Way back in the dark ages of the internet, in the days of kilobytes and the newly born Internet which was accessed through a dialup connection, software was developed specifically for and by individual companies. More often than not, it was made completely from scratch due to the fact that there was simply nothing else around. If you required some software in order to schedule management of human resources, production or monitor expenses and time, then you’d be forced in to having to have custom software developed for you.
Custom software development used to be seen as something which was incredibly expensive and also time consuming. Companies expected any custom software development projects to have much larger lead times. This was thanks to the chance of project failure, despite the amount of money and time which was funneled in to it.
Software packages then quickly started to appear on shelves, their availability increased massively and the price tags dropped. Obviously, businesses then started to use them far more than ever before. This software does have issues as well, though. Usually it’ll include some more features than a business actually requires. The implementation of the software can also be a lengthy process for IT departments to fully learn, implement, manage and adapt to.
Recently companies have started to return back to their custom software applications which are targeted at the businesses core requirements because of a few things:
- Companies don’t want to waste money on features they aren’t using.
- The techniques used in software development have become far more advanced. The entire process is now much quicker and easier.
- You can integrate mobile applications in to custom software, which allows for an easy transition between different devices.
- The freshest software projects will be able to learn from the mistakes of past programs.
Multiple approaches to development like the Rapid Application Development, or RAD, are now going through a fantastic period of success because of the expansion in popularity of this old-school software development style. Development teams can now quickly prototype their listed pressing requirements and move briskly on to creating functioning software that provides an effective solution to the business’s core requirements. The software team will then solicit feedback as to how exactly the software runs and moulds the business’ feedback in to their continual development process.
A development team will be expecting to make alterations to their software from the very beginning. New revisions and versions are typically revealed to the business every few weeks. Maintaining transparency reduces the risk and also the cost to the business.
That’s a huge selection for business’ to choose from when they’re looking for the software which suits their needs. Whilst we probably won’t see off-the-shelf software leaving the scene any time in the near future, this new (and old) development style is truly taking off. Perform the correct research, come to an educated decision and do whatever’s best for your business.
