Practically everybody makes use of computers and yet very few people know how they really work. This relatively small group of specialists builds systems suited to meet the (information) requirements of the great many users the world over. You might expect such a relatively small and knowledge-intensive group to have developed a uniform approach to the resolution of problems, but this does not appear to be the case. In practice, the development of each new IT system is regarded as a journey of exploration with its own package of requirements, selection of components, detailed planning, installation, operation and quality control. Two principles take precedence, firstly that every information system has its own unique package of requirements, and secondly that such tailor-made products can only be developed by specialists.

And while this may have held true during the early, pioneering days, nowadays such an approach raises the necessary questions. The millions of information systems in use worldwide are all developed using a number of basic principles with respect to management, security and data protection. The need to ‘design’ these time and again is thus superfluous. Problems in the implementation process lie more in the area of consistent performance, guaranteed availability and data protection. In other words, the quality of service, instead of unique functionality. Another problem with tailor-made information systems is the difficulty of adapting to changes. When, on the other hand, you build up such a system using standard blocks or modules, these can be easily replaced whenever necessary, ensuring that your information system once again complies with contemporary requirements.