Putting Two and Two Together

Talbot takes it one step further, suggesting that cost-benefitanalysis should drive the actual level of integration. There aredifferent ways of integrating systems, each with corresponding prosand cons. A batched integration process, for example, means that twodifferent systems send updated batches of information to each other atpreset intervals - every 24 hours, perhaps. Although this type ofintegration doesn't provide continuous updates 24 hours a day, it doeshave the benefit of being relatively inexpensive and easy toimplement. Real-time integration, on the other hand, links systems soclosely that information is continuously updated. While this hasobvious business benefits, it's also more complicated and expensive toachieve.

The trick is letting the needs of the business dictate the integrationstrategy. The radiology systems at UHS's hospitals are integrated inreal-time - though only to a point. "If you need an X ray, the orderhad better be there 10 seconds after you press the button," says CIOReino. But hospital charges are sent to the hospital billing systemonly at the end of the day. "Hospitals don't need to presentpoint-of-service bills like retailers do," she points out. "So whyshould I maintain that kind of overhead?"

But I Like to Badger the CIO!

Business executives should also respect the technical issues of anintegration project as well as the business drivers. Say, for example,that the vice president of sales is pushing the CIO to get a CRMproject done fast. The technology executive has to decide betweenmeeting the sales vice president's deadline or completing theintegration piece of the project in the most thorough way possible.It's a tough choice to have to make.

"The CIO will try to push back," theorizes StarKist's Morelli. "But atsome point he'll realize, 'Here's the momentum of the organization. Ican either get with it or get run over by it." A tremendous amount ofpressure is put on CIOs, Morelli says. "Most business users want thisstuff because they're at their wit's end and their bosses are pushingthem for more improvement." The best the CIO can hope for, he notes,is to manage the process so that people understand and buy in to theimportance of integration as the project unfolds.