Determining where the value comes from in your business is another important aspect to work out when embarking on an open source implementation ."A lot of people instantly say they don't want to open their code because they don't want their competitor to get it," Waugh said. "But it is important to look at the difference between a cost of your business and a competitive differentiator."

A human resources (HR) system is an example of an application that is a cost to most industry, she said. "In a legal firm, for instance, the HR system they use isn't their competitive differentiator, so it makes a lot of sense to save money and development time and use open source tools that are already out there and may do up to 80 percent of what they need."

Waugh hopes that industry will increasingly see the value in collaboration over solutions that will solve issues for every one. "Solving issues as an industry can make for a stronger industry all around, and it redirects a whole lot of resources towards the aspects [each company] wants to compete on individually," she said.