IBM, PeopleSoft Team Up On CRM Applications

IBM and PeopleSoft Inc. have agreed to combine their database, server, software, and services to offer PeopleSoft's customer-relationship management applications to IBM customers using the DB2 Universal Database and S/390 servers.

PeopleSoft has adopted IBM's DB2 Universal Database version 7 over Oracle as the primary development platform for version 8 of its CRM application. The agreement with PeopleSoft follows similar deals IBM has made with CRM vendors such as Kana Communications Inc. and Siebel Systems Inc. IBM says it's forging relationships with CRM vendors to help its large E-business customers use customer service as a revenue-generating tool. About 1,300 IBM customers who are using the S/390 server will receive the PeopleSoft product.

PeopleSoft's Internet-based CRM application, when deployed on IBM's S/390 servers, will help businesses determine who their most profitable customers are by using the analytical and data-warehousing features of the product, PeopleSoft exec Ed Schreyer says.

Businesses are growing faster, and it's harder to maintain competitive advantage based solely on a product, Schreyer says. "Service becomes important when it allows a business to be pre-emptive about the needs of its customers, and to supply those needs."