| The Make-Buy-Outsource question is in many aspects | | | | company outside your own. And it is at the level of the |
| a very interesting one. First of all, there is an evolutional | | | | interfaces where the problems end: |
| development around the topic. Under normal | | | | - The Mail-partner executed the task but a few |
| circumstances, companies will first experience the -- | | | | addresses bounced. You have the same kind of list |
| make -- decision, in a later stage -- buy -- and | | | | stored in your own environment and you should |
| afterwards -- outsource. | | | | update that list to keep them synchronic. This can |
| Make-buy-outsource is about acquiring a system that | | | | happen at either side. |
| needs to fulfill a specific task in the organization. | | | | - The statistical reports you receive from the |
| Outsourcing is broader in the way that not only a | | | | Mail-partner are sorted on their own key. Then you |
| system is involved but a whole operation, including | | | | want not only a paper list but electronic versions to |
| other (human) resources. | | | | match them or import them into your own database |
| The MBO-topic is not limited to the larger companies. | | | | (or data warehouse for larger organizations). Here the |
| Any small business is more flexible when it can | | | | same matching occurs which is error prone. Even |
| hand-over tasks to others. For sending out a mailing | | | | though solutions like XML have simplified these kinds |
| you can try to setup a template in outlook, but there | | | | off tasks, the vulnerability remains. |
| are many parties on the market that provide more | | | | - Integration at the front end. A client is calling and you |
| enhanced solutions. The advantage is that you are | | | | need to access to systems. How do you solve this, |
| more flexible and that you do not have to worry about | | | | swapping screens, or do you integrate client |
| all those extra aspects. Like making backups and | | | | functionality and the front-end? |
| providing the right infrastructure. You do need to check | | | | Every company is to a certain extent unique, but each |
| out the service level agreement however. | | | | company faces similar kind of issues according to their |
| One step further is to hand over all the tasks to a third | | | | main characteristics and according to the situation they |
| party. The mailing process is again a good example. | | | | are in. |
| You hand over the list (or you can add this list | | | | If you are dealing with such a case, setting up the |
| management task to the agreement) and they can | | | | Service Level Agreement (SLA) is very important. A |
| execute the job. | | | | thorough study of all the required interfaces is a |
| A disadvantage is that you are interfacing with a | | | | prerequisite in getting a sound SLA. |