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Is software needed? - A corporation or business should ask itself if a software solution is necessary. Automating operations that cannot lend themselves to feasible automation is a waste of time and resources.
- For example, an artist may not work with a computer the same way he/she works with a brush and canvas. A warehouse obviously has a need for an IT solution.
- Generally, software is necessary if: A business is less creative than organized; A business repeats certain tasks routinely; A business handles a large number of documents, clients, payments, or staff; A business faces planning issues (e.g. resource conflicts or underutilization), etc.
Must software be tailored? - If a business handles operations in a standard manner or follows recognized management guidelines then a ready-made package is usually available as a solution to its needs.
- For example, a physician’s clinic, warehouse, library, cyber cafe, etc. all have a variety of options to choose from when selecting a package.
Large corporations that follow guidelines such as banks, retail chains, industrial complexes, etc. usually follow international standards of accounting and trading. Such enterprises also enjoy a range of options to choose from, although these are more expensive full-blown ERP systems. - Generally, ready-made packages offer both generic, customizable modules, and an arsenal of vertical-market-specific tools based on market research and/or experience. Such packages are usually better tested, documented, and supported than most tailored solutions and are commonly a better choice over the latter. Moreover, developers of such packages often use open architectures and support development standards so they can modify and expand as time goes by.
- To summarize, before embarking on tailoring business software, a business should first attempt to locate and test ready-made packages.
If organization is necessary, A body can be tiny, small, medium, large, or huge in a different sense here than in comparable business parlance. When categorizing a body for purposes of training, it is prudent to use potential trainee count as a judge of operation size. - The cost of tailoring software for a business is usually far higher than purchase of a license. In some countries, that may not be the case. For example, in Egypt, a team of ten experienced programmers working for two full years on an ERP solution may be actually less than a site license from a US-based giant.
- If a business requires only a minute portion of a world-class package that is not licensed alone, that part may be reverse-engineered (although we strongly recommended against this) to cut down on costs.
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