March 9th, 2010 
Naveen Lohia You reap, what you sow, this clichéd word hasn’t lost its relevance a bit and has become even more pertinent in today’s ever changing and competitive business scenario where enterprises are constantly looking for differentiators to provide enhanced service delivery.
Technologically speaking, even though it caters primarily to each and every sectoral thrust this age old saying holds a fundamental value that is even more entrenched as a mainstay in any software development activity. When enterprises look for an IT based resolution for their pain points it’s more or less propositioned that an initial requirement analysis will be followed up by a generic development, testing, setup and installation phases.
Enterprises so logically inclined to get the deliverance as soon as possible and reduce the underlying costs recurring due to extended product development activity seek for an out an out off the shelf product that fits into their scheme of things ideally. But in this melee of targeted outputs and factored growth, they forget the basic tenet that one size never fits all. The basic idea being - fetch an existing product and customize it to the underlying needs in the fastest possible time.
The activity that always bears the brunt of such requirement is the elicitation process which according to enterprises is always ongoing alongside a development activity rather than something which needs investment separately in time or money. This stop-gap effort results in disasters for some and usually catastrophes for many. Businesses usually do not see time spent on initial requirement gathering as something which is worthy of some deliberation. Also the technology firms in order to improve the portfolio seek to forego this activity in order to meet deadlines. It’s only in the long run that these defaults start taking shape of a potential explosion waiting to happen.
Enterprises should understand the cost-benefit analysis of this important activity as though treating this as a simultaneous activity may be putting less strain on the critical money supply but then any critical default here has the potential to bleed the same inherently. A service agency also might be hell bent to deliver the offering without due care to the elicitation activity but then it also becomes an eyesore for them in the long run. Yes one does have believers in this model as benefits apprised range from being cost-effective to speedy to supporter’s favoring constant inputs of ideas as according to them not many a times even the businesses are understanding the actual requirement of the project at hand and the related knowledge and input has to come and incorporated on as and when basis. Though this may seem ideal but then it has its own fallacies of making the product inherently unstable and patchy.
Requirement gathering activity performed with the due intent and before a product is developed helps in synergizing and energizing the stakeholders who are now equipped with a tool that enables them to be actively involved in the product development and seek an offering that best suits there business requirements. Dedicated time spent in the initial phases of the development helps in standardizing and hard-coding the requirements. The technology firm delivering the product also gets to understand the as-is requirement of the business and prepares an offering that becomes an ideal solution to the clients needs. Also focusing more on the initial phase allows business and the technology firms to understand the related time / effort / cost investments that they need and can invest and hence are cushioned against any related defaults or overruns. The scope for frequent changes beyond the initial phase also reduces drastically and the end product becomes immensely stable thereby providing enhanced user experience. The expectant costs attached with this activity may seem high in the hindsight but is purely worth the effort as the costs for frequent related support and up gradation activities gradually reduces.
Even though the present business scenarios have led businesses to think poorly of this core aspect of any product development but the age old saying of “a stitch in time, saves a dime” surely has come of age.
Posted in 
Tags: 
Outsourcing is really a booming industry today especially in the host countries like India, China, Malaysia, Philippines and other parts of the world.
Very cool, and nice site by the way. The call center industry is taking in Billions now and they say by 2011 it will increase by another 15% thats staggering compared to any other industry, is it not?
You`re right
Very cool! I just bookmarked it too so I look forward to seeing more.
Well, the post is really the best on this noteworthy topic. I concur with your conclusions and will thirstily look forward to your upcoming updates. Saying thanks will not just be adequate, for the phenomenal clarity in your writing. I will instantly grab your rss feed to stay informed of any updates. Fabulous work and much success in your business efforts!
you know the books of the philosophers that says to be smart is the meaning of life. That is what you meant sure?
Flygels…
This post was very nicely written :), and it also contains a lot of useful extra facts. I enjoyed your professional way of writing this post. Thanks, you have made it very easy for me to understand Interesing Links in http://www.eZines.M106.com Thanks!…
Thanks for that marvelous post! I found your post very interesting, I believe you are a brilliant author. I will make sure to bookmark your blog and come back soon. I want to encourage you to continue the great work, have a great day!
I was searching for post on this topic and i was very lucky to find yourblog.I will also send this blog to my school mate so he can also read and complete our project.hope to get some good marks in this project.Thank you for this awesome post.
I was very thrilled to twig this site.I wanted to thank you for the benefit of this serious read!! I unequivocally enjoying every small scintilla of it and I comprise you bookmarked to stay out recent stuff you post.
Amiable brief and this post helped me alot in my college assignement. Thank you on your information.
it’s very usefull for me thanks
Terrific Post. Superior then the simillar post I checked 2 days ago on Blogspot. Maintain up the excellent work.
Great post, I Just wanted to say that i can’t connect to your rss reader, you should install certain wordpress plugin for that to workthat.
So many comments in so little time, I have to agree, it is a great post. the site is great
I just wanted to comment and say that I really enjoyed reading your blog post here. It was very informative and I also digg the way you write! Keep it up and I’ll be back to read more in the future
site bookmarked and digged, I’ll post a feedback on my profile too
I just placed this article on facebook. it’s an interesting article for everyone.
Good overall site enjoyed reading will def bookmark.
Great articles. There’s a lot of nice information here, though I did want to let you know something, I’m running Redhat with the up-to-date beta of Firefox, and the design of your site is kind of wonky for me. I can read the articles, but the navigation doesn’t function so well.
Very good web page, wherever did you come up with all the info in this piece? I’m pleased I uncovered it even though, ill be checking back soon to find out what other posts you’ve.
I got to this article through Facebook (someone posted it). After reading, I clicked Like then reshared it myseld.
this page was exactly what i have been searching for! found this blog bookmarked from a friend of mine. I will also share it. thanks!
this article was exactly what i have been searching for! found this page bookmarked by a friend. I’ll also bookmark it. thanks!
Man, talk about a good post! I’ve stumbled across your blog a few times inside the past, but I usually forgot to save it. But absolutely not again! Thanks for posting the way you do, I genuinely appreciate seeing somebody who truly has a viewpoint and isn’t just bringing back up garbage like most other bloggers these days. Keep it up! How to quit smoking
I found this article from Facebook (a friend of mine posted it). After checking your article, I of course clicked Like and also shared it. More power.
Thanks for taking the time to discuss this, I feel strongly about it and love learning more on this topic. If possible, as you gain expertise, would you mind updating your blog with extra information? It is extremely useful for me.
this page is exactly what i’m looking for! I found this article bookmarked by a friend of mine. I’ll also bookmark it. Thanks again!