Indeed, for many businesses, the Internet has replaced all other forms of communication, both human and otherwise, in its prominence in customer interactions. In forming the basis for business, the Internet has thrust technology into the limelight. Formerly used to support back-office operations, today's applications form the basis for almost all aspects of business. As a result, the number of applications has expanded exponentially, the size of each application has grown, and integration between applications has become essential. And that just takes care of the basics.
Every executive can point to companies that, despite investments of millions, still failed.
Applications alone are not enough. Successful companies require an application architecture that is flexible enough to support new applications and to integrate them seamlessly into those already in place. After all, when it comes to mission-critical applications, they require reliability. As much scalability as their infrastructures can support. And if any transactions fail, they need to know about it, fast.