WHEN CHOOSING A SOFTWARE VENDOR, SOME ORGANISATIONS WILL CHOOSE TO GO WITH A SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROVIDER AND ANOTHER TO DO THE SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION. HOWEVER, ONE GOVERNMENT ORGANISATION HAS CHOSEN AN END-TO-END IT VENDOR TO DO BOTH, WITH MUCH SUCCESS.
A state government department has chosen an end-to-end IT vendor to not only develop, but implement a system for them. Government departments have traditionally chosen large, well-known third-party integration specialists to perform the implementation of a system; often at a significant expense and not always to great success. By choosing to go with an IT partner that had the capability to deliver both functions, this government department achieved a successful rollout of the system, on time and within budget.
Government departments have traditionally chosen large, third-party integrators on the presumption that it would be the ‘safer’ option. However, history demonstrates that this is not necessarily true as third-party integrators often bring in added complexity to projects, not to mention the exorbitant fees that they often charge. Many projects, not just in Australia but overseas as well, have failed on this presumption.
“The success of a project is dependent on how good the relationship is between not only the vendor and client, but also between the software development provider and systems integrator,” commented Kareem Tawansi, CEO of software development provider, Solentive Software.
“The people who are most knowledgeable about a system and understand it thoroughly are the people who developed the system. Therefore, for a systems integrator to successfully integrate the system, they will need the assistance of those that developed the system. This introduces added complexity as the two providers will need to work cohesively with one another in order to achieve a successful outcome for the client. It would therefore be beneficial for the client if they source a provider who is capable of developing and implementing the system,” continued Tawansi.
By removing a third-party systems integrator from the equation, risk is reduced for the client as implementation is streamlined and the software development provider takes complete end-to-end responsibility of the system from creation to implementation. This simplifies the implementation process, minimises cost, reduces time-to-market, and eliminates miscommunication between the provider who developed the system and the third-party systems integrator.
“The only reason why a client should enlist a third-party systems integrator is if they already have a good relationship with an existing software development provider who does not provide integration services. However, if starting fresh, choosing a vendor that provides development and integration services will ensure a smoother overall experience for the client,” advised Tawansi.