eBook

EHSQ Software:
Build or Buy?
Table of Contents

Introduction 03

The Balancing Act 05

Final Thoughts 09
Chapter 1

Introduction
It’s been decided. Your company has
committed to automating its EHSQ
workflows. The next decision you’ll
usually face is whether you should invest
internal resources into building the
system or select and purchase software
from a third-party vendor. This decision
inevitably results in lengthy discussions
about the pros and cons of each which
can decelerate the decision-making
process or even stall the whole project.

This guide will help you weigh your

options and shape your selection
process.

© CORITY SOFTWARE INC. 4

Chapter 2

The Balancing Act

 A common assumption made by organizations
is that their processes are so unique that
building their own system is the only way.
While this was once the case, software
developers have been meeting the demands
of enterprise IT departments by creating
highly scalable and configurable software
solutions. When it comes to EHSQ specifically,
our experience is that many companies have
similar processes when it comes to handling
EHSQ data. Based on these commonalities,
we’ve architected our software to take
advantage of best-in-class workflows that
are designed, developed and supported by
practicing EHSQ subject matter experts. Our
applications allow for the configuration of
workflows and data fields to handle company
to company variations.
Cost
It might appear that building your solution is
cheaper – especially if the costs can be shared
across multiple operating units - but this is
true only on a short-term basis. While the
purchase of a new system may appear costlier,
in the long run it offers an accelerated Return
© CORITY SOFTWARE INC.
on Investment (ROI) in terms of increased
productivity, reduced operating costs and IT
support requirements.
Cority is approached by many companies
who have built their own solution, and after
a number of years (and much financial
investment) have realized that it’s just no
longer sustainable. This change in direction
is often prompted by too many competing
technology projects, a lack of capital and
human resources, as well as a desire to
reduce and consolidate the number of point-
solutions within a related field. Of course,
we have not mentioned the additional time
that the business owners would invest in
teaching IT the “business of EHSQ”. Typically,
there has to be multiple iterations of training
and development because the functionality
does not appropriately address the business
problem.
Benefits
It’s best to take a long-term view before
making your final decision. Both buying and
building an EHSQ solution involve a lot of time,
6
effort, and money to implement and gain user adoption. When you build your financial models,
ensure you forecast costs for a three-to-five-year time span to ensure that the initial, upfront
investments are realized.

Factor Build It Yourself Buy a Configurable Solution

Requires detailed project scope and requirements definition process

A business process review is required to determine how best to
in order to build the software. Can take months due to complexity and
Requirements number of staff/departments involved. Requirements may be defined
configure the software to your unique needs. Configurable solutions can
do this with minimal effort and faster user acceptance testing.
based on current processes, not industry best practices.

Requires a core expertise in software development from requirements Software development and the ability to attract leading, specialized
Software Development gathering, coding, usability, testing, and support. talent to the team is core to the organization.

System requirements usually defined by non-IT people, then handed Developed with functional and technical expertise working in a
User Interface & Design over to technical experts; often developed in a non-collaborative partnership. Thorough research and testing means that usability is high.
manner. Requires prioritization to ensure delays are avoided. Maintenance/ support may be included in annual fee.

Rests with the EHSQ team (the user directs the vendor, whose
Rests with IT department. Can be more or less flexible. Prioritization
responsibility is to address customer needs). SLAs are in place to
Customization of change requests will depend upon other competing organizational
ensure timely response times to critical issues; professional services
priorities.
can supplement custom requests for changes.

The vendor is responsible for ensuring compliance and functionality

EHSQ teams are responsible for monitoring federal, state, and local
updates through market demand. Consistent product development in
Regulatory Changes agencies to ensure compliance and that it gets built into the product in
conjunction with user input drives product direction. Can include direct
addition to with their daily tasks.
system integration with the regulatory content providers.

Continue next page

© CORITY SOFTWARE INC. 7

 Factor Build It Yourself Buy a Configurable Solution

Product meets the immediate needs of the organization, due to

Continuous Improvement & complete customization, but can become dated quickly. Additional
Factors 3,4,5 enable or drive continuous improvement through the
delivery of product features and enhancements. If product is SaaS,
Meeting Needs user demands such as mobility can require additional, specialized
development teams. Factors 3,4,5 can inhibit continuous improvement.
these new features are automatically updated.

Redundant operating environments (servers, load­balancers, security, The software developer manages this on your behalf. Costs are
Hardware Infrastructure hosting, bandwidth) are an ongoing responsibility of the organization. amortized across all clients.

Using various front-end tools such as business rules, system security,

Configurability Typically rigid. Little site-to-site flexibility. and automatic notifications, usually allows for as much user or site
variations or standardizations as necessary.

Software developer often provides API integrations into most common

API Integrations Requires additional development effort by IT team.
related applications as part of the service.

Reporting & Subject to an IT department’s bandwidth. Building and consistently

Reporting can be dynamic and comprehensive; the user may be able to
extract and manipulate any data in the system and keep track of KPls
Business Intelligence improving reporting tools may exceed their budget/capabilities.
with dashboards.

The information in this document is provided by Cority for informational purposes only. Cority Software Inc. does not warrant the accuracy or
completeness of the information or commit to issue updates or corrections to the information. Cority Software Inc. is not responsible for any
consequences resulting from use of or reliance on the information. The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily those of
Cority. © 2018 Cority Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. Cority and the Cority logo are trademarks.

© CORITY SOFTWARE INC. 8

 ONE™

Introducing Cority One™. The human centered enterprise

EHS SaaS platform—designed by industry experts for EHS
experts and business leaders to empower healthier, safer,
and more sustainable organizations that fulfill the business
imperative of building the better enterprise of tomorrow.

Learn More

Protect employees health and Keep workforces safe and Accurately track and clearly Meet environmental goals with Observe and maintain Drive better performance
boost performance. sound with risk protection. report sustainability work and more precise control. quality at every level of the everywhere.
ESG programs. organization.

© CORITY SOFTWARE INC.