In the world of modern business, you need to understand the value of the component economy and how to make the most of it
There’s a famous line from the Kevin Costner film ‘Field of Dreams’ that has proven a mantra for business ever since. You know the one – ‘If you build it, they will come’. But how true does that hold today? After all, commerce is now so fast-moving, while innovation and change come at companies daily. You can build new tools and services. But while you’ve been working away, the customer has come, looked around, found you not ready and moved on. No-one serious about playing on the global stage these days has time to build things from scratch.
It’s why we’re in the middle of what might be called a ‘component economy’. Instead of laboriously building bespoke, companies are much more likely to find a bolt-on solution to complement what they already have. As a result, a community of bolt-on suppliers has grown up around them, ready to add in, swap out and generally shake it all about to make sure brands can offer the right service, at the right price, at the right time.
Take data management, for example. To make the most of the potential of machine learning and AI, an organization needs to have access to massive amounts of highly accurate and often real-time data. Few are equipped to do this, having built their companies like some kind of crazy, reverse Jenga – legacy system on top of legacy system, coping – but not seamless.
To keep up with recently-launched competitors, who gain in modern purpose-built data systems what they might lack in experience and heritage, companies need to access sophisticated data capabilities – quickly. Hence the explosion in SaaS data analytics products – simple integrations, frequently hosted in the cloud that enable client companies to access analytics capabilities in an ‘all you can eat’ fashion.
Not only is it quick to integrate, SaaS enables companies to use only what they need. Building bespoke, there is consideration not just for today but tomorrow too. Creating systems ready to cope with what the future might throw at them leaves companies over-committed and over-stretched today.
The same is true of other services – web hosting, Google maps and even banking products. Companies increasingly want to access these products according to their own needs, dialing commitments up or down without having to divest themselves of equipment or make rapid hiring and firing decisions.
While PSD2 might have rocked the consumer world in terms of APIs providing greater flexibility and access to services, trends in global commerce have made SaaS, or in our case, CaaS – currency as a service – an essential tool for doing business. Using an API like Currencycloud should integrate seamlessly into existing systems and is plug and play – ready to respond to client needs whether those are a handful of occasional transactions or bulk transfers stretching into the tens of millions.
There is wisdom in the phrase ‘jack of all trades, master of none’. Regulation, enhanced customer expectations and increased competition from incumbents and start-ups means most companies face significant difficulties upskilling and resourcing to meet these challenges alone. Getting on board with the component economy puts those challenges in the hands of experts, ready to move at a moment’s notice but with all the confidence of seasoned players.
Find out more about the how Currencycloud can help you build what you need
