I blogged about something similar a while back (reference a Mike Vizard article talking about the same thing…bending business process to match the IT system).

http://leantech.com/blog/2007/06/06/one-massive-size-cant-fit-all/

Even though I sell a packaged solution, I freely tell people when my solution DOES NOT meet their needs, and for business to not try to force it to do so. I’ve done significantly more custom development in the last couple years building systems that line up with the company’s processes. There can be a lot of value having a business system that lines up with the business process, and tremendous waste with a system not in line with the business process.

Just like a manufacturing team would build “custom” equipment to support the best process that adds the most value to the customer, why aren’t IT thinkers thinking this same way? You wouldn’t hope for a car to come out the end of a machine that makes chairs? But that’s what people expect of THE SYSTEM (whatever system it is)…that THE SYSTEM will somehow be able to meet all of the needs of their business processes. Build smaller applications that add the most value rather than expecting THE SYSTEM to do it all.