To function in modern markets, digital evolution and transformation is a fundamental necessity. It is what enables businesses to stay agile, innovative and competitive, helping to improve efficiencies, customer experience and save costs.

Off-the-shelf solutions are tempting as they provide established, supported and often cheap options for many businesses. The main issue is they never quite integrate fully; they are often limited in functionality and flexibility, nor are they suitable for all sectors and organisations. Take process-restricted industries like aerospace & defence, which cannot compromise on security and regulation and still largely rely on legacy systems.

These industries still need to evolve, though, which is where bespoke approaches can provide great value. Even if it were possible to start from scratch, it is likely to be more resource-efficient and less disruptive to evolve what companies already have, rather than redesign whole systems. That goes for all companies and sectors, not just those with restrictions.

As a fundamental enabler of digital transformation, this article will explore the benefits of tailored digital solutions and how they can support innovation beyond the limitations of off-the-shelf solutions.

Enhancing existing systems

Finding a way to successfully integrate new systems with old, large legacy systems is an age-old issue for many companies. Often, there is a lot of history, regulation, security and locked down processes, which means the potential of change is limited.

When dealing with data in these areas, the location and access to data has restrictions that can’t be satisfied by off-the-shelf solutions. It will be a very familiar story to anyone working in the aerospace, engineering, security and many other sectors, where plug-in products are not acceptable as they are not compliant and often lacking in integration/functionality. In our experience, this often has a detrimental impact on team adoption, efficiency, and morale.

Additionally, there are accessibility requirements to consider; these, too, are evolving all the time and require a more flexible, customisable approach.

Daunting as integrating a new system may seem, bespoke digital solutions are relatively easy to build around existing systems if you know how the old setup works and have a clear idea of what a company is trying to achieve. Having these conversations early on, collaborating and really interrogating the brief together can uncover solutions a client perhaps didn’t even know was possible. 

Think of it like having an extension to the house: you probably wouldn’t just pick something from a showroom, knock a hole in the side of the house and stick it on, because that’s likely to produce issues with house structural integrity, the local planning department, the residents and the long term costs. You’re going to be considering the insulation, the drainage system, the flooring, the windows… Perhaps you didn’t even know you wanted a particular feature or material, or that it was an option, until it was presented to you as an option.

Like a house extension, tailored digital solutions open up myriad possibilities and can give clients exactly what they need. By taking the needs of existing systems into account, it is the best way to get value out of those systems too.

Enhancing legacy systems with Doc2Data

One of our recent bespoke builds, Doc2Data, demonstrates how new functionality can be added to existing systems. It was developed for one of our defence clients, which had lots of old PDFs, paper documents and badly scanned documents that weren’t digitised. They needed to be added to the current system, stored alongside other secure data, and made searchable by title, date and signatories, etc.

Doc2Data works by taking a scan or PDF and identifying part of the document, which specified users can then confirm (in a highly secure industry like aerospace and defence, being able to confirm accuracy is essential). While it is not a new functionality and off-the-shelf products exist, the key advantage of Doc2Data is that it could be integrated with existing systems to maintain existing security restrictions, process requirements and data storage security.

Enabling flexibility

Off-the-shelf products are sometimes customisable, but usually within certain parameters that are not suitable for all. They can be expensive too – support costs can increase year on year if you have an SaaS product, for instance.

A key reason Calvium chooses not to ‘productise’ solutions and capabilities is that we know clients will have different constraints and opportunities, and therefore need certain elements adapting. For example, we may have customers in the same field, making and using the same sorts of technology, but on two different hosting cloud platforms such as AWS or Microsoft Azure.

The inherent flexibility of bespoke solutions allows you to be more agile in the design and delivery, while also staying up to date with new technologies, software updates and changing regulations. It is much easier and quicker to change something you have designed and know inside out than work around an off-the-shelf product.

A long-term investment

Bespoke solutions should be viewed as a long-term investment with the potential to save costs and optimise resources in the long-run. Designing something from scratch that is tailored to specific needs and goals tends to cost more than something that already exists; as bespoke approaches require time for research and development, specialised skills and expertise. 

By identifying unique business needs from the outset and developing from the ground up, bespoke solutions are more likely to slimline processes, operate more efficiently in the business’s digital ecosystem, and integrate more smoothly. It may also ultimately incur a similar cost to multiple bolt-on products where various parts of multiple products are needed – but without the associated support costs.

By identifying unique business needs from the outset and developing from the ground up, bespoke solutions are more likely to deliver value, slimline processes and achieve business goals. Moreover, a single bespoke project is likely to operate more efficiently, integrate more smoothly and ultimately incur a similar cost to multiple bolt-on products where various parts of multiple products are needed. Without the associated support costs too.

Another key consideration for many businesses and sectors – and why bespoke is a worthwhile investment – is that off-the-shelf products may change over time. This means their current suitability, features or and/or security may not be suitable next year. Additionally, these products may be being sold by a company without security accreditation, which puts companies at risk of cyber attacks and data breaches. These can come with hefty costs and fines – likely more costly than any upfront investment in bespoke solutions.

Changes to off-the-shelf products might not be fully publicised either. With bespoke, the client stays in control.

Final thoughts

When done well, bespoke digital solutions have the power to transform businesses in ways that off-the-shelf products may not be able to achieve. This article has highlighted some of the primary benefits, starting with the ability to enhance existing systems within organisations of all shapes, sizes and sectors.

The flexible nature of bespoke means solutions can evolve and adapt in line with individual business needs – somewhat of an ongoing work-in-progress – while also providing greater security and compliance.

Bespoke solutions tend to be more cost-efficient and valuable to businesses in the long-run. They are more likely to get client needs right the first time round, and get rid of the need to shoehorn multiple products into a system in the hope they might achieve the desired outcome – probably making it even more complex than it was to start with.

Crucially, bespoke solutions can accelerate innovation, often opening up possibilities that clients didn’t even realise were viable. It is also often energising for the client team, as well as us, to collaborate on constructing solutions, reappraising processes, thinking creatively, testing and learning, finding out what works. We love enabling clients to discover new opportunities and supporting their business to thrive.