I know this is a very general topic but I would like your input on the
> merits of building an In-House ECM system, vs the merits of outsourcing.


Building versus buying many times is more related to what someone has a
desire to do rather than what they're capable of doing.  I've worked in TWO
organizations that have tried to "build a better mousetrap" and have in the
end had to spend more money and time than it was worth to maintain it, and
not caught many mice.

        When would you recommend an in-house solution and when would you
> advise against in-house?


The only time I'd recommend the complete build-out of an in-house
application and related interfaces for managing records and information is
if you own your own company and you are willing to do all the work yourself,
in perpetuity to support it.

        What advantages/disadvantages do you see for building an
> Electronic Content Management system in-house?


The greatest disadvantage is not having a clear and concise scope of what
the system is going to need to do over time, what resources are required to
develop and support it, and having sufficient staff to build and support it
for the lifespan of the system.  As needs change and volumes grow, you will
need to have staff available to write code and APIs to increase
functionality and handle the growth and support for the system.  Your
initial documentation will need to be so transparent that any developer in
the future can open it up and know exactly where to modify the code to
ensure changes can be made without impacting existing functionality.

What are your experiences in this area?


Do what you do best; Buy the rest.  There are numerous systems vendors and
integrators out there that can put together COTS products and suites that
have nearly unlimited numbers of support professionals available to ensure
that as you go forward, you will be able to increase the functionality of
your system to meet ongoing needs.

These people do this for a living... seldom do you find someone on staff
that is 100% versed in this and will be around for the duration.  They can
write the necessary APIs to make things work together, many of them have
"trusted partner" status with systems vendors and have access to their code,
so nothing gets cobbled together, and this is a feature you will greatly
appreciate as time goes along.

Larry

-- 
Larry Medina
Danville, CA
RIM Professional since 1972

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