Visual Basic Programmer

Software Development

Build or Buy?

Do you buy off-the-shelf Software to solve administration problems? Or do you build your own solution from scratch?

There are advantages and drawbacks to both options. A Build vs. Buy decision is primarily about determining if a vendor product can be sufficiently customised, at reasonable cost, to make a company's administration procedures more efficient.

The Buy Option

Packages are designed to offer a wide range of options. They must achieve this, or the vendor's customer base will be limited. This is a win/win situation – because the customer receives an affordable and robust Software package and the Software vendor does not have to reinvent the wheel for every customer. The economies of scale significantly reduce costs.

Software packages address standard functions such as Accounting, Distribution, Inventory and HR. Companies pursue the Buy Option because it will be easier and faster than building custom Software. As long as a suitable package exists, there is little to be gained by Software development.

But …

• The need to cover a large range of options may make the package less than optimal.
• The required functionality is not always available.
• Business Processes may have to change.
• It can take ages for even urgent software bugs to be resolved.
• Customising a package can become expensive.
• There may not be an upgrade path.

The Build Option

Companies with unique, complex or rapidly evolving requirements should choose a custom solution because it is easier to incorporate new functionality. The flexibility to extend a system is worth the extra effort and staff required to maintain the system. Flexible Software can provide a competitive advantage.

At the heart of every business is something that makes it unique. The custom solution is designed with the organisation in mind so that it is unlikely that business processes will have to change to fit the solution.

Microsoft is focused on steering dollars away from packaged solutions towards custom-developed applications based on Microsoft Office and Microsoft technology. As a result, the speed (and cost) of Software and Website development has reduced significantly.

But …

• Home-grown software must be maintained.
• Unless the software is constantly upgraded, supporting an obsolete product can be problematic.
• Coding standards must be rigorously enforced.
• Simple solutions must be favoured over the complex.
• Professional and competent programmers must be selected.

Summary

Knowing your company's business allows you to choose your compromises carefully. Every organisation has unique constraints that can be leveraged to reduce administrative complexity or improve staff performance. This reality is the root of the Build vs. Buy decision process. What is being balanced is the optimisations that can be achieved, against the engineering resources and testing that the software vendor can offer.