Beyond not being the first firm to implement a particular piece of software, what other more general lessons apply for software implementation?

The airline reserva ti o n syste m is more than just automated ticke ting for an airline; it is the interface that customers come to kn ow and love (o r hate) as they find cheap fligh ts, select seats, upgrade fo r m ore leg room, and cash in their frequent fl yer points. Two discount airlines, JetBlue and WestJet, both chose to replace their aging systems with software from Sabre, the company that handles reservations for more than 200 other airlines. The similarity in their software implemen tation projects ends there, however, and the differences between them offer some important lessons.