Can ERP Meet Your eBusiness Needs?
Part Two: ERP is the Foundation
Cindy M. Jutras - April 29, 2003

Virtual Integration

The strongest companies in the past were those that were vertically integrated. By being self-sufficient through each step of the entire process of transforming pure raw materials into a finished consumable good, and taking the added responsibility of delivering that product to the end customer, the strongest chain has been forged. By having a single company responsible for each of the steps in the entire process, that company has the greatest possible control, the least contention for materials and the best chance of synchronizing all the necessary components of the process...