This post will give us some common ground on which I can build my case for Drupal. To get started, we’ll need working definitions of success in business today, the nature of open source software, and a quick explanation of Drupal itself. In subsequent posts, we’ll explore specific concepts and examples of how Drupal enables success because it is open source software at scale – a powerful combination: the empowerment of freedom multiplied by an ecosystem of thousands of service providers, tens of thousands of developers, and millions of sites online.

What is success? How does Drupal get you there?

We’ll need to agree on a working definition of success and outline some key factors that will help get your organisation there before I can make the case for Drupal as an enabler. I sort the points I listed in my first post in this series under four broad headers:

• Innovation
  • faster (and/or continuous)
  • cost efficiency
• Cost savings
  • faster time to market
  • focus on your core business
• Efficiency/Productivity
  • best-of-breed, integrated solutions
• Risk mitigation
  • improved quality, security, and accountability
  • reduced cost of risk AND safe, proven technology choices