A Guide to Build vs. Buy Decisions in Digital Health

Digital health is now mainstream with funding in this sector reaching $14.7 billion in the first half of 2021, surpassing the record set in 2020. Further, the results of a McKinsey study show that digital health has an average projected growth of 12% per year through 2024. Anyone who doesn't have a solid digital strategy is rushing or scrambling to set one and those with a strategy are trying to move faster.

For any industry undergoing digital transformation, it's important to decide early on between gaining technology capabilities by working with current legacy systems or partnering to leverage outside expertise. Building technology platforms involves the initial creation, support, fixing issues and upgrades. Acquiring a platform from a partner can be simpler upfront, although it may introduce other considerations. Both paths have potential benefits and drawbacks worth weighing.

Here are the top four factors every business should consider when navigating build versus buy decisions in digital health: speed, scalability, security and staff. How well these elements are optimized will directly impact the success of digital programs.