Navigating the GIS Landscape: Buy vs Build Dilemma

What happens when a heated LinkedIn debate turns into a real conversation?

In this episode, I sit down with Kyle Satterfield, GISP, after a spirited online exchange about geospatial tools — specifically, the classic open-source versus Esri debate.

What started as a back-and-forth in the comments became a deeper conversation about the choices we make in GIS: buy versus build, custom versus out-of-the-box, IT-driven versus GIS-led approaches, and how the right answer isn’t always as simple as we make it seem online.

Kyle shares candid stories from his work launching GIS programs at the county level, navigating the tug-of-war between IT departments, administrators, and GIS teams. We talk about the value of fast wins, the realities of budgets and buy-in, and why sometimes being "boxed in" by a platform can be a good thing.

This episode isn’t about who’s right — it’s about getting past the hot takes and hearing real perspectives from both sides of the geospatial world.