Build Vs. Buy: A CIO's Journey Through The Software Decision Maze
CIO, September 15,2025
In the age of AI, the wrong build vs. buy decision isn't just costly - it could decide whether your business thrives or becomes irrelevant.
As CIOs, we face this question constantly: should we build custom software solutions or buy off-the-shelf products? Now, more than ever, with the hyper-accelerated development in AI, this decision has taken on new urgency and complexity.
Do we adopt commercial AI offerings to accelerate time-to-market, or do we build custom solutions to create meaningful differentiation? Throughout my career leading IT in facility services and construction, I've lived on both sides of this decision, sometimes simultaneously. What I've learned is that the answer is rarely black and white - it's about making strategic choices based on your specific business context.