Doing Community Portals

One of my advisees asked me this question:

“Sir, would it be alright if i still do a generic system (Community Portal for Real Estate Brokers)? I’ve just talked with the chairperson of our chapter and they are willing to back me on the project (do/hire people for the maintenance and stuff) but they want it to target the real estate industry as a whole.”

In my opinion, doing a generic system is like doing a software package for a target domain (e.g. generic accounting, purchasing, etc.). I welcome the development of such since this also brings opportunities for the developers to have a starting product should they already plan to go for having their own IT firm.

Having a Community Portal for Real Estate Brokers (in the Philippines) I would presume, is not a development of a generic system. And if I will base it with my discussion with Yayo Arabit, there is a specific set of requirements and demand on technology that the community of Real Estate Brokers are having. In the case of the Real Estate Brokers in the Philippines, if it will be a development of a system catering to the “National Association of Real Estate Brokers of the Philippines” or whatever name there is (should it exist), it will not be a generic system development. But should the case be a development of system that will cater to ANY association of Real Estate Brokers in the Philippines, then that will end up development of a generic system (with consideration of the common processes and requirements among several associations).