Been there done that
Nothing beats the actual “been there, done that” experience. We find that many of our clients are traversing new territory within their organizations which we can augment with a Partner’s experience.
Experience Counts
Client benefits are increased anytime experienced teams can repeatedly work together. Our Partners have collaborated in a variety of technical projects over the last 20 years. You can gain from that experience.
Small teams
Our General Partners have all been involved in developing large, enterprise applications in complex industries such as telecommunications and medical. In our industry and consulting experience we have found time and time again that small, high quality teams can and do out produce large teams. This is the antithesis of offshoring which is, in essence, an attempt to throw a large number of cheap resources at a problem.
Pragmatic methodologies
Many companies attempt to adopt methodologies that are hyped by specific vendors or large consulting agencies and that do not necessarily map well onto their actual needs. Practical application of these structures does not require “religious” adherence to all elements of a methodology. Simple approaches to problem solving are always preferred though frequently overlooked.
Realistic expectations
Members of an organization outside of the IT realm do not typically have any idea of what can be accomplished with a given amount of time and resources. The “bad news” needs to be the premise on which a successful project is based.
Serious adult supervision
Many developers cannot resist the urge to develop something new or “cool”, sometimes just for the sake of doing it (or resume enhancement).It is important to cut through the fog of acronyms and technical terms to find out if the solution actually fits the problem.
Enabling technologies
The business should drive the approach to technology – not the other way around. Technologists can sometimes loose sight of the business goal in the desire to adopt a particular technology. Technology is a business enabler, not a religion.
People make the project
Most IT project failures are a result of “people problems”, not technologies or methodologies. Interdepartmental politics, ineffective executive leadership, unrealistic expectations, poor early platform choices, and unfocused teams are the most likely culprits that surface during and emergency IT project triage.
Appreciate the legacy
Organizations should approach legacy systems – the ones currently running the business – with a healthy amount of respect. Before you abandon the old in favor of the new (especially if you decide to develop it yourself) you should make sure that no one is underestimating the capabilities of the legacy system.
Stay in charge
Leadership too frequently loses day-to-day contact with their technology teams and consultants and the wrong people start making high-level decisions. Clients need to stay in charge and informed. We can help you ensure that
Standard technologies and simple tools
Standards based technology development wins every time. Employing open systems and open source based components is fundamental to establishing and maintaining a lower total cost of development and long term ownership. Hiring the needed expertise, platforms and tools, interoperability and maintenance are all more cost efficient and the vendors tend to stay in business.