Digitalization is the priority for all financial institutions (though in different scopes). And there are different ways to roll it. They all fit into one of three main categories – build or buy: build in-house or buy the solution from the vendor.
Before deciding which direction to move, it’s necessary to weigh the pros and cons of each option. First of all, clear goals should be defined. What are you trying to achieve? Do I need it? How are your plans best accomplished? What challenges do you foresee?
So, buy, partner, or build?
The answer seems pretty easy: if the financial organization has the capacity, resources, time, and expertise it can be a solution of in-house software development, if it has some missing components – it can an outsourced solution.
Some factors should be taken into account here:
- The cost factor;
- The factor of requirement fit;
- The factor of the support structure;
- The operational factor;
- The factor of risk involved;
- The factor of strategy and competitive advantage.
What are the pros and cons?
Buying software from a vendor
Advantages:
- A ready-made solution;
- Flexible software;
- Support and training;
- Enhanced functionality through customer feedback.
Disadvantages:
- A set functionality;
- Vendor’s right on code;
- Dependency with support/issues/updates.
In-house software development
Advantages:
- Complete control over the application code and develop a schedule.
Disadvantages:
- Constant staff engagement;
- Lower functionality;
- High costs;
- Long time-to-market;
- Time/cost/resource-consuming updates due to complete iteration of development.
After performing a full comparison, the financial organization can decide which option will fit better.
Watch a presentation on that topic, given by Andriy Kusen (Head of the FinTech Unit at Intellias) at our latest CEE22 SME Banking Conference.
