Solving Unsolvable Problems (Part 2)

As I described in my previous post, I believe that solution vendors are facing a crucial decision point and are realizing that developing network intelligence capability internally would create a number of “unsolvable problems”.

Unsolvable problem number 2: Not being able to use traditional product development and management methods

The high-tech industry typically uses a structured approach for product development and management, with most key activities aligned around go/no go decision points and defined time lines. These processes are built to ensure that new products are delivered on time, according to specifications and with the adequate quality.

However, companies who chose to develop network intelligence technology internally quickly discover that the usual methods cannot be used. Web protocols such as Webmails change continuously without notice, which means that development roadmaps cannot be easily controlled. Development teams must be quick to react to new protocol evolutions and use reverse engineering techniques to update their network intelligence software.

This way of working is counter-cultural for many high-tech companies and can even be incompatible with the rest of the organization. From a business standpoint, it can even be unsustainable and unprofitable - unless you make network intelligence technology your core business, like Qosmos;-)

Jerome