Why the Build vs. Buy Question Is Almost Always Asked Too Late
A short note on why most organisations frame build vs. buy after the budget has already been shaped, and what it takes to bring the conversation forward to where it can still change the answer.
- 01
The decision is usually made implicitly
By the time build vs. buy reaches a steering committee, the budget shape, vendor longlist and target go-live have often locked the answer in. Naming the decision early keeps it genuinely open.
- 02
Total cost of ownership is rarely modelled honestly
Buy hides integration, configuration and lock-in. Build hides run cost, hiring and roadmap drag. Without a comparable multi-year model, the cheaper-looking option wins by default.
- 03
Differentiation is the only useful filter
Capabilities that differentiate the business are candidates to build; everything else is a candidate to buy. Most organisations invert this and build the commodity while buying the differentiator.
- 04
Internal capability is a constraint, not an assumption
Build options that assume a team you do not yet have, or a delivery model you have never run, are not really options. The honest question is what you can sustainably operate.
- 05
The answer is rarely binary
Most realistic targets are a mix: buy the platform, build the edge, integrate deliberately. Framing the question as a spectrum produces better architecture than forcing a single answer.
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