For years, companies have been clamoring for solutions that will let their workers access data in core business systems and integrate it with the applications they use to get their jobs done. That request has been on the minds of both IBM and Microsoft over the last couple of weeks, as both vendors have made strategic announcements about their information integration solutions. The announcements offer a sneak preview of how the two IT titans will fight for the hearts and minds of corporate customers in the near future.
Two weeks ago, IBM fired the first shot when it unveiled DB2 9, the long-awaited new version of the database that was code-named "Viper." Unlike previous versions, DB2 9 offers an XML data type that allows companies to store XML files in their hierarchical form within the columns of a table. The new version also supports the XQuery language for working with XML data and includes tools to build XQuery programs. The enhancements make it possible to use DB2 9 as a repository for both relational and non-relational data. They also make it easier to index, sort, and access XML data, not to mention integrate it with relational data. Moreover, the product's new data compression capabilities significantly reduce the cost of storing information.
IBM is positioning DB2 9 as a solution for managing all enterprise data—both structured unstructured—with the high quality of service levels that are typical of relational databases. The computer giant wants to convince developers and systems integrators to send all their data to DB2 9. That would turn the product into a data services platform that would provide applications with a single place where they could access information via Web services interfaces. This concept of an "information services architecture" is at the heart of Information on Demand, IBM's strategy for how its software will simplify the daunting task of information management.
If DB2 9 sounds interesting to you, be aware that it IBM will make it electronically available on July 28 for Windows, UNIX, and Linux environments running on both Intel-compatible and POWER processors. This means that System i users can run DB2 9 in AIX and Linux partitions. Over the next year or two, I expect that most DB2 9 technologies will make their way into the i5/OS version of DB2. For now, however, System i users will need to look beyond their native operating system for full XML data management capabilities.
Microsoft's Office Pipeline
Naturally, Microsoft has a different vision for how to give workers integrated access to corporate data. The vendor wants its Office System to be the platform that unites information from diverse systems. Its argues that its Office and Outlook products are where information workers spend the bulk of their time, making them the ideal place to manage both structured and unstructured information.
Last week, Microsoft announced a strategy for enabling users to access their core business systems via Office System 2007, the new Office version that is scheduled to ship early next year. One offering that will make such access easier will be LOBi (line-of-business interoperability) for Office SharePoint Server. As Microsoft describes it, LOBi will offer standard interfaces that developers can use to access enterprise applications via Office 2007 and SharePoint Server. This will make it possible to integrate Office 2007 with line-of-business software in much the same way that Office will integrate with SAP applications via Duet (formerly known as Project Mendocino). At the announcement, many software vendors and systems integrators announced that they will use LOBi to integrate their applications with Office 2007. The list included Accenture, Epicor, Hyperion Solutions, i2 Technologies, QAD, and Wonderware.
Besides integrating Office with line-of-business applications and data, Microsoft wants to draw that data into Office System for further analysis. To advance its strategy, the vendor announced Office PerformancePoint Server 2007. As its name implies, the new product is a performance management offering that includes functions for scorecarding, analytics, planning, budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting. While most application vendors are trying to keep such analysis and reporting functions within the confines of their products, Microsoft insists that Office System is a better platform to create and share the results of such work. PerformancePoint Server 2007 could help the vendor advance its argument.
What Is at Stake
The latest announcements from IBM and Microsoft are good examples of the diametrically different approaches that the two vendors are taking to information integration. IBM starts with its strong suit: back-office applications and the database engines on which they run. Microsoft counters with its dominant front-office applications. IBM is promoting a broad architectural solution that enables "any to any" integration via industry-standard interfaces. Microsoft advocates a focused strategy that promises quick integration with the one family of applications that almost every information worker uses.
While their approaches may be different, both companies are seeking the same prize: to be chosen by line-of-business managers as the solution provider that can free their data from application silos. The stakes in this competition are high, for the chosen vendor will dramatically increase its influence over the IT decisions of its customers. If Microsoft succeeds, for instance, it will:
- Make Office System an interface not only to workgroup applications, but also to core business systems
- Allow the vendor to largely control what line-of-business applications get deployed
- Help Microsoft and its partners do something they have largely failed to do: build relationships with business executives that will let them influence IT decisions beyond workgroup applications and Windows servers
On the other hand, if IBM trumps Microsoft, it could help to contain the latter vendor's sphere of influence to the IT teams that maintain network servers and desktop systems. Given the stakes in this game, neither vendor is willing to accept defeat.
That said, neither vendor will score a clear-cut victory over the other anytime soon. While IBM's approach will undoubtedly gain the most adherents among larger enterprises with heterogeneous architectures, Microsoft will make inroads with smaller companies that rely more heavily on Windows systems. Where does that leave System i users? Since most of them fit neither of the above descriptions, it puts them right in the middle, where the competition between the two vendors will be the fiercest.
How does your company plan on tearing down its information silos and leveraging the data inside them? If you don't have an answer now, the questions of your users and the growing competition between IBM and Microsoft may force you to come up with one. If you're considering your options, feel free to drop me a line with your latest thoughts.
Lee Kroon is a Senior Industry Analyst for Andrews Consulting Group, a firm that helps mid-sized companies manage business transformation through technology. You can reach him at
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