Many business owners face this question: Should we build a custom software solution, integrate existing tools, or keep working with what we have?
It may seem simple, but the wrong answer can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and months of lost productivity.
Adi Klevit of Business Success Consulting Group recently sat down with Ghazenfer Mansoor, CEO of Technology Rivers, to explore how business leaders can make smart, systematized decisions about software and avoid common traps.
They discussed a collaborative framework that you can use to guide your company through evaluating and implementing the right tech solutions.
How to Systemize Software Decisions
1. Systemize How You Assess Your Current Tools
Before considering any new investment in software, begin by understanding what you already have. Many businesses operate with overlapping tools, half-used platforms, or manual workarounds because no one has taken the time to evaluate current usage.
The first step of this assessment is a tool audit.
Create a centralized list of all platforms currently in use, who uses them, and what functions they serve. Find out:
- Do these tools solve the problems for which they were purchased?
- Have we maxed out every tool's full potential?
- What manual workarounds are we using because of limitations in our current tools?
By documenting your existing systems, you uncover inefficiencies and redundancies that can be addressed without building anything new. This simple step can save tens of thousands in unnecessary development or subscription fees.
2. Evaluate The Available Tools
Once you understand your current landscape, it’s time to explore the tools that exist in the market. According to Ghazenfer, one of the most common mistakes business owners make is immediately jumping to custom development before evaluating available solutions.
Create a decision matrix that helps you objectively assess available software. Include:
- Feature alignment with your pain points,
- Integration capabilities,
- Cost of ownership,
- Scalability and vendor reliability.
Don’t evaluate tools in isolation. Evaluate how well they fit into your overall operations and determine if they can reduce friction between departments.
3. Decide: Custom Build vs. Integration
Integration is often the best path forward. There are many existing tools that solve common business issues, and there may be several industry-specific options for you to choose from. However, this isn’t always the case. You may need to commission custom software. Here are three questions to ask when considering a custom build:
- Is the problem we’re solving unique to our business or industry?
- Will owning the software give us a strategic advantage?
- Does this help us create intellectual property that increases valuation?
Custom software can significantly enhance your company's valuation and provide a competitive edge, but only if it's tied to core business drivers and long-term ROI.
Systematize this decision by documenting the use cases, technical requirements, and cost comparisons between integration and custom development. Bring in cross-functional stakeholders to ensure alignment between business goals and technical execution.
4. Develop a Clear ROI and Pain Point Model
One of the most overlooked steps in the software decision-making process is quantifying return on investment (ROI). Before purchasing out-of-the-box software or deciding to go custom, ensure you understand how your software investment will impact operations.
Here are four steps you can follow to develop a pain point and ROI map:
- List core pain points: Identify inefficiencies, bottlenecks, or missed opportunities in your current workflows.
- Quantify costs: Estimate how much time, money, or energy these issues are costing the business.
- Estimate solution impact: Identify how a new system (custom or integrated) will reduce those costs.
- Define success metrics: Document what success looks like (e.g., "Reduce onboarding time by 50%" or "Save 20 hours per week in manual reporting").
This map will become your guiding document when evaluating build or buy decisions. It will also help you and your stakeholders ensure that the investment makes sense for your business. Finally, it can be used to ensure your development team stays focused on solving existing business problems.
Are you ready to utilize software to support exponential business growth? Get in touch with the process experts at Business Success Consulting Group. We can work with you to determine which processes can be automated as well as systemize the way your software is being used to increase efficiency and customer satisfaction. Schedule your free initial evaluation today.
