Introduction: The Build vs Buy Decision Every Tech Team Faces

If you’ve ever found yourself at the crossroads of building versus buying a solution, you’re in familiar company. Every engineering leader—and, let’s be honest, most product folks—hits this dilemma sooner or later: Do we invest precious time and talent to develop something from scratch, or do we leverage what’s already out there? Budgets and deadlines matter, sure. But underneath, this decision is really about shaping your technology to fit your business vision—and making sure your team isn’t boxed in down the road.

I’ve watched this challenge play out at companies large and small. It’s never as simple as comparing price tags or ticking boxes on a feature list. As outlined by the Hatchworks’ Build vs Buy Framework, you need a clear process from discovery through to recommendation. The stakes are real: one wrong turn here can send ripples through your roadmap for years.

Here’s something I wish I’d realized earlier in my career: build vs buy isn’t a binary switch. It’s a spectrum. You can mix purchased modules with custom code, keeping agility where you need it and letting others handle the rest. But too often, teams box themselves into an either/or mindset—and that’s where creative options get lost.

If you’re wrestling with your own build vs buy moment, this playbook is for you. I’ll walk through our decision process—using our reporting project as an example—highlight common pitfalls and mindset shifts, and hopefully leave you better equipped for the next big call.

Case in Point: Our Power BI vs. Custom Dashboard Dilemma

Let’s ground this in something real. When our team realized our reporting tools just weren’t cutting it anymore, we sat down and spelled out exactly what we needed: seamless integration with our existing data pipelines, flexibility to keep pace as our business changed, and the ability for non-developers to create their own reports—no more endless support tickets.

On one side was Power BI—a robust analytics platform with out-of-the-box integrations. Its strongest appeal? Anyone could spin up reports without waiting in the engineering queue, and Microsoft’s updates would keep us modern. But there were trade-offs: significant licensing costs, a learning curve for both users and admins, and product quirks that meant clever workarounds became the norm.

On the other side? Building a custom dashboard ourselves. Our developers were convinced they could tailor every field, chart, and filter to fit—and do it quickly. Total control was the dream; but we knew the downsides too well: Who would maintain it? What about hosting and security updates? Would the dashboard become obsolete if only one team used it?

I’ve seen plenty of teams rely on gut feelings or let the loudest voices in the room decide. We wanted something more grounded. So we built a decision matrix—laying out key criteria like cost, flexibility, user empowerment, support needs—and scored each option honestly. It might sound basic, but mapping tradeoffs visually can surface priorities you didn’t know you had.

The deeper we got into it, the more obvious it became: this wasn’t just a technical choice. It was about strategy—how we wanted to allocate engineering talent and position ourselves for future growth. And that subtle shift in perspective changed everything.

The Build vs Buy Essentials Playbook

Anyone who’s sat through these debates knows how quickly they heat up. Strong opinions fly about what can be built—but the real question is always: should we build this?

To avoid spinning in circles, I lean on frameworks.

Insights from Forbes Tech Council highlight even more essentials: clarity on core business goals, a true assessment of internal capabilities, cost-benefit analysis beyond sticker price, and consideration for future scaling. Blend these together and you’ve got a sturdy backbone for good decisions.

Let’s break down when each path makes sense.

Build When…

• It’s your secret sauce: If what you’re building is at the core of your competitive advantage—the magic no one else can easily copy—owning every line of code makes sense. As Hatchworks puts it plainly:

If you purchased software, your competitor can easily buy it too… building it gives you a custom solution no one else will have.

• Customization is non-negotiable: Sometimes off-the-shelf just won’t cut it. If your needs are so specific that no vendor comes close, building may be your only real option. Alex Circei explains in Forbes Tech Council that “by building in-house… you can tailor the software to your exact needs… especially if your company has unique workflows or niche requirements.”
• Long-term costs favor ownership: If ongoing licensing will far outstrip a one-time build investment—and you have resources to maintain it—building gets more appealing.

A classic example? Netflix built its own streaming platform because nothing on the market could deliver their vision. The result? Their tech became a defining differentiator.

Buy When…

• It’s undifferentiated heavy lifting: Need features like authentication or analytics that are vital but not unique to your business model? Don’t reinvent the wheel. Let someone else handle that burden. As Core BTS sums up: “If there is a process… that doesn’t have potential to differentiate your company, that could be an argument for a packaged solution.”
• Speed is critical: Sometimes speed beats customization. If getting to market fast matters most, buying gets you there quicker. Dmitry Graf emphasizes in LeadDev:

If your focus is speed, you should buy everything that is not the core of your product…

• Maintenance is a headache: Never underestimate how much time and energy goes into maintenance. If your bandwidth (or patience) is low for ongoing support and security updates, buying frees up focus for other priorities.

Mapping these options against clear criteria makes it easier to see when building is worth it (for differentiation) and when buying is smarter (for generic needs or when timing is everything).

Nuanced Risks to Watch For

Frameworks help—but real life rarely fits inside tidy checklists. There are subtle risks I’ve seen trip up even experienced teams:

• Buyer’s remorse: Once you buy in, you’re tied to the vendor’s roadmap—and sometimes left with features you don’t want or missing ones you desperately need.
• Builder’s remorse: What if your lead developer moves on with all the know-how tucked away in their head? Suddenly nobody can fix or extend your homegrown tool.
• The Frankenstein Effect: This one hurts—when teams customize an off-the-shelf tool so much it’s neither truly bought nor built. Now you’re stuck with something expensive to maintain and tricky to upgrade.

One risk that’s easy to miss? Stakeholder misalignment. Business and tech teams sometimes view requirements through different lenses; if those differences aren’t surfaced early, solutions end up satisfying no one.

• Ask who truly benefits long-term: Is this project serving just one group or could others reuse it down the line?
• Audit technical debt: Are custom tools piling up with no plan (or appetite) for maintenance?
• Challenge assumptions: Don’t let sunk costs force your hand if new facts emerge midstream.
• Document obsessively: Especially if building—future-proof your team with accessible, up-to-date records. For actionable tips on documentation that engineers actually use, check out the playbook for documentation that engineers actually use.

Hidden Pitfalls and How to Avoid Regret

Let me slow down here—this is where regret sneaks in if you’re not careful.

Buyer’s remorse creeps up when your vendor falls behind your needs—or those hidden costs become all too real after launch. The best defense? Dig deep into their roadmap and total cost of ownership before signing anything.

Builder’s remorse usually arrives when real costs start surfacing—not just initial dev time but also support, documentation gaps, onboarding new hires… If knowledge walks out the door with key people, everyone loses.

And then there’s the infamous Frankenstein Effect—where you try to customize a purchased product into something it was never meant to be. It usually happens when teams couldn’t align on requirements up front; by the end, nobody is happy.

Here’s an exercise I recommend (don’t skip this—it can change everything): run a ‘pre-mortem’ before making your final call. Ask everyone involved to imagine why this project might fail in six months or a year. What could go wrong? You’ll surface risks nobody had thought of yet—and sometimes spot dependencies hiding just below the surface.

Reflecting on Past Decisions & Continuous Learning

No framework is foolproof—unexpected challenges pop up even after careful planning. That’s why I believe in circling back for honest reflection after each major decision.

After every significant build vs buy call, carve out time for open retrospectives:

• Did our choice hold up over time?
• What surprises did we hit along the way?
• Was maintenance what we expected—or more than we bargained for?
• Did end-users get what they needed—or did workaround culture creep in?

These conversations aren’t about blame—they’re about surfacing lessons so everyone gets smarter together. Maybe your homegrown tool exceeded expectations; maybe vendor lock-in stifled innovation more than anyone predicted. Sharing these stories inside (and even outside) your team helps everyone level up.

Personally, I use the OODA Loop (Observe, Orient, Decide, Act) after major projects: observe what happened, orient around what’s changed since we started, decide what adjustments make sense next time, act on those lessons. Perfection isn’t possible—but resilience absolutely is.

Before this week wraps up, here’s my challenge: pull up an old build vs buy decision your team made. Did it stand the test of time? Did regret creep in—or did unexpected value emerge along the way? Sometimes revisiting earlier crossroads offers insights similar to comparing in-house vs outsourcing technical decisions—the learnings often overlap.

And if you have a story from your own crossroads—share it with someone on your team or network. Your lesson might be exactly what another leader needs as they face their next decision point.

In the end, build vs buy isn’t just about picking software—it’s about defining where your team creates unique value. If you approach each crossroad with intention and curiosity, every choice becomes a chance to learn and grow together. Remember: thoughtful questions are always your greatest asset.