I have always wondered how people come to a choice like outlook and exchange when it comes to office e-mail, it is one of the least efficient, and most bulky overblown mailsolutions I have ever seen. Actually, I firmly believe that this solution costs a lot more money that it's price, as users loose time because it works in such a terrible inefficient way.

There are several solutions, more or less freely available that I would recomment instead. If I were to setup an office environment it would most certainly be with Google, because of the excellent products and the integration thereof. If Google did not exist, I guess Zoho would be the first in line.

As a freelance consultant I have always accepted to adopt the office environment the customer is using, but to be honest, this will come to a stop soon. I have decided that I, just as my customers, have chosen my own way of working, with my effeciency and habits in mind. And with solutions like Zoho or Google Apps, it integrates quite nicely. Google has the advantage of understanding meeting invites, for instance, and Zoho has a sweet little plugin to handle documents. So effectively, I can hook up my favorite selection of worktools to the customer's network.

What's your solution ? Let me know in the comments !