Custom Tailors Wanted
Mike Donoghue
April 4, 2006

There's an old joke that goes something like this…

A man goes to a tailor, orders a suit and gets measured. When he comes back to pick it up, he tries it on and finds out there are some things wrong with it.

The man says, "I think this right sleeve is way too short."

To which the tailor replies, "Ah! Well, you're leaning too far to the left--here, stand like this." And the tailor shifts the gentleman toward his right side.

The man then objects and says, "But now the left sleeve's too short!"

The unflappable tailor then states, "No problem, just lift that shoulder up and hold your hand over your chest and hunch over a bit."

Contorted and flustered, the man says, "But now the pants legs are all wrinkled looking!"

Still calm and in control, the tailor replies, "No problem, just bend your knees and tilt backward--now bend your hips forward."

Looking in the mirror, the man is pleased, "Thank you--that looks great!" He then pays and stumbles out of the store, holding the awkward position as he shuffles down the street.

Just then, two women pass by him and stare as he goes around the corner. One looks to the other and says, "That poor man. He's so deformed!"

"Yeah," says the other, "but don't the suit fit nice?"

So many times that is the price of customization for customers, especially for IT--making something special that might not be well suited to the situation. Sometimes it's the provider telling the customer what he needs, other times it's the client telling what they require. In many circumstance both can be right, on the other hand both can be wrong. It takes cool and knowledgeable heads on each side to work for the mutual good.

Welcome to the Party
It is the business of third-party opportunists to create or find a kind of common ground in order to provide suitable products for clients. This is an industry of talented developers making internal, external or hybrid applications to meet niche needs by virtue of the fact that each corporate entity has specialized requirements. Of course, the goal of these creative teams is to make easily configurable options within their specialized applications so that "customization" is an exercise and not an extensive/expensive labor. Just as the field of medicine has its specialists, so do these IT teams see areas where their specific talents are needed.

Getting Customed
Necessity drives the customization machine--in some circumstances it is required to engage a team of specialists to keep an established process moving in a changing environment or improve aspects of features and performance to remain competitive, in others it is to add new components from an external source yet give outsiders the appearance that they come from you and improve the perception of product diversity.

If you have a function that requires an individual 30 minutes to complete and many people within your operation perform that function, then the tangible benefits of getting a customized feature to perform this operation are easy to ascertain. Even if the new performance time is improved by five to 10 minutes, take into consideration other aspects such as scheduling, time constraints, personnel involvement, etc., and you've got quantifiable, cumulative and predictable benefits. If otherwise you wish to increase a customer base or improve your fee structure, then employing the use of add-on customized features also has its merit--from a controlled investment and potential return point of view.

What's Your Flavor?
Many prefer to make their applications "vanilla"--a base that appeals to a broad range, but does not provide the extreme satisfaction that a "Cherry Garcia" or "Dave Matthews Band Magic Brownies" might give to a special palette.

Customization technologies generally offer significant advantages to an early adopter of a product since, initially, they gain market share and profits at the expense of the mainstream competitor. This can also open the door to non-competitive pricing since the sponsor of a specialized function may be able to charge more for the customized product as well as increase pricing on its standard integrated products.

The benefits of this strategy disappear quickly, however, when those competitors provide similar improvements, thereby upsetting the balance of control with respect to charges and possibly "upping the ante" with additional customization components. Consequently, there are situations when "over-customization" occurs, costing more in development than in expected return. Unfortunately, with these combined strategies, the party that fails to customize sees a sharp decrease in profits if it pauses or refuses to adopt similar processes.

Winner, Loser, Other
So are there any winners when one uses customization tactics? Back-and-forth tugs of war in the IT world are common, give only sporadic advantages to the bodies involved, and can devastate those who are left behind or overdo. In a successful implementation, what truly seems to support customization ideals is the foundation of principles of the team and company that builds and maintains them.

History of success in various customization efforts is key to the progressive and continued growth of an enterprise. Demonstrating a fast response to market shifts (or better yet, being proactive) is one factor. A knowledgeable management infrastructure that is equipped to analyze impacts of upcoming change is another. Communication of your findings and direction to existing customers and laying the groundwork for prospects is also essential.

As much as we are driven to desire the "shiny toys" of customization so as to show off our prowess, the actual functionality coupled with the credentials of the provider/partner provide considerably more substance.

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