Update: This is the fifth article of the post series, General Information to Build an Intranet Better.
The two main approaches of intranet development are in-house intranet development and outsourcing intranet development work.
Initially when intranets came into being they were mostly developed in-house but as time progressed organizations started outsourcing the development. Presently organizations tend to consider various management issues regarding development and adopt either of the two approaches or a combination of them in varying proposition.
When considering in-house intranet development, the company’s in-house employees will be developing the intranet and providing what ever services it might need. On the other hand outsourcing development would mean contracting with another company to development intranet and any services for it.
In management issues firstly must consider in in-house development is that the company will have to have the personnel equipped with needed like expertise in content management, web designing and related technologies or a well developed IT department. Also if the company has in-house personnel that are under-utilized or have time to be assigned to the development process, then internal development makes sense.
If the company lack the expertise or employees outsourcing would be a better alternative than hiring employee’s and having to layoff at the end of the development or finding them under-utilized and expensive later on. Also outsourcing may provide more elegant, robust and higher standards because personnel who build intranets as a living would develop it and they would have more experience in it.
The cost is also a factor that has to be look into account. Often outsourcing provides a better opportunity at controlling and reducing development cost unlike in-house development where the cost may not be as definite as wanted. In outsourcing it should be noted the up front cost may be higher but the long term saving can be far greater if proper contract definition and monitoring is not done and long term needs such as maintenance and upgrading is properly defined.
Development time should also be an issue and if the intranet is needed in a short period outsourcing might be a better option specially because some outsourcing firms provide read-made intranet solution or nearly complete ones that need a little shaping to the company’s needs. These can be deployed very quickly and comes with the advantage of being tried and tested.
The level of control needed and the dependency on the intranet should also be considered carefully before deciding on the approach. In this in-house development is better option because it provides more control and higher flexibility to the companies needs. If outsource there the danger of not being able to control some aspects of the company and also any sensitive information is more vulnerable, and a company may become very dependent upon its outsource providers, which could lead to problems should the outsource provider back out on their contract suddenly. Its also noteworthy that outsourcing won't have as much freedom or flexibility when it comes to future upgrades and enhancements and may likely need to factor in additional costs of re-hiring or re-contracting.
A factor in-house development is the greater need for management and employee focus and effort on the development, because of the internal development. By outsourcing the company management and other resources will be able to focus on the core business, while the external contractor does the development and any other functions it may require like user training, implementation and maintenance necessities etc.
Another management issue is the communication demand during development and ability for user satisfaction and suitableness of it to the company. If developed in-house the chances are higher for greater user satisfaction and company orientation, because it been developed by people of greater understanding of the internal company environment and user needs and better, more free communication between developers and user/employee of the company. Here more effort may be needed in in-house development to ensure the intranet is developed for the particular areas without undue orientation toward a particular department or user group.
A management issue arising during outsourcing is the contractor to whom the outsourcing should be given. Here choosing the outsourcing contractor needs great care and considerable attention given to detail when contracting. The outsourcer style, ability, reputation should all be considered and cautiously selected. The outsourcing contract definition, negotiation and monitoring should all be given considerable management attention, for the intranet to be successful and achieve its target.
While considering the management issue mentioned here outsourcing may prove highly beneficial for many companies, nevertheless as indicated it also has many drawbacks. It is important that the company accurately assesses their needs to determine if developing in-house or outsourcing is the viable option.
Also See
The two main approaches of intranet development are in-house intranet development and outsourcing intranet development work. Initially when intranets came into being they were mostly developed in-house but as time progressed organizations started outsourcing the development. Presently organizations tend to consider various management issues regarding development and adopt either of the two approaches or a combination of them in varying proposition.
When considering in-house intranet development, the company’s in-house employees will be developing the intranet and providing what ever services it might need. On the other hand outsourcing development would mean contracting with another company to development intranet and any services for it.
In management issues firstly must consider in in-house development is that the company will have to have the personnel equipped with needed like expertise in content management, web designing and related technologies or a well developed IT department. Also if the company has in-house personnel that are under-utilized or have time to be assigned to the development process, then internal development makes sense.
If the company lack the expertise or employees outsourcing would be a better alternative than hiring employee’s and having to layoff at the end of the development or finding them under-utilized and expensive later on. Also outsourcing may provide more elegant, robust and higher standards because personnel who build intranets as a living would develop it and they would have more experience in it.
The cost is also a factor that has to be look into account. Often outsourcing provides a better opportunity at controlling and reducing development cost unlike in-house development where the cost may not be as definite as wanted. In outsourcing it should be noted the up front cost may be higher but the long term saving can be far greater if proper contract definition and monitoring is not done and long term needs such as maintenance and upgrading is properly defined.
Development time should also be an issue and if the intranet is needed in a short period outsourcing might be a better option specially because some outsourcing firms provide read-made intranet solution or nearly complete ones that need a little shaping to the company’s needs. These can be deployed very quickly and comes with the advantage of being tried and tested.
The level of control needed and the dependency on the intranet should also be considered carefully before deciding on the approach. In this in-house development is better option because it provides more control and higher flexibility to the companies needs. If outsource there the danger of not being able to control some aspects of the company and also any sensitive information is more vulnerable, and a company may become very dependent upon its outsource providers, which could lead to problems should the outsource provider back out on their contract suddenly. Its also noteworthy that outsourcing won't have as much freedom or flexibility when it comes to future upgrades and enhancements and may likely need to factor in additional costs of re-hiring or re-contracting.
A factor in-house development is the greater need for management and employee focus and effort on the development, because of the internal development. By outsourcing the company management and other resources will be able to focus on the core business, while the external contractor does the development and any other functions it may require like user training, implementation and maintenance necessities etc.
Another management issue is the communication demand during development and ability for user satisfaction and suitableness of it to the company. If developed in-house the chances are higher for greater user satisfaction and company orientation, because it been developed by people of greater understanding of the internal company environment and user needs and better, more free communication between developers and user/employee of the company. Here more effort may be needed in in-house development to ensure the intranet is developed for the particular areas without undue orientation toward a particular department or user group.
A management issue arising during outsourcing is the contractor to whom the outsourcing should be given. Here choosing the outsourcing contractor needs great care and considerable attention given to detail when contracting. The outsourcer style, ability, reputation should all be considered and cautiously selected. The outsourcing contract definition, negotiation and monitoring should all be given considerable management attention, for the intranet to be successful and achieve its target.
While considering the management issue mentioned here outsourcing may prove highly beneficial for many companies, nevertheless as indicated it also has many drawbacks. It is important that the company accurately assesses their needs to determine if developing in-house or outsourcing is the viable option.
Also See
