7/9/2003 -- I was talking to a potential client some time ago. The CTO shared with me details about his company's network, the applications they were running, what kind of Internet connection they had -- you know, typical IT banter. He told me about his Windows 2000 servers. He spoke fondly of his SQL Server cluster. He bragged about his Active Directory implementation. He gave me a tour of his company's intranet, running on IIS.

As much as I was enjoying this IT tour, I wanted to get back to how we might be of service to his company. So I asked him if everything was working as it should. He mentioned that some of his users were having problems with e-mail. As he was describing the issues they were facing I thought about how I could help him. He finished his rant, and I enthusiastically responded by telling him how we were experts in Exchange, and that we knew exactly how to address his particular problem.

"That's great," he said, "but we use Lotus Notes!"

I just assumed that his company was an across-the-board Microsoft shop. I mean, who implements Active Directory, SQL Server, IIS, ISA -- and then goes with Notes for e-mail?

I was aghast. I was also out the door. That CTO thanked me for my time, then kindly escorted me out.

While this story may be a bit exaggerated, it does underscore an issue that many IT departments are facing these days: single-source versus best-of-breed solutions.

The single-source advocates will tell you how great it is to have one company on the hook for ensuring that everything works. If your SQL Server isn't integrating into Active Directory properly, Microsoft (specifically the SQL Server group) can't very well blame Microsoft (the Active Directory group) for the problem. Single-source supporters will also extol the virtues of integrated code bases, consistent look and feel and unified technical support.

Best-of-breed proponents, on the other hand, speak of business processes, and how they are better addressed by specific solutions. Just because a company's line of business application requires SQL Server, they'll argue, doesn't mean that the company's e-mail needs are best met by Exchange. Best-of-breeders also like the idea of not putting all your eggs in one basket.

What does this mean for IT professionals? Do we need to choose which side of the fence we're on? If so, which tack is better? Well, the pundits that offer their advice to senior management types (in magazines like CFO, CIO and Network Computing) can't seem to agree on this issue, so I doubt we techies can do any better.

But that doesn't really matter. Because as IT pros, we already know that we should be focusing on how to make various technologies work in a given business environment. So let's continue to put forth the effort to know the technology needs of our clients, and let the pundits and C-level executives hash out which approach to take.

Questions? Comments? Post your thoughts on this topic below!