By Dan Kittay
Owner, Kittay New Media

Dealing with technology means dealing with change. You build a Web site, then eventually realize you (and your members) want more out of it, so you upgrade the site. Maybe in a few years you do it again, as your audience and you become more sophisticated in what you want your site to deliver.

Same for IT needs. As you expand the scope of your Web site, you want to integrate some of its functions into your member database. Unfortunately, the database is several years old, and possibly designed way back when the Web was just a technology that the military and academics used to communicate. So you get introduced to the IT upgrade.

There is, of course, one thing that never changes with technology: the need to spend more money on it.

In speaking with various association executives, I get a sense that a number of you are considering upgrades to IT systems. Whether you've outgrown your current system, or want more features and flexibility, you're seeking to go to the next level, and wondering which way to turn.

There are a number of possible approaches, including: off-the-shelf software, customized applications, and hosted applications. Each has its plusses and minuses.

Off-the-shelf may be the least expensive approach, but may require customization before it's ready to meet your needs. That means having an in-house IT staff, or hiring a consultant to do the work.

Customized applications will be designed around your exact needs, but will likely cost more and may leave you vulnerable to the ability of the vendor to provide service and support on an ongoing basis.

Hosted applications have the advantage of minimizing your hardware requirements and people to support the hardware and software, but raise questions about security of your data and access to it if Internet connections on either end fail. And you also need to make sure your vendor will stay in business and support your system.

An interesting approach to meeting association IT needs is emerging in a consortium called BarAlliance. Many of you have probably seen demos of their software at NABE meetings. Spearheaded by folks at the Utah State Bar, it's an attempt to create Association Management System software that can be used by consortium members, either as is or with some minimal customization. It can either be hosted or run in-house.

The idea is that most associations gather similar information from and about their members, and use it in a finite number of ways. By working with a vendor to design software that can handle those needs, the consortium hopes to produce a core module and other add-on modules that would satisfy bar association IT requirements. The core module has begun implementation, while add-ons are on the drawing board.

This approach sounds promising, although there are some obstacles to be overcome. Some association functions are more complex than others, and it remains to be seen if a common ground can be found in designing modules that don't require a lot of customization.

And, of course, enough associations have to be convinced that it's worth adopting the software to keep the consortium healthy, and give it the leverage it will need in directing future development of the software. That's not a given in a diverse association universe.

It's to their credit that consortium founders are plowing ahead, and it's a development worth watching.