Businesses run on software, either in helping to get things done or as part of the development process itself. Keeping your business software up and running is critical to your business’s success, and necessary to insure the longevity of your company.
But what happens when that expensive piece of mission-critical software no longer works right (or works at all) with your new computer hardware or operating system? What happens when your custom or enterprise software no longer serves the needs of your growing company?
It boils down to two options: You can hire someone in-house, or outsource to a company to fix your software woes. Keep reading to learn some key differences between these two options.
An In-house Developer
For custom software, it used to make sense to hire a developer in-house to do the work. With an in-house developer, you had someone dedicated to the project who knew what they were doing. And because you were paying them, they had a vested interest in getting the job done right. But you also got:
· The time and expense of job posting, interviewing and hiring.
· The actual payroll expense of an employee (or contractor).
· A fixed set of skills that may be most of what you need but not all.
· And, most importantly, a single point of failure for your critical software.
In-house software development is costly, time-consuming, and makes a single employee, or small team, critical to the success of an entire business.
A Custom Software Development Company
There is, however, another option.
Custom software development companies take over the task of keeping critical software running and remove the uncertainty of in-house developers from the solution. By using a software development company, you’re backed by a team of software engineers with different specialties.
Point in case, say you need to access a database for raw data, but your SQL database interface might require a different set of skills than the data interpretation and output portion of the software. Who’s going to QA it, the person who wrote it? Software development companies have the staff and expertise to make all parts of legacy software or other critical software work the way your business needs it to. Why take the risk of hiring multiple people who may very well lack the required knowledge and experience when you can work with one reliable company?
When you’re working with a larger team, you get built-in checks and balances to make sure you get what you pay for. You also ensure you have the optimal software for your unique business processes.
The Reliable Solution
The bottom line for business-critical software is continuous functionality. That means your software needs to be available now and for as long as your company is around.
According the Bureau of Labor Statistics, however, your average employee is going to stick around for about 4 1/2 years. Contractors or specialists are even less likely to be around for long.
Do you want to risk your critical software on an in-house developer who won’t be there in 5 years? Or do you want to put your critical software in the hands of an established, reputable company that’s going to be there for the long haul?
It’s your business and your business’s critical software; long-term development and support needs a long-term, reliable solution.
