Should I Build IT Or Buy IT?

By Scott Theroux, Director of Product Development

For those of you lucky enough to have an in-house software development team at your disposal to meet the needs of your business or government agency, it is tempting to use them for every challenge that arises. However, are you prepared to face the challenges posed by today’s complex application development cycle?

According to a Standish survey cited on the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) website, only 17% of all software development projects were completed on-time and within budget, 33% of all projects were cancelled and over 50% were considered “challenged.”

To complete a successful project roll out, the following are just a few of the challenges you will face:

• Unclear or misunderstood scope/objectives
  
• Unrealistic schedules and budgets
  
• Lack of senior management commitment to the project
  
• Failure to gain user involvement
  
• Inadequate knowledge/skills of the project personnel
  
• Lack of effective project management methodology
• Misunderstanding the requirements among team members
  
• Continuous requirement changes
  
• Developing the wrong software functions
  
• Technical resource usage and performance
  
• Introduction of new technology

When adding a new software development project to your business, you should also ask yourself if you are in business to build that particular class of software. When you purchase a new car, few of us consider building the car ourselves because we lack the technical skills, relationships with suppliers, and infrastructure to build and maintain a unique class of car. The same holds true for developing complex software systems.

In summary, it is advisable to consider all the pitfalls associated with building an in-house software solution. Neighborhood America’s Software as a Service solution (SaaS) allows you to focus on the outcomes of your initiatives without the headaches of building, implementing, and maintaining a custom application.

Mobile Solution Becomes Online Destination

The mobile phone is becoming the next source outside the PC to give us instant information.

Mobile marketing - sending and receiving content through mobile phones – is the latest marketing channel for organizations looking to go beyond traditional forms of outreach.

Over 200 million Americans own mobile phones. Neighborhood America believes this disruptive trend will affect the way people live their lives. Therefore, it was important for us to reinforce our leadership position.

In October, Neighborhood America and MOVO Mobile joined forces to offer the only comprehensive mobile solution that empowers enterprises with the ability to build social networks and interact with their audience – whenever, wherever.

In line with this forward thinking, we’ve introduced an online destination that enables potential customers the means to connect to this solution. Whether it’s extending advertising to mobile with interactive campaigns or driving audience interaction, the MOVO Mobile website is a resource for customers wanting to learn more about the mobile world.

Click here to visit MOVO Mobile online.

Gift Giving

During the past six holiday seasons, Neighborhood America reached out to the local community in Naples, Florida.

One year it was a family that had just lost their home due to a fire.

This year, North Naples Baptist Church and Covenant Presbyterian Church honored us with the opportunity to meet three amazing families: a domestic abuse survivor raising her two children by herself and two sets of parents – one with six children, the other with five children.

Our corporate employees wanted to share their blessings with these deserving families by donating clothing, shoes, and toys – taking some of the burden off these hard-working parents. The smiles on their faces – reward enough.

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