This article discusses the benefits and drawbacks of developing a custom project management application.
Every company has unique needs. Perhaps your company has needs for project management software that are unique enough to have you thinking about purchasing a custom project management software package. Whether your company hasn't been satisfied with any of the project management tools available or your business is too specialized to make use of a generic program, custom software packages can be tailored exactly to your needs. The question is: Is it worth it?
The most obvious benefit of custom software is that it is tailored specifically for your company’s needs. Custom software may also save your company money and time by nixing features that won’t be used and making heavily-used features easily accessible and intuitive for users. Also, because the software has been carefully crafted and planned, the change management process will be simplified. The software can be created so that it operates in a manner that mimics business practices that are already in place. Because the software is tailor-made, it should streamline the project management process.
Whereas there are many potential benefits of using a custom project management software packages, there are also drawbacks. One such drawback is that the custom package may be more expensive than a standard package software. This makes custom software an inaccessible or impractical option for start-up or small businesses. Another potential drawback is that the software may contain bugs or be unreliable due to incompetency on the part of the developers or poor testing strategies. Custom software may take a prolonged amount of time to develop –and when it is ready, there is no guarantee that the methods the project managers find intuitive will be easy to learn for the rest of the employees. Finally, technical support might be difficult to find as a small team specifically built the program for your business.
For more information to help you decide whether a custom project management software package will work for you and your company, there are the following resources: