What To Expect From Your Product Development Team

Over the years, I have seen business people and stakeholders become frustrated with the teams who make custom software for them. It’s understandable! Few people have any preparation for their first custom software project. They dive in with enthusiasm and subject matter expertise. Sometimes, it goes great. Sometimes, it goes poorly. I believe that the […]

Writing a Great Software Development Contract, Part 4 – Breaches and Termination

Sometimes, an engagement doesn’t go according to plan, and it’s a good idea to agree on what to expect if this occurs. Custom software contracts commonly define how to fix a situation if expectations aren’t being met, and they may also define rights for terminating an engagement.

Writing a Great Software Development Contract, Part 3 – Warranties, Indemnifications, and Liability

Custom software services contracts should call out the promises you and your partner make to each other. The contract should also define who will be responsible, and to what degree, if certain issues arise.

Writing a Great Software Development Contract, Part 2 – Intellectual Property Rights

Custom software contracts need to be clear about intellectual property rights—the ownership and use rights for each component in the final product. A software product can have some components that are custom, some that are open-source, and others that are commercially licensed. And each can have separate IP rights.

Writing a Great Software Development Contract, Part 1 – Overview & Principles

If you’ve never worked through contracting for custom software development services, it can be challenging. Your existing templates may be rooted in business relationships focused on purchasing tangible goods or pre-existing software. Custom software dev contracts have unique considerations and require a slight shift in mindset. I work with Atomic’s clients and our legal team […]

Why Milestone-Based Payments Are Never a Good Idea for Custom Software

During two separate meetings with potential new accounts this week, milestone-based payments (sometimes also called fixed-bid payments) came up in conversation. One potential customer was interested in working this way; the other one had just been burned by it. These conversations reminded me of the reasons milestone-based payments are a bad idea when you’re building […]

Atomic 101: Our Sales Process – Setting Each Project Up for Success

If you talk to Atomic Object about a project, you’ll notice that our sales process looks a little different from the norm. At a lot of custom software companies, the process looks something like this: You tell a salesperson what you want, then listen to them talk about their company. The salesperson talks to their […]

Should You Build New Software or Buy It? – It Comes Down to Cost vs. Control

You need a serious piece of software to help run your business—an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. Maybe you’re replacing what you’ve got, or maybe you’re outgrowing your paper processes. You’ve looked around, but you don’t see anything for sale that exactly meets your needs. And now you’re considering building your own.

How to Avoid Stakeholder Gridlock on Your Software Project

Have you ever been to a meeting that involved a dozen or more people, that constantly went too far into the weeds, that couldn’t come to a consensus, and that left you feeling like nothing was accomplished? It was horrible, right? You probably never want to have that experience again.

Choosing the Right Software Partner, Part 4: The Engagement Management Process

A strong engagement management process keeps complex, custom software development projects on track for success. It’s essential that you (the client) are regularly involved in conversations about the budget, scope, and key decisions.

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