Software Building… What’s Your Strategy? Pros & Cons Discussion By: Learning Team B By Tom Yost, Richard Woodham, Tam Truong, Gordon Heeres, Susan Kenney, John Leonard

In-House Built (Pros) Satisfies proprietary requirements Software built to accommodate established procedures and policies Internal resources and capabilities increased and improved Easily integrates with existing systems and technologies

In-House Built (Cons) New competencies and resources may be acquired High long term costs Information sharing could be problematic Adding hardware to an in-house system could require development of proprietary device drivers

Contract Built (Pros) Improve service and performance Leverage expert resources and staffing Shorter systems development cycles Improve management control Stabilize and reduce costs Facilitates business focus

Contract Built (Cons) Potentially high cost Introduces contractual issues Builds no in-house expertise Possible conflict of interest

Purchasing Turnkey Software (Pros) Vendor experience and expertise No additional staffing Vendor-Customer relationship drives higher quality Improved Customer support Improved Customer training

Purchasing Turnkey Software (Cons) High cost No control over project management No control on project delivery High vendor dependence – expertise, personnel, etc.

Customizing Pre-built Software (Pros) No internal IT development Provides all business functions Quality systems Stability Fast delivery of system Service agreement

Customizing Pre-built Software (Cons) Expensive High Risk Possible loose of upgrades Main system can be impacted with bugs

So, to decide which strategy to adopt … Calculate ROI Research vendor – expertise, contract, etc… Analyze potential costs-vs-savings Decide on core competencies Investigate security risks/concerns