What’s Past is Prologue

The Medius Advantage

What was your first cell phone? Mine was the Nokia 8210 that operated on Cingular Wireless–a precursor to the now ubiquitous AT&T. At risk of further dating myself, I bought that phone seven years before the first iPhone hit the market. BlackBerry, Motorola, Nokia, Apple, Samsung, Google–we’ve seen them all over the years as they have come and gone (looking at you, BlackBerry). Although there are other players, particularly in international markets, Apple (#1) and Samsung (#2) are locked in an ongoing battle of U.S. market penetration that resembles trench warfare. Meanwhile, Motorola and Nokia are somehow still around and Google is waging an insurgent campaign against all of them. The Apple iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, and Google Pixel have since settled into a regular routine of releasing new versions of their flagship product lines each year to keep up with new technology, trends, and consumer demands.

Source: StatCounter Global Stats - Device Vendor Market Share

This is, in fact, a feature of technology, not a bug. My dad likes to tell me that the first computer filled entire rooms but had the power of a four-function calculator. Smartphones on the market in 2019 had more than one million times the memory capacity of the Apollo Guidance Computer, which helped navigate Apollo 11 that took man to the moon. It also had over seven million times more storage and had more than 100,000 times the processing power than the Apollo computer. The smartphones of 2024 are even more powerful and provide more storage and memory than those of 2019. Not to mention they don’t fill a lunar landing module–heck, I misplace mine on a nearly daily basis! Automobiles have lower emissions and better fuel economy these days and have been evolving for years and that’s without even broaching the topic of electric cars. Bend, Oregon is home to the last Blockbuster video store on the planet because streaming has made the brick-and-mortar video rental business model obsolete. In fact, the last Blockbuster primarily serves as a tourist attraction instead of a place to rent movies. The list of sweeping technology advancements and evolutions goes on and on, transcending industries and sectors along the way. 

In 2011, the U.S. potato industry received funding to address acrylamide formation in fried potato products. Acrylamide develops when asparagine and reducing sugars interact at high processing temperatures and is present in any number of foods we buy, from coffee to bread, so it is not abnormal. Nevertheless, the industry sought to reduce its formation in processed potatoes. As part of the project, two variety databases were created–one focused on frozen potato processing (e.g., French fries) and another on chipping potatoes. They worked for a few years, until the research objective was achieved, project funding dried up, the industry moved on, and most importantly, researchers were freed up to focus on more pressing potato research needs instead of database management. When the databases still worked, I asked the principal investigator for the project what would happen to them. “They’ll eventually become non-operational,” he told me. Those functional databases that were developed in 2011 are now completely obsolete. It’s nobody’s fault–it’s just the way it works in technology and it’s as old and fundamental as the second law of thermodynamics (you know, the one about entropy, or disorder).

The formula of speed, efficiency, mission focus, and expertise means Medius can not only do it faster, but also for less money. One of the advantages of hiring a contractor is that capital investment costs are minimal. The research and development we’ve already invested means an internet connection and browser are the only things a Medius client needs to get started. Alternatively, if a custom database is developed in-house, it will cost in the neighborhood of $200,000 to get it up and running with most of that attributed to human capital costs. After that, you can reasonably expect to spend $100,000 for maintenance–and that’s just in the private sector. Universities require a substantial share of investment dollars to be allocated to “indirect costs” which is just another word for overhead. When the rubber meets the road, funneling a software development project through a university will run you around 50 percent of the total project cost out of the gate just to keep the lights on. As a private sector contractor, Medius avoids that fiscal bloat.

“Do you have an app?” is a question we frequently get asked. The simple answer is we don’t and for good reason. Developing and maintaining an app is fraught with extra cost and headaches for a near negligible return on investment. Medius.Re and the rest of our products possess a feature called adaptive design, which means that it will automatically recognize what device you’re using and adjust the screen accordingly for an optimal user experience. Functionally, it operates like an app, but without requiring an app download. Plus, how many times have you opened up an app to use it after a period of inactivity only to find that it needs to be updated…to keep up with technology. That’s why whenever you fly, the airline reminds you to make sure you have “the latest version” of their app downloaded before the doors close if you want to take advantage of in-flight entertainment. Otherwise, you’ll probably be out of luck. The bottom line is that maintaining a web-based data platform, an iOS app, an Android-based app, or any other native app is an unnecessary recipe for bugs and mistakes. 

The net outcome of all these elements found in the software development market is that our clients are consistently happy with the results that we deliver. Unfortunately for those in need of our services, we seem to be the exception to the rule. When we speak with clients, the universal message we hear is, “You’re not a typical software company–you’re so responsive.” We’re proud of that. We’ve always said we’re an agricultural company that provides software solutions and not the other way around. Agricultural stakeholders can’t afford to wait because they don’t set the timeline; Mother Nature, the banks, and their customers do. 

Ultimately, the takeaway is this: You aren’t being paid to develop software. You’re in the business of research, management, sales, or even industry communications. Accordingly, whenever you’re spending time on software development activities and maintenance, you’re taking time away from your core mission. An in-house solution might seem to be more cost effective, but in the end it is nothing more than a mirage. 

As we like to say in the office, “Do what you do best, and outsource the rest.” When you do that, you won’t just get it done, you’ll get it done right. That’s the Medius advantage.

If you are interested in seeing how Medius can make your data more useful and powerful, send us a note at info@mediusag.com. Or, simply reach out to us on one of our social media channels or give us a follow. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.