Deciding between building or buying a forecast platform

The market is not static; this necessitates a periodic re-evaluation of your forecasting models and leading indicators over time. Reusing the same indicators without reassessing them can be akin to charging forward with horse-blinders. It’s key to identify and test out new leading indicators. By incorporating new data as it becomes available, you can play out its impact on your forecast. All this requires flexibility in the platform.

Build: Relying on a code-based solution forces you to update or rewrite the code when the market evolves. This would typically require quite a bit of time and resources. To compound that, your internal team might not have the same level of access to expertise or the time to stay updated on the latest developments in forecasting methodologies.

Buy: Indicio gives you access to a vast array of external data sources and databases, which can be crucial for identifying relevant leading indicators. The ability to tap into this extensive data network enables you to pull in real-time or up-to-date information, providing a more accurate and timely reflection of market conditions.It’s a matter of adding in new indicators from our integrated data sources and testing them instantly.‍

Handling various types of data in a forecasting model (much less, multiple models!) presents challenges, and the reliability and robustness of the forecasting platform play crucial roles in managing these complexities effectively.

Build: Handling various types of data across multiple models requires robust error handling and data validation mechanisms. This is where a custom in-built platform might be more prone to errors and issues. There is a layer of integration complexity to consider; Handling different types of data often requires integrating with multiple systems and platforms. This can be a complex task, potentially leading to integration issues, data silos, or inconsistencies in an in-house solution.

Buy: We have implemented over 2,000 improvements in our platform and integrated third-party open-source packages.
What does this mean in practice for your team?
- Having the ability to handle diverse data types (e.g., time series, cross-sectional, panel data) ensures that the model can leverage all available information for more accurate predictions.
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- The implemented improvements for handling data ensures that it can be transformed and cleaned in ways that enhance model performance. The improvements in data handling capabilities ensure that the system can scale to accommodate large datasets, which is crucial for big data applications.
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- Having a single platform that can handle different data types and sources simplifies the data integration process and ensures that users experience better data integration.

Forecasting models seldom run well in parallel. The capacity to handle these calculations without compromising on speed is crucial to both the user experience and performance.

Build: Some of the challenges faced with building a scalable and high-performance forecasting platform necessitates meticulous attention to data management, computational resources, and software efficiency. They include handling diverse and voluminous data efficiently, and optimizing complex forecasting models.

Buy: Indicio’s data center runs on 5Ghz processors, making the generated analysis available at the quickest response. We are diligent with running frequent tests to ensure that the platform is optimized.

The urgency of implementation is a critical factor.

Build: Developing a robust forecasting platform requires substantial time investment in research, design, coding, testing, and deployment. Companies need to allocate skilled developers, data scientists, and domain experts to work on the project, which could take months or even years, depending on the complexity of the platform and the accuracy required.
With longer development cycles, it can result in missed opportunities, as the company might lag behind competitors who are quicker to adopt or implement existing advanced forecasting solutions. Given the dynamic nature of the business environment, a prolonged implementation time means that by the time the in-house platform is ready for deployment, the initial requirements may no longer be relevant or the platform might be outdated.

Buy: Purchasing a ready-made platform ensures quick implementation, enabling organizations to leverage forecasting capabilities in a shorter time frame, which is crucial in a fast-paced business environment. It typically takes only a few days to get Indicio users up and forecasting like a pro in Indicio.
This means reaping the benefits of accurate and efficient forecasting, which in turn promptly contributes to improved decision-making, resource allocation, and strategic planning. Given that Indicio has been tested extensively and used by multiple customers, this means that we’ve been on top of identifying any potential issues, and this ensures that there are no unanticipated complexities, all of which can extend the implementation time.

Build: Building an internal platform has a high initial high cost, and the maintenance cost is hard to forecast. You’d come closer to an informed decision by considering the impact on your resources - in both the short- and long term.The time and effort spent by employees on building the in-house platform could have been directed towards other revenue-generating projects or strategic initiatives. In the short-term, this trade-off can lead to opportunity costs and a potential delay in realizing benefits from other potential investments.
Further down the line, the rapid pace of technological change necessitates regular updates and enhancements to keep the platform current and effective. The long-term cost of continuously updating the custom platform to keep up with advancements in forecasting methodologies, data processing capabilities, and security protocols can become a significant financial burden. Unpredictable costs due to potential development overruns, technical challenges, or scope changes, can also present themselves.

Buy: When depending on a forecasting platform, you want to ensure that the platform is in for the long haul. As part of the package, Indicio provides customer support and regular updates. This encompasses remaining up-to-date with the latest forecasting methodologies and security protocols without requiring additional costs or resource allocation from your organization.
Indicio has a transparent pricing model, which aids in budgeting and financial planning, as you can clearly understand and anticipate the costs associated. Most importantly, we scale with you. This means that as your organization grows or as your forecasting needs evolve, Indicio can adjust without necessitating a complete overhaul or significant additional investment. This is a stark contrast to in-house builds, which may require substantial resources to update or scale, resulting in unforeseen long-term costs.