We have talked a lot about one of the most important software decisions: should you build yourself or should you buy from a third party? This can be seen as a purely binary decision, as you can’t exactly build half of an application and buy the rest from a vendor. But modern energy companies are far more than a single application, and the reality on the ground is that every energy retailer will have a mix, with some internal development and some pre-built applications. The real question is not just “build or buy”, but what parts of your application portfolio should you build, and what parts should you buy? How do you strike the right balance?

There's always some in-house

One of the big disadvantages that we highlighted around self-builds was the cost of putting together and maintaining a development team. Engineers are highly in-demand worldwide with salaries to match, and the complexity of modern applications means a large team would be needed for all but the simplest of tools.

However, energy retailers are not starting from scratch. Many already maintain in-house development teams that support their current IT infrastructure, handle system maintenance, and develop internal tools. These existing technical resources represent a significant advantage when considering self-build solutions. Rather than facing the daunting prospect of building a development team from the ground up, companies can often leverage and gradually expand their current technical workforce. This approach allows for a more organic growth of development capabilities, with new hires being brought in strategically to fill specific skill gaps rather than requiring a large-scale recruitment effort.

Having built these teams, retailers will want to make use of that investment. The energy retail space offers numerous opportunities where in-house development can add significant value. Customer-facing portals, which require deep integration with company-specific business processes and branding, are prime candidates for custom development. Similarly, specialized trading tools that align with a retailer's unique market position and risk strategy can benefit from bespoke development. Internal workflow automation and reporting dashboards are other areas where in-house teams can create tailored solutions that precisely match operational needs. By strategically deploying development resources to these high-impact areas, retailers can maximize the return on their technical talent while maintaining the flexibility to adapt quickly to changing market conditions.

Nonetheless, there is a limit to what can be developed. Even technology giants like Google and Microsoft purchase specialized software rather than building everything in-house. Energy retailers should be similarly pragmatic. Core systems like billing engines, EDI message handling, and industry data flows often represent years of accumulated knowledge and regulatory compliance work - attempting to replicate these through internal development rarely makes business sense. The key is to identify where purchased solutions provide the most value: typically in areas requiring extensive domain expertise, significant ongoing maintenance, or adherence to complex industry standards. This allows in-house development teams to focus their efforts on creating genuine competitive advantages rather than reinventing established solutions.

The Application Landscape

Let’s imagine a standard energy retailer, and the different applications they manage:

Although “integration layer” is going to be vastly more complicated in real life, this is a reasonable approximation. But even with this stripped down, simplified architecture, just look at the number of different applications that need to be developed. 14 applications, as well as the integrations between them - how large a development team would be required to manage all of that?

In-house development shines when addressing unique business needs or creating tools that set your company apart. For example, customer-facing platforms like custom energy usage dashboards or mobile apps can reflect your brand’s value proposition and integrate with proprietary data. This type of application can align with strategic goals, where control over functionality, data security, and adaptability to evolving customer expectations outweigh the higher upfront costs and longer development timelines.

Purchasing vendor solutions is ideal for standardized, non-differentiating functions. Billing and CRM systems, for instance, benefit from pre-built platforms that comply with regional regulations and offer rapid scalability. Third-party solutions like energy trading platforms or regulatory compliance software are also prudent purchases, as vendors invest heavily in domain expertise, real-time data integration, and updates to meet shifting market rules. Similarly, pricing and billing engines and ERP systems often require specialized expertise that external providers deliver more cost-effectively. By outsourcing these non-core functions, energy retailers reduce development risks, avoid maintenance burdens, and free internal teams to focus on innovation.

The choice ultimately depends on whether the application supports a unique competitive edge or addresses a universal need. Prioritize building for differentiation and buying for efficiency. Evaluate factors like integration capabilities, vendor reliability, and total cost of ownership. For energy retailers, a hybrid approach—combining custom tools for customer engagement with robust vendor solutions for compliance and trading—often strikes the optimal balance between agility and operational maturity.

The Gorilla Advantage

It's all very well presenting a simplified landscape with some clear options, but how should CIOs and Enterprise architects figure out exactly what should be built and what should be bought? Trial and error? That's a bit of a costly path for the essential building blocks of an organization.

Much more likely is to look at what your competitors are doing, and what the energy experts are doing. Take advantage of the work that has already been done.

This is where Gorilla provides a significant advantage. Our team has decades of internal energy experience from around the world. We've been there, seen it all, and got the t-shirt. And it shows in the retailers that are already making use of Gorilla to power their pricing and forecasting. From our very first customer, retailers have seen exactly why Gorilla outperforms self-builds. With delivery times measured in months* - in comparison to year long projects before we arrived - it's no wonder that Gorilla is already in use in the UK, EU, USA, and Australia.

Our platform is designed to eliminate the bottlenecks of legacy patchworks and empower energy retailers with a data-driven foundation that integrates seamlessly across functions​. Instead of sinking years into custom-built solutions that risk becoming outdated before they’re even fully deployed, Gorilla offers pre-configured yet highly adaptable energy data applications that accelerate digital transformation without compromising flexibility​.

Simply put, energy retailers don't need to reinvent the wheel. They need to move faster, better. They need to invest in solutions that provide out-of-the-box value while still allowing for tailored configurations where it truly matters. The competitive edge comes not from building everything in-house but from leveraging platforms that deliver instant insights, automate workflows, and integrate seamlessly into the broader energy ecosystem​.

*Source: Internal Gorilla data. You'll have to speak to one of our data rangers to get the details!