Best-in-breed Pros:

• Deep technology and targeted to solving specific problems
• Extendable and open integration

Best-in-breed Cons

• Fragmented view of the customer
• External interface development
• Multiple implementations, with infrastructure and software
• Technology conflicts, interfaces, data, infrastructure
• Multiple interfaces
• Learning and onboarding multiple technologies
• Multiple vendor relationships

I’m sure there are elements I’ve missed in this quick analysis, but I think what the above points out that there is no winner in this debate.

The answer still remains “it depends”.

It first starts with the company’s needs. These needs do change over time, so what worked last year may not work for your business tomorrow.

It depends on the capabilities of the organization – do you have the people to deal with the gaps that each of the technologies present?

So in summary, when thinking of this debate, it can get complicated quickly. Resolving what technology to choose requires you to look internally at your company’s needs before you look for your company’s solution in technology.