Build vs Buy

The Decision That Keeps Product Leaders Up at Night

ServiceNow Just Dropped $2.85B on Moveworks - Here's Why It Matters to You

Hey there, fellow product leaders! 👋

ServiceNow just made their biggest acquisition ever, scooping up AI firm Moveworks for a cool $2.85 billion. Yep, that's a billion with a B! 💰

We couldn't help but see this as the perfect opportunity to dig into that question we all face constantly: should we build it ourselves or buy it from someone else?

As Zavery from ServiceNow put it, the deal made sense because they already shared customers and had integrated products. Essentially, ServiceNow decided that buying Moveworks would be faster and more effective than building similar AI assistant capabilities in-house.

Sound familiar? We thought so! Let's break down this eternal product dilemma in a way that might actually help you with your next tough decision.

The Build vs Buy Dilemma: We've All Been There 😅

Let's be honest - every product leader has stared at the ceiling at 2 AM wondering if they're making the right call on a build-vs-buy decision. We know we have!

It's like choosing between cooking a gourmet meal from scratch or ordering from that amazing restaurant down the street. Both can result in a delicious dinner, but the tradeoffs are real.

Building In-House: When DIY Makes Sense ⚒️

• You Control Every Ingredient

When you build in-house, you're the chef who gets to decide exactly what goes into the dish. Do you need that feature to integrate perfectly with your unique backend? You want that special UI touch that matches your brand's personality? Building gives you that control.

Look at Apple and their M-series chips. Could they have continued using Intel? Sure. But by building their own silicon, they've created incredible performance advantages that their competitors just can't match.

• You're Creating Something Special

The matrix really nails it. When something is both a core competency AND gives you a competitive advantage... that's your build sweet spot! ✨

• The Knowledge Compounds

Here's something we don't talk about enough: each time your team builds something complex, they get better at building the next thing. It's like compound interest for your engineering organization! 📈

Buying: When Focusing on Speed and Core Value Wins 🚀

• Speed Matters (A Lot)

Let's be real - in today's market, being right but late is still being wrong. That image above highlights time-to-market as the very first consideration, and for good reason!

When Microsoft bought GitHub for $7.5B, they instantly plugged into the workflows of 28 million developers. Could they have built a competitor? Maybe. But by the time they finished, those developers would have been even more deeply embedded in GitHub.

• Your Team's Focus is Your Superpower

Every time you say "yes" to building something, you're saying "no" to building something else. That's just physics (or economics, but whatever 😉).

• The Ecosystem Advantage

When you buy a solution today, you're often getting way more than just the product - you're tapping into an ecosystem of integrations, partners, and community knowledge.

Think about ServiceNow's Moveworks acquisition - they're not just getting AI technology, they're getting established customer relationships and integration patterns that would take years to develop organically.

7-Factor Framework

We use this framework to make this decision. Rate each factor from 0-10, where higher scores generally favor building:

1. Strategic Alignment (0-10): How central is this to what makes your product special? 🎯

2. Time Pressure (0-10): How yesterday does your customer need this? ⏰

3. Internal Capability (0-10): Does your team already know how to build this? 🧠

4. Integration Complexity (0-10): Will plugging in a third-party solution be a nightmare? 🔌

5. Customization Requirements (0-10): How unique are your needs versus what's available? 🦄

6. Scaling Requirements (0-10): Will your needs grow in ways off-the-shelf solutions can't handle? 📊

7. Ecosystem Benefits (0-10): What additional goodies come with the vendor's solution? 🌐

Watch Out For These Mental Traps 🪤

• The "We Can Build It Better" Syndrome

Be honest - has your engineering team ever insisted they could build something better than the market solution, only to deliver something... less impressive... months later? Yeah, we’ve faced it too.

Engineers (bless them) often underestimate what it takes to build production-grade solutions. Set a high bar for the "build" case!

• The "We've Already Invested So Much" Trap

Once you start building, it's really hard to change course, even when evidence suggests you should. Set clear "kill criteria" before you start, and be brave enough to pull the plug when needed.

• The Hidden Costs Nobody Talks About

Initial development is just the tip of the iceberg! ❄️

What about ongoing maintenance? Security updates? Feature enhancements to keep up with market expectations?

Pro tip: Calculate your 3-year and 5-year ownership costs for a realistic comparison.

These Decisions Define Your Product's Future 🔮

Here's what we've learned after years of making these calls: the build-vs-buy decision is never just about the technology. It's about how you allocate your organization's most precious resources - time, talent, and attention.

ServiceNow's acquisition of Moveworks isn't just a news headline - it's a master class in strategic decision-making that prioritizes customer value and market position over technical pride of ownership.

So the next time you're staring at a build-vs-buy decision, remember that you're not just choosing between two technical approaches - you're making a statement about what truly matters to your product and your customers.

What's the toughest build-vs-buy decision you've faced recently? Drop us a comment below - We'd love to hear how you approached it! 👇

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