Only do the OSS that only you can do

A friend of mine has a great saying, “only do what only you can do.”

Do you think that this holds true for the companies undergoing digital transformation? Banks are now IT companies. Insurers are IT companies. Car manufacturers are now IT companies. Telcos are, well, some are IT companies.

We’ve spoken before about the skill transformations that need to happen within telcos if they’re to become IT companies. Some are actively helping their workforce to become more developer-centric. Some of the big telcos that I’ve been assisting in the last few years are embarking on bold Agile-led IT transformations. They’re cutting more of their own code and managing their own IT developments.

That’s exciting news for all of us in OSS. Even if it loses the name OSS in future, telcos will still need software that efficiently operationalises their networks. We have the overlapping skills in software, networks, business and operations.

But I wonder about the longevity of the in-house approach unless we come focus clearly on the first quote above. If all development is brought in-house, we end up with a lot of duplication across the industry. I’m not really sure that it makes sense doing all the heavy-lifting of all custom OSS tools when the heavy-lifting has already been done elsewhere.

It’s the old ebb and flow between in-house and outsourced OSS.

In my very humble opinion, it’s not just a choice between in-house and outsourced that matters. The more important decisions are around choosing to only develop the tools in-house that only you can do (ie the strategic differentiators).

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