Not invented here syndrome

Recently I holidayed in Bermuda and did what many typical tourists do - had an accident on a motorized scooter!  Fortunately Bermuda has a great health care system and the people at Pompano Beach Club take great care of their guests!

Coming back home though, I was less than impressed.  You see, I had an x-ray of my separated AC joint (collarbone and shoulder) at the hospital in Bermuda, then I had a series of others by my GP.  I was then sent to an orthopaedic surgeon (based at a local hospital) and told to bring my x-rays.  Did the ortho ever look at the x-rays (that I had to pay for to be put on a disc)?  No, they insisted on having new x-rays done by the hospital.

I was less than impressed for many reasons.  First, to do the x-ray properly I actually have to have a weight hanging from the injured arm - PAIN!  Second, having the 3rd set of x-rays (which showed nothing different from the first 2 sets) meant my appointment took an extra hour.  Third, an extra set of x-rays means waste and unnecessary expense for the hospital itself- technicians time, x-ray equipment, attendant to take me there, line up for other people who actually needed an original x-ray.

This smells to me of the not-invented here syndrome.  How often is someone else's work not accepted simply because they don't work for your company or your department?  Or in the case of larger companies, because it is not invented in that plant/office/country?  Sometime this is blamed on potential for viruses (in the case of files being transferred) or on differences in programming language used.  Often, it is simply political and egotistical.


Do you have spreadsheets in your department that has data that needs to be regenerated by each different person who uses it?  Do you insist on building your own equipment because you don't want to buy an off-the-shelf product?  Is cost really driving your decision to make it in house?

Consider the hidden costs: time, quality, long term maintenance, lack of flexibility, lack of a knowledge base.

I'm not suggesting you get someone else to do your work, but consider how reinventing the wheel fits in with your company's longer term outlook and direction.