Hyperion Solutions found that having coexisting e-mail apps wasn't manageable. Here's how the firm standardized on Microsoft Exchange and adjusted its environment to accommodate the changes.

Hyperion Solutions Corp. began as a Lotus Notes shop, but acquired companies that used Microsoft Exchange 5.5 and Exchange 2000. Initially, the Santa Clara, CA–based business intelligence software company--with major offices in North America, Europe and Asia--pursued a coexistence strategy that allowed the various units to use their preferred e-mail platform while working behind the scenes to deliver what usually appeared to be ...

But by the fall of 2003, coexistence had grown to be more trouble than it was worth. "The coexistence approach was costly in terms of operational expenses and was subject to frequent failures," says Lou Tiseo, Hyperion's director of network architecture and engineering. Hyperion had to dedicate one full-time person to monitoring the e-mail environment to keep it running smoothly. Although it appeared to be a convenient way to absorb acquisitions without the pain of disrupting users and processes, in practice the strategy was proving to be increasingly untenable, especially as the company continued to grow.

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