Each company is different, based on their
set of opportunities, goals, constraints and
limitations. When a portal implementation project is
planned, these factors must be considered throughout the make
/ buy decision process. Each choice has it’s own
advantages and disadvantages.
Purchase or lease of a pre-packaged portal
product
Advantages
Disadvantages
Quick time to market
Potentially high initial cost based on per installed
server or CPU
Proven based on other purchasers
Perpetual annual costs for software license, maintenance, upgrades and
support
Support availability
Lack of ownership, source code not
available
Potentially feature and function rich
Core development language may limit availability of
application developers
In-house focus can be on application
development
One size fits all – organization may not require all
functionality paid for
In-house or subcontracted development effort
from scratch
Advantages
Disadvantages
Requirements focused to companies wants and
needs
Longer time to market
Full ownership
Development requirements may not be met
No perpetual fees to product developer
Development cost targets may not be met
Development staff capable of support and
changes
Potential lack of in-house expertise
Choice of development languages and software
Performance unproven
While for some companies, this choice may
be clear-cut for many it is not. The Fast-Track
concept makes the choice very straight-forward as it delivers
the best of both options. The Fast-Track concept allows companies
to purchase for a one-time fee a perpetual license for the
Spark
Platform Source Code. Portal application development
can be done in-house, by The Spark Group or sub-contracted.
The Fast-Track approachprovides the opportunity
for a rapid time to market plus many of the In-House development
advantages while eliminating the cost, schedule and performance
risks typically associated with a similar In-House development
effort. Contact us for more information to help you decide
if the Spark Platform is right for your organization.
