Hertz, an American car rental company, sued Accenture for $32million worth of damages in web development services.
Hertz called the website as ‘defective’ and ‘vulnerable’, as reported by The Register, saying that the website development company costed them millions and millions over additional charges to complete the project. The car rental company hired Accenture back in August 2016 and the project was expected to launch by December 2017. However, Accenture pushed the project back to January 2018. And until recently, Hertz decided to call it off, lacking faith that Accenture could still deliver a completed project.
The Challenge of Website Development: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Any website development company knows that web development service is a tough project to handle. From home pages to cybersecurity, to user-friendly interfaces to eye-catching web design, web development takes intensive amount of testing and retesting to assure its success. In line with this, a website acts like a storefront or a marketing device for a company. In this day and age, the Internet of Things (IoT) is used by people in their day-to-day activities and this opens possibilities of a big market, possibly even global, when customers use computers, laptops, mobile apps, and other devices like tablets.
Hertz said that they asked Accenture to revise the failed project, however, Accenture mentioned that this would fixable with a fee. Hertz then filed the lawsuit. Tech Spot reported the list of things Hertz complained:
What Actually Went Wrong
First, Hertz stated that Accenture did not scale down their web page to a medium-sized version. Successful websites often scale to any device so it would be accessible to all customers and all types of devices and not to mention, there is a rise in conversion rates among tablets and smartphones in the recent years. Practical Commerce reported that a reason mobile apps aren’t converting well was because most pages are tailored to a desktop-version only. In addition to that, mobile app and page designs have poor interface and navigation. Accenture created Hertz’s web pages for computers and mobile phones only. This alienates other devices to would need a medium-scale page, considering that Hertz is a global brand.
Accenture also reportedly ignored requests for common core of libraries so Hertz could have a way sharing files across brands for all apps and devices. Hertz stated in their suit:
“Accenture deliberately disregarded the extensibility requirement and wrote the code so that it was specific to the Hertz brand in North America and could not be used for the Hertz global brand or for the Dollar and Thrifty brands.”
Web Development Failure Among Other Things
Accenture also asked Hertz to buy licenses for software called RAPID that they did not know how to use, making the whole web development project costly that it should be. They also used a code that posed cybersecurity issues that Hertz said left the company website unstable and vulnerable.
Accenture also failed to follow the Java standard and failed to test the website they have developed forcing Hertz to discover the mistakes themselves.
The lawsuit isn’t the only thing that Accenture is currently facing. Big Law Business reported multiple internal issues like firing an employee based on age among other things. Accenture said: “We believe the allegations in this lawsuit are without merit, and we intend to defend our position. Because this is an ongoing legal matter, we decline any further comment.”
Website Development Is Crucial for Business Image and Reputation
Website development services are crucial to small and big companies alike. The home page acts like a welcome page to all customers visiting them. Conversion rates also depend on how easy it is to navigate your page, in addition to other things. Examples would be multiple payment methods, easy accessibility, and customer-catered interface and updates. Consider these things when you negotiate with a web development company.
Successful websites would allow customers to get to know your business more, cater to their needs, and allow them to avail your products or services in the most convenient fashion.
The Best Website Development Companies Don’t Work Fast, They Work Smart
Web development companies that make successful websites would know how to avoid these. Web developers should take note of what the company’s goal, audience, and needs are before proceeding. It should also contain protective cybersecurity measures, should allow easy updating, and should be fully functional before its launch.
EOI Digital and its digital transformation web development service, performs based on results. EOI has a well-developed team that could create groundbreaking and eye-catching designs and content, optimize searchability, emphasize online presence. Our website development company also creates mobile and tablet scaled apps and pages to allow more conversion. By integrating the needs of the client and the customers, EOI can help your websites gain traction and conversion.
EOI Digital is looking for IT projects they could work on. For any details or inquiries, feel free to contact us through our website.