Being a small company, it’s a big deal whenever you start thinking about bringing in more help. Right now, I’m the only developer for a small software company. that means, I have a limitless amount of work that I can do, and since I’m still doing consulting, my time isn’t limitless 🙂 So, how do you fix this issue…
1. Space the work out, and prioritize!!!
2. Bring in some additional help
Recently, my partner found someone interested in working with us… but are we ready for it? Since I am admittedly a bit of a control freak when it comes the software, I’m naturally resistant to the idea. Do we need it? can we afford it? How do I know he’s any good? etc.
So this post is going to be about all the things to consider when you start to think about bringing in some help.
1. Financial: We’re small, so we can’t afford to pay someone by the hour, especially for something that “may” sell, but we don’t have any orders for it. that pretty much leaves paying a percentage of sales on the product. Even this is hard because our margins are still tight. We’re offering big money for anyone that can get us a lead (FYI. $10,000 is still out there if you connect us with a lead that brings in a sales. No selling, just give us the lead). On the flip side, 100% of 0, is still 0. So it’s better to get a some of something, than get nothing… you get the idea. Plus, it may help open new markets/prospects.
2. The application: It must be designed as a standalone application, but still be easy to integrate with our existing offerings. Sounds easy, but since I’ve done all the development, I haven’t really documented my standards. So having someone new comes in would force me to figure out what I want. While I am the CTO of this venture, I haven’t really acted like one up till now. I’d still need to review the code, but this would give me a chance to learn some new techniques. Never a bad thing. finally, is there a market for the new product? Is it really important enough to bring in someone new?
3. Legal: This is the tough part. We need Non disclosure agreements, as well as documents that give our company complete ownership of this stuff, and still provide the % to the developer. We need to expressly state that no money changes hands until we get paid. Plus, there is the whole issue of developer license. We only have one currently, but I’ll talk more about that in section 4.
4. Technical: How will he develop? I’d have to set up a system for him to create everything in and provide access to that system. Not impossible, but certainly one more challenge to deal with. The developer license is an issue. We only have one, so do we need to buy another, or can we find an alternative?
Anyway, these are the angles to consider. I think I’ve made my choice… but I’ll talk more about that in the future =)
thanks for reading,
Mike