16 posts on Hiring.
A weighted ten-criterion scorecard for comparing software development companies, the reference-check questions that get real answers, what a good first meeting looks like, and the things not to optimise for.
Read moreA section-by-section template for a custom software RFP, how long to give vendors, how to score the responses, and what to leave out so the proposals you receive can actually be compared.
Read moreThe three ways to engage an external software team compared on cost, control, risk and ramp-up, with monthly figures, a decision rule by situation, and how to switch models without losing momentum.
Read moreRates by region, the time-zone overlap a New York or London buyer actually gets, the total cost once management overhead is counted, when each model works, and the GDPR and data residency questions to settle first.
Read moreThe questions to put to a software development vendor grouped by area, what a good answer sounds like, which answers are deal-breakers, and how to turn a long questionnaire into something that actually reduces risk.
Read moreWhat is reasonably inside a fixed-scope MVP package, what is always excluded, the three clauses to read before signing, and how to compare two packages that look the same.
Read moreA verdict by founder situation: the solo non-technical founder, the funded team, the corporate innovation unit and the technical founder, and what each should outsource.
Read moreA seven-point checklist, what a good first call looks like, the questions that expose a team that only ships features, and how to compare three shortlisted companies.
Read moreThe early warning signs a non-technical founder can see without reading code, ordered from mild to serious, with the conversation to have at each stage.
Read moreThe questions that separate a partner from a build shop, grouped by what they reveal, with the answers you should hope to hear and the ones that should worry you.
Read moreThe warning signs that show up in the document before they show up in the project, and what a healthy proposal looks like instead.
Read moreWhat the line items in a development quote mean, the proportions that indicate a well-planned project, and how to compare quotes that are structured differently.
Read moreWhat ownership means in practice, the difference between assignment and a licence, the accounts that matter as much as the code, and the contract terms to insist on.
Read moreA phase-by-phase account of a well-run project, what the agency needs from you and when, and how to tell early whether the project is on track.
Read moreWhat the two common contract types mean for a founder, where the risk sits in each, and the model we use to give founders a fixed budget without the usual downsides.
Read moreA side-by-side comparison of what each option costs, what you actually get for the money, and which one fits a non-technical founder building a first product.
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