In tough economic times, it's easy to and sometimes extremely necessary to rethink projects and initiatives that will not have an immediate impact on the bottom line.  But there are some projects that even in the darkest days should not be put on the back burner. IT integration is definitely one such project.

Let's face the facts that there is very little in the world that costs less today than it did yesterday.  Yes I know that flat screen TVs and laptops have reduced in price but conventional wisdom says that any major enterprise wide endeavor will cost more tomorrow than it will today.  Why?  It's simple, because the true costs, the resource costs of people, process and technology will continue to grow.  As they do, an organization will find that their existing technology is falling further and further behind which will result in the need for organization to take more drastic measures to protect and preserve its informational currency down the line.  

Now I have no insight into the ANZ situation and I'm sure that they are making the best decision for their organization.  However, I will say that IT integration is not a "nice to have" it is a "must have" for any organization that is committed to competing in the post-meltdown economic recovery. The rules of the financial market are changing. Expectations are that 2009 will usher in a series of new regulations and oversight of the global financial system.  Wholesale and Retail banking customers are increasing their demands for access and real-time information.  It is a risk for any organization to believe that they will be able to compete with these changes without making some type of IT investment.   A single view of the truth will be critical in the years ahead and existing legacy infrastructure cannot and will not be able to compete.

The hesitancy on the part of any organization to commit hundreds of millions to an IT integration project right now is understandable. It is a major risk and fortunately, there are other options.  Options that require a smaller spend and can still deliver the integration that ANZ and others require. 

Don't worry I'm not about to launch into a sales pitch or any other type of pitch.  I just will close out by saying that I hope ANZ and others will explore other venues to IT integration because customer demands for greater efficiency and more transparency in the banking industry are not going away.  IT integration really is too important to wait.