Digital solutions are essential for housing providers, but is it better to buy or build? Or do we need to completely reframe the ‘build vs. buy’ discussion?
Under the bonnet vs. off the shelf
First, let’s consider the typical strengths and weaknesses of building or buying a solution. Ultimately, it’s up to each housing provider to decide which option is best for their needs, and the answer largely hinges on one question; how much time and resource are you willing to commit to a solution?
For organisations that can afford the time and higher upfront costs, a bespoke solution makes sense. You gain a platform that looks, feels and works exactly how you’d like it to, with the potential for deep integration with legacy systems. Custom-built solutions can be designed around your existing workflow and processes, tracking relevant data against operational objectives and KPIs.
However, a fully-bespoke solution presents some pitfalls. If select personnel understand how the solution works, you risk becoming dependent on them to keep it running. And while bespoke tools are developed with integration in mind, it can be difficult to achieve in practice. Patches and updates may also compromise your integrations, and without proper updates, your system could encounter bugs or pose a security risk.
Alternatively, off-the-shelf solutions present lower risk, cost less upfront and are quicker to deploy, as long as they integrate with your existing systems and you’re willing to follow the supplier’s development roadmap. While there’s limited room for customisation, any features included should be robust, reliable and road-tested.
General purpose vs. housing specific
As an extra dimension to the discussion, there are compelling new options to consider when choosing an off-the-shelf solution. As IT suppliers increasingly recognise the value of the housing sector, more general-purpose SaaS packages are being developed with housing providers in mind.
For example, 8×8’s contact centre solution has grown to include impressive features aimed squarely at the housing sector, such as Active Assessor and Remote Fix. Using SMS surveys and residents’ phone cameras, Active Assessor works to identify problems around the home before they can develop and empowers residents to do simple repairs themselves. With Remote Fix, residents can share videos and images of their problems with an engineer, increasing the rate of first-time fixes.
8×8 has also recognised the importance of integration. Its contact centre solution features out-of-the-box integration with a range of CRM platforms including Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics 365, MRI, Logicdialog, Rubixx and Zoho CRM.
Zoom is also making big steps, with a full suite of AI-powered business communication solutions for the housing sector. Its services focus on resident satisfaction, customer service and optimising productivity.
Zoom’s Chris Bayliss said, “Housing organisations such as Peabody, Housing Solutions and Home Group are adopting Zoom’s AI-powered workplace and customer experience platform. We’ve been able to cut through the industry buzz around AI and quantify improvements in customer and tenant satisfaction, improve workforce productivity and take cost out of the organisation with true process transformation.”
This puts suppliers of housing-specific software under new pressure, as suppliers such as Zoom and 8×8 turn their attentions to the sector and modify their ‘horizontal’ solutions accordingly.
Rich Harvey, assistant director of digital transformation and organisational design, Housing Solutions, said, “‘Software providers must understand that pressure. Other platforms becoming available or being modified specifically for our sector will definitely open up the market.”
The future is open
Harvey raised another important avenue to consider – open-source software. He said, “Housing providers are looking at platforms such as Salesforce because it’s fully open. Its platforms are open to ‘developers developing’, so Salesforce is very willing to create modules, add-ons and customisations to suit your needs in order to build something that works for you.”
Open-source software offers a middle-road between fully bespoke and off-the-shelf options, presenting huge scope for customisation without the need to build from scratch. Open-source platforms not only allow more freedom to build, they also encourage enthusiasts and communities, resulting in specialist resources and developers to help you achieve your desired outcomes.
Harvey said, “If you’re using an old housing management system (HMS), you’re limited by system changes, you’re limited by the supplier’s resources and you’re limited by their roadmap – you can’t do it yourself.”
Our IoT solution, built for you
Easy integration is key for housing providers – every organisation wants the best solution, but without being excluded from other options down the line. With this in mind, we at Social Telecoms have developed an IoT platform for the ultimate integration.
Fully device-neutral, our IoT platform displays all of your smart devices on one screen, allowing users to easily review and control their devices. We work with housing providers to tailor the platform to their needs, ensuring integration with all of the devices they need. Our solution includes integration for Zigbee, Somfy, GSM SIM, Aico and many more, with the ability to build other integrations to fit your suite of devices. This allows organisations to choose whichever combination of devices they prefer, with no downsides if they mix and match.
With this fully-managed service, we hope to combine the best elements of ‘build’ and ‘buy’ solutions; a platform that works how you need it to, without increasing the strain on your IT team. In the face of new and increasingly stringent housing regulations, this platform gives a single, comprehensive view of your properties and their devices, resulting in easier reporting, greater insights and the ability to adjust settings remotely.
In short, our IoT platform is built to enable new efficiencies for housing providers, with custom integrations tailored to your requirements.
More ways to work
Has the ‘build vs. buy’ debate become more complicated? If so, it can only be a win for housing providers because it reflects the variety of options available.
- ‘Off the shelf’ options no longer need to be sector-specific because broad ‘horizontal’ solutions are introducing new features for the housing sector.
- Open-source software provides opportunities for smaller organisations to choose their own development roadmap without building a fully-bespoke solution.
- Hybrid solutions, such as our own IoT platform, provide a fully-managed, easy-to-use option with massive potential for customisation.
Now more than ever, housing providers can choose the way they want to work, with an abundance of options available for them to forge their own paths.
Rob Mottram is the senior account manager at Social Telecoms.
