Configure, connect or build?
Before you commission an app, work out which parts of the job a standard platform already handles, which need data moving between systems and which are really unique to you.
- Theme
- Systems and workflow
- Published
- 10 March 2026
Describe the decision before the feature
A request for an app, dashboard or integration often bundles several problems into one proposed answer. Trace the inputs, decisions, hand-offs and records first, so the requirement is written down before anyone names a product.
Configuration, connection and custom build fix different problems
Once change is justified, the question is which kind. Configure when an existing platform already has the right controls and the work can adapt without losing what matters. Connect when reliable information must move between systems that do different jobs: timesheets or plant-hire records that are currently re-keyed into finance are a common example.
Build when the way you work really is distinctive, the benefit justifies looking after software over time and neither configuration nor integration meets the need.
- 01 Can the current platform express the required states and permissions?
- 02 Is re-keying between systems the main source of errors?
- 03 Which system remains authoritative for each record?
- 04 Who will support it, change it and eventually retire it?
What each route costs to keep running
Every route creates upkeep. Configuration depends on disciplined administration, integration depends on both connected systems (and their suppliers) staying compatible, and bespoke software needs someone responsible for it after launch.
Record those dependencies next to the expected benefit, then pick the one your team can still support.