Lean manufacturing depends heavily on eliminating waste. It's for this very reason that ERP (enterprise resource planning) software systems have exploded beyond manufacturing and expanded into far flung unrelated industries.

But waste, nonetheless, still exists in the area of system integration. Companies can save anywhere from $100,000 to several millions in personnel and direct expenses through more effective integration.

How? That's the challenge. According to several experts in the field, the most common problems that arise when companies set out to integrate procurement, distribution, warehousing and communication systems with customers come not in executing their plans, but rather in conceptualizing them.

"What I see most often is that there's not a shared view of success at an enterprise level."

"What I see most often is that there's not a shared view of success at an enterprise level," says Jack Bergstrand, CEO for Brand Velocity, a consulting firm that helps large companies implement major organizational projects.

Bergstrand, who served as CIO for the Cola-Cola Co., says he sees many companies fall into the trap of thinking there's a definitive line of organization that will be established, only to discover during implementation there are many more questions to be answered.

"A lot of times, people aren't clear on where they're going or why," says Bergstrand. "They may be clear in their own minds, but that's not the same. Once projects get started -- and you see this if there's a restructuring of a company, or when there's a merger or acquisition -- you have to define where the centralization and decentralization lines are. It's for these reasons that even to this day, after 30 years of learning curves, 70% of enterprise projects fail to deliver on their initial promise."

Stanley Supply & Services, a supplier of products for assembling, repairing and testing electronic equipment, is one of the exceptions. As one of the chief suppliers to companies such as Honeywell and BAE Systems, Stanley established an integrated system that allows high-volume customers to automate their ordering process -- reducing transactional costs associated with purchasing agents and sales people.

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