Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
value. If one buys a product for its Finance and HR modules, one is under
pressure to use its CRM (customer relationship management) modules
because “data is integrated,” the customization tools are familiar, the user
experience is understood, etc. Under this argument, one ends up losing
the right to go with the “best-of-breed” for different areas.
The technology dependency is clearer. One gets the technology that
the vendor provides. If the vendor moves to a “better” technology and
offers future upgrades, one must shift to that technology, even if one has
some reservations about bringing that technology into one's company. If,
however, the vendor does not move to the better technology in the
timescale one would like them to, then one is constrained — one is a
partner in a three-legged race.
Both selling and buying in organizations are semirational, technopo-
litical processes. The probability of making a good purchase depends on
how well one knows what one wants, what is available on the market,
what has worked in the past, etc. The best results do not come only from
checklists and impersonal vendor evaluations.
To reap the benefits of an OTS implementation, the organization needs
to learn aspects of the system, as they unfold, in daily usage. Many good
OTS products have been dismissed prematurely because users often lack
the patience and perseverance to invest the time and effort expected. This
may seem like an unfair charge to those who have seen implementations
go way over schedule and budget but all we would like to impress is
that, even in a well-controlled environment, a certain time period is
required for an OTS product to show its power and benefits. Learning to
live with OTS products, and learning how to make good use of them,
are essential in today's IT world.
Summary
Build-versus-buy decisions, especially related to enterprise applications
and technologies, are strategic decisions that IT departments must take
and live with for years. There are many advantages to buying off-the-shelf
products as compared to building them, and the trend is toward using
off-the-shelf products wherever good ones are available. Many factors go
into selecting the products; an important one that should be taken into
consideration is the ecosystem that exists around off-the-shelf products
that have been on the market for some time. Avoid checklist-based
requirements; they come up against the understandable reluctance of
vendors to say no to any of your checklist items as long as there is some
wiggle room.
