1. How to get good commercial software built
Everything you ever wanted to know, but were afraid to ask…
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

2. Agenda Me  Problems with software Why
What are the routes to getting software built
How to choose one
Selection
Management
Final thoughts
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

3. Who am I? 30 years developing software products
Interested in software products not internal software
Harrogate based consultancy
Strategic advice
Design and Implementation
Examples
Perlego: real time poker broadcast
Easy Karaoke: new channels to market for karaoke content
HPCI : knowledge rich publishing
Someone who hates bad software
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

4. What are the issues? It was never finished/worked
It doesn’t do what I want it to do
It makes mistakes
It’s too slow
It’s too hard to use
It looses customers
It costs too much
I’ve no control
I don’t know where to start
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

5. Why? Through a glass, darkly… Send three and fourpence…
Technology risk
Engineer vs Mechanic
Tomorrow and Tomorrow..
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

6. Options Don’t do anything Buy in Outsource Insource Stir the pot
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

7. Don’t do anything
Sometimes, just sometimes, you don’t need the software!
Or the commercial returns don’t justify it
Be realistic about the costs before you start
Direct costs
Management time
And sometimes it’s all wasted
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

8. Buy in
See if there is software (or components) which (almost) does what you want
Pros
It’s already there and working
Or is it?
Reduced cost and risk
Long term support
Cons
Costs of customisation may exceed costs of green field write
Potentially steep learning curve
Supplier reliability
Strategic direction
Hitting the end stops
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

9. Outsource Types Pros Cons Software house Onshore Offshore Consultant
Quick
Good technology knowledge
May be low risk
Long term support
Cons
Long communication chains (salesman, account manager, project manager, developer..)
Flexibility
Cost
Caring
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

10. Insource Internal Development team Pros Cons Expert Validation
Permanent
Contractors
Pros
Long term view
Bringing skills in house
Skill depth or breadth
Speed of reaction
Cost
Cons
May be single point of failure
Skill depth and breadth
Management
Expert Validation
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

11. Choosing an approach There’s probably not one right answer Is it core?
Size and Scope of project
Technological Complexity
People matter more than theory
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

12. Recruiting Developers
Get the Level Right
20:1 Productivity Ratio – at least
But the work has to challenge them
Small team / sole programmer
Make sure you can communicate in your language
Being techie on your own can be difficult – have they support?
Larger Teams
Blend of characters and skills
Testing
Look for evidence
Can they show you programs/sites they’ve written on their own?
Programming test
Commercial Experience
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

13. Selecting External Partners
Formal Process / Methodology / Communications
Scope/Specification
Legal wrangling
But consider Agile
Looking someone in the eye is always better
Qualifications
Experience in business area
Experience in technology
Check that your workers have experience not just management
Have they provided input?
Size
Big consultancies will have much higher overheads
And may have less competent / caring staff
But they will do what they say – or pay for it
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

14. Selecting Existing Software
Identify the key requirements in order
Which are must haves?
You MUST actually test that the features exist as you think before you commit
Make sure you get modifications as fixed price
And clearly specified
Careful with not yet implemented features
They haven’t got this key bit, but will implement it if you buy…
Learning curve for bought in software can be fierce
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

15. Management You cannot just leave the project to run
It’s your vision
Good techies aren’t always the best managers
But don’t keep digging the roots up!
Make sure real users are involved regularly
Order development by feature value / Risk
If it’s key do it first, especially if it depends on new technologies
Be prepared to rethink business objectives if technology doesn’t work as expected
Be prepared to abandon the project if it’s going badly
And have some predefined points when you will consider this
Try to get risks quantified in terms of range of man days
Brief, frequent personal updates are better than long infrequent formal meetings
Consider agile approaches
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

16. Commercial Software Therapy
Looks at the influencers on a commercial software project
Offers some practical suggestions for what to look at and how to approach product design and development
IEPC 8th Nov 2010

17. Final thoughts Building good software is hard People are the key
Communication is the other key!
You (the business person) must get and keep involved
IEPC 8th Nov 2010