailer used SOA to bring real-time information from its corporate data warehouse into its 270 retail jewelry stores. The company's SOA CRM application uses customer data from its central data warehouse to notify sales associates in local stores to send thank-you notes or service reminders to customers.
9. Enterprise software giants look to smaller fish: According to many experts, major software vendors will be looking to acquire smaller, niche providers in the future. While the fear of an acquisition would normally make companies wary of purchasing a product from a smaller vendor, the flexibility of SOA and on-demand technologies is offering a safety net.
10. Deutsche Post delivers .NET in Java CRM thanks to SOA: An integration expert at Deutsche Post figured out a way to bring .NET applications into a Java-based SOA CRM system. The integration connected two internal Deutsche Post service providers into the larger CRM system.
Thanks to SearchSOA.com and SearchOracle.com for their contributions.
A service-oriented architecture (SOA) can help enable integration between CRM and other applications in the enterprise. These headlines will get you up to date on the latest news and information on SOA and CRM.
