Are you interested in outsourcing your database development? Database development is an ever-growing and changing industry; keeping up with it internally can be a huge drain on your resources. When you outsource your database development, you are able to get the newest and best technology, without the price tag of building it in-house.
However, there is a right and a wrong way to approach outsourced database development. If you are in a hurry to get your database design and development underway, you could find yourself spending way more than you should have for a custom database development that gives you more functionality than you’ll ever need. And then you’re so vested in your database that upgrades and changes are nearly impossible, and you have to center your application development around it. To avoid this nightmare, make sure that you avoid the common mistakes:
- Not understanding what you’re outsourcing.
There are managed information services firms who will take over literally any function of your IS team. Of course, the more services they provide for you, the more you pay them, and the harder it is to leave them if their service is not benefiting your company. As such, if you don’t have a good grasp of what services you want outsourced and what you want to keep in house, you might accidentally get pressured into signing up for more than you need.
Before you ever talk to any managed services providers, take a good account of what you do and do not need supported. Many companies opt to outsource their database design, mobile application development, and maybe graphic design. If the nature of your business involves confidential information, you should be very cautious about how that content is stored and managed, so that it stays in-house and isn’t accidentally put in the hands of a managed services provider. - Relinquishing too control of your information.
This is a very common mistake that non-techie business managers make. It is too easy to hand all the tasks over to a third-party; this give the managed services provider you use control over the services that you pay them for, which creates a conflict of interest. Remember, the managed services provider might know tech better than you, but you know your business better than anyone. Only you are able to decide what extent of outsourced support you need. And make sure to maintain control of anything that is critical to the health of your business.
Along this line, make sure that you stay involved with the database development process. Meet regularly to talk about your requirements and the project’s progress. The more you understand your own database, the more prepared you are to make educated choices that are in your own best interest. - Just hiring to get the job done, instead of focusing on the contractor who does it.
When your brain is only focused on what job you need done, instead of whose hands you want building your database, you’re less equipped to fill the position adequately. Even if you only have this one task that you need completed, when you find the right contractor, you’re able to seamlessly use them for other tasks that arise. When you have to look for another contractor next time you have a job, you have to start back at square one with educating them on your systems and practices, as well as the work that your initial database designer did. When you have a company that you trust, they already understand the architecture of your database, since they created it themselves, and they understand your business procedures. - Letting geography restrict you from hiring the best team.
Ideally, the very best DBA team for your job is right down the street and it’s convenient to use them. However, in the real world, that’s not likely. Our world has hundreds of incredibly talented and qualified DBA teams who might be perfectly suited for your work; restricting yourself by location could leave you with a less-than qualified team that costs you more in the long run. In fact, in our modern age of communication, working with a database designer across the globe is just as convenient as one that is right across town.
Do you have any other questions? Please comment below.