Mcluhan said:
but not chained to the Evil Empire.
Am I correct in assuming you are referring to Microsoft here?
It’s difficult to advise you without more information. Just for starters I would need to know the following :
What OS are you running?
Are you in a client server environment?
How many users?
Does it need to integrate with existing systems? (very important to know)
Will it be accessed from branch offices?
These questions need to be answered before any recommendation can be made, for example:
If it’s for use in a client server environment I would strongly advise you deploy a WebApp. A WebbApp (sometimes called a thin client) is an application users access with a web browser over a network (Internet or intranet). The ability to update and maintain web applications without distributing and installing software on potentially thousands of client computers is a key reason for their popularity.
Now, if your client is running Microsoft Outlook in Corporate Workgroup Mode with Exchange Server there are numerous third party CRM solutions available. Leveraging the core functionality of Outlook/Exchange to deploy this type of system is common as a quick Google search reveals.
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-42,GGLG:en&q=Outlook+CRM+solutions