Tom definitely has you on the right path. And, those are two good examples of where you might want to begin looking.

Depending on the application, complexity of implementation and a high likelihood of multiple compatibility issues involving such concerns as operating systems disparities, heterogeneous hardware platforms and the thousands of interconnectivity surprises; I would say your best bet is through one of the leading Systems Integrators

The advantage that an SI brings to your situation is their training, certification and real-world experience with multiple product integration projects - not to mention their geographic spread and presence.

One place you may want to start is with the software vendor and any recommendations they might make. ItÂ?s not unlikely that they would want the business themselves; my only caution is that in many cases vendors don't have the broad (and deep) product skills so often demanded of a reputable Systems Integrator. Too often their knowledge ends at the furthest API points of their product and someone (usually the customer) needs to come in and tie up the loose ends. There may be some initial reluctance to recommend a Systems Integrator for liability reasons.

If they have a reseller Channel you might want to begin with an RFP to them.

Projects of this magnitude would attract some of the best players in the industry and I would narrow down my search to reseller partners who have two general levels of skill. The first being their expertise with the application's primary purpose, i.e. CRM, SFA, SCM, Portal, etc. Secondly I'd look at all of the surrounding applications (and OS's) that are prevalent in your organization (BEA, Oracle, MST, EMC/Â?Documentum, Linux, Sun, etc.) and narrow the field down to Systems Integrators who are certified and proven proficient in all of the required disciplines.

Overall I would also want an organization who has established an excellent reputation for their on-time/on-budget project management skills with a good (stable) team to support long term projects and virtually any EAI challenge thrown their way.

Channel Cheers,

Ken Beam, The VAR-City -- "Channel Start-Up Specialists since 1995" Phone: 972.240.8793 or kbeam@thevarcity.com

I agree, with the statement to use mid-size firm the big boy's to often even when the will take on the project's, will pull there best off a project if a big new contract comes there way.
We do an extensive ammount of this type of work, I would be happy to discuss this with you
Randy Moore
www.agsinternational.biz
You can look over my company, feel free to contact me off line
Randy