Custom Software Drives Business to Success

Fuelled by the explosive growth in the adoption of smart phones and other mobile devices, custom software has become an integral part of business that it is now a critical factor in driving success.

Times have changed and pre-packaged software is no longer as popular as it once was when Microsoft was king of the desktop. Now it’s all about mobile and cloud computing and companies no longer need to or want to rely on a single device or operating system, thus the desktop PC market continues to evaporate. This was amplified when Apple announced a record-setting $18B quarterly profit, primarily from iPhone sales.

Also, the cost to hire custom software developers has become so competitive that businesses can have applications uniquely tailored to adapt to their needs. As a result, companies are building a host of custom applications like accounting, custom relationship management (CRM), human resource (HR) and other sophisticated software to give them a competitive advantage that a one-size fits all solution may not offer.

However, companies need to pay close attention to the support, maintenance and licensing fees for custom developed software. For example, does the company own the software application or is it licensing it from the developer? This is important because custom software developed using proprietary platform and database technologies may require the on-going payment of licensing fees and these fees could escalate as the number of users grows.

But, companies are realising other benefits as well. They eliminate paying for features they will not use and rather than waiting for an off-the-shelf product to support the latest mobile devices, companies can make changes faster improving the time it takes to respond to employee and customer preferences. This is important because outmoded software can hamper an organisation’s ability to do business efficiently and productively which wastes both time and money.