Member John Spottiswood Speaks: Use the Cloud to Improve — Not Repeat — Your Core Business
The Challenge:
The case at hand was brought by a VP at an established software multinational, whose valuation was stagnant and management team was considering migrating their services to the cloud.
If you were in this situation, what would you do?
If I were captaining your ship, I’d not only migrate your software services to the cloud, but also seize on this transition period to rethink your core business. Instead of building custom solutions for each client, build up a multi-tenant hosting solution that leverages common code, increasing your software’s scalability — and your company’s valuation.
It’s been illuminating getting your perspective from within a veteran software company with such history. However, today you should take a page from a more nimble playbook. The valuation of your company has been disappointing for years, and if things keep going this way, executives will start to peel off. Remedy this problem by using the cloud as an instigator to change up your core business model. Instead of building custom pieces of software specific to your client’s business processes, build up a common code base that can be deployed throughout your clientele.
I know you’re adamant about retaining the perception of a company that truly addresses your clients’ specific needs. By using common code on the cloud, you can further that perception and create efficiencies that allow you to fine-tune your code monthly, instead of yearly. And if a client needs a truly custom feature, bolt it onto your common code solution via an API. Never rewrite an entire instance of the code for one account. In today’s world, that approach is far too sluggish. Instead, build a common core code. You may find it becomes one of your most valuable assets and gives your business the kick start it needs.
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