Owning your automation versus renting a tool

Own the build when the process is specific to how your business runs, spans systems nobody has an integration for, or handles data that cannot sit in a vendor's account. Rent the tool when the job is generic and the product already does it. Most companies end up doing both, on different systems.

The rest of this page is written so that renting can be the right answer for a lot of what you run.

What is the difference, side by side?

A build you own is a fixed scope paid once, plus hosting and upkeep you carry afterwards. A rented tool is a recurring fee, with the running of it done by someone else. They differ on what you pay, who holds the accounts, what the software connects to, and what happens if you stop paying.

• With a build you pay a fixed scope once, then hosting and upkeep. With a tool you pay a recurring fee that climbs with seats, contacts or tasks.
• You hold the accounts in a build. The vendor holds them in a tool.
• A build fits your process. With a tool you adapt to the vendor's process.
• A build connects to what you run, including systems nobody has an integration for. A tool connects only to the integrations its vendor supports.
• Stop paying and the build keeps running. The tool stops.
• A build takes weeks. A tool is same-day.
• Upkeep is your line item in a build, or a support agreement. In a tool it sits inside the fee.

When is renting the right answer?

When a product already does exactly what you need, your data may live with that provider, and none of its limits distort how you work, renting is the cheaper decision. Email, calendars, a commodity helpdesk and standard accounting all fall in that group.

If you would have nothing custom to build, a custom build is a cost with no return.

When is owning the right answer?

You own the build when the process is the business, and when it crosses four systems, two of which are a spreadsheet and an inbox. Owning is also the answer when the data is privileged, regulated or contractual, when the per-seat bill grows faster than the revenue it supports, or when the tool's limits have already started reshaping how your team works.

In those cases the rental costs less this month and more over the years you keep it.

What does ownership require from you?

A named person accountable for the system, and a budget line for updates, backups and monitoring. If nobody in the company wants that job, rent until somebody does. The long version of that caveat is when should you not self-host.

Is owning always cheaper over time?

No. Seat count, contract length, growth and what the subscription actually costs you per year today decide it. Add up your own invoices across the period you expect to keep the tool, add the migration you would face if the price changed, and set that total against a build plus hosting and upkeep.

Where the arithmetic favours the rental, we say so.

What should you do next?

Write the process down the way it runs today. If the write-up turns out to be generic, keep the tool. If it turns out to be yours, business process automation is what we build, and the cost drivers page tells you which parts of it move the number.