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@ 2005/08/22Bob Gatewood needed more control. The chief technology officer at Athena Healthcare was sick of multiple databases that contained the same customer record. He wanted to tightly integrate the company's customer data into its Web portal, its financial accounting system and its call center software.
He also needed to save money. Paying his existing customer relationship management--or CRM--vendor, Salesforce.com, was growing increasingly costly. The reason: He was adding 10 new employees a month to handle his company's workload, which in turn obliged him to pay for 10 additional CRM licenses under the terms of his contract with the vendor.............
Open-source software providers are responding to the problems by offering a variety of installation packages. Groundwork, for example, offers its code for an annual fee, but it also will install and integrate its open-source IT management software for a company for fees ranging from $50,000 to $300,000. By comparison, a license without integration costs for HP's OpenView costs between $200,000 and $2 million.
He also needed to save money. Paying his existing customer relationship management--or CRM--vendor, Salesforce.com, was growing increasingly costly. The reason: He was adding 10 new employees a month to handle his company's workload, which in turn obliged him to pay for 10 additional CRM licenses under the terms of his contract with the vendor.............
Open-source software providers are responding to the problems by offering a variety of installation packages. Groundwork, for example, offers its code for an annual fee, but it also will install and integrate its open-source IT management software for a company for fees ranging from $50,000 to $300,000. By comparison, a license without integration costs for HP's OpenView costs between $200,000 and $2 million.
