Insights · Buying & delivery
Guides to buying custom software and getting it delivered
A software project is easier to buy well when scope, acceptance criteria and handover are written down before work starts. These guides cover custom builds versus low-code and bought portals, comparing quotes, fixed-price terms, questions to ask a firm, scoping an AI pilot, security testing, publishing company apps and handover.
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Guides are drafted with AI assistance; facts checked against any sources a guide cites. General guidance, not advice for your situation; verify before relying on them.
Guides
11 guides on buying & delivery.
IT strategy · Web apps
Custom internal web app vs. low-code (Power Apps and similar): when each fits
How IT leaders can decide between a low-code platform such as Microsoft Power Apps and a custom internal web app: what each is good at, and what to check before committing, including per-user licensing, where the data lives, who maintains it, integration limits and the way out.
8 min read
Custom software · Document approvals
Replacing shared-drive document approvals with a simple workflow app
How an IT leader at a mid-sized company can replace a shared-drive and email approval process for procedures, forms, specifications and policies: the problems worth solving, checking the tools you already own first, when a simple custom workflow app fits, documents as records with a status and a current revision, approval rules by document type, sign-in and audit trail, reminders, what to do with the files already on the drive, and a first release small enough to finish.
9 min read
Web applications · Portals
Customer or dealer portal: build vs. buy, and what to scope first
How IT leaders at mid-sized companies can choose between a packaged portal product, the portal feature of a system they already own and a custom build, then scope a first release around the few jobs external users need most, with sign-in, data boundaries, integration and support planned in.
10 min read
Mobile · Internal apps
A mobile app for your staff: PWA, native or cross-platform, personal phones and distribution
How to plan a mobile app for employees at a mid-sized company: choosing between a progressive web app, native iOS and Android and React Native; company-owned devices vs. personal phones, MDM and app protection; sign-in and data on the device; and private vs. app store distribution.
8 min read
Mobile · App stores
Publishing a customer-facing company app on the App Store and Google Play: accounts, review and ownership
What IT leaders at a mid-sized company need to settle before a customer-facing app goes into the App Store and Google Play: developer accounts enrolled in the company's name with a D-U-N-S number, roles instead of shared passwords, signing keys the company controls, privacy disclosures and account deletion, the review guidelines that trip up company apps, staged releases, and the yearly platform updates someone has to own.
11 min read
AI integration · Pilots
Scoping a first AI pilot with acceptance criteria you can measure
How IT and engineering leaders can scope a first AI pilot that ends in a clear decision: choosing the process, measuring a baseline, writing acceptance criteria before building, assembling an evaluation set, running shadow mode and making the go or no-go call.
7 min read
Cloud & security · Testing
Security testing a custom web or mobile app before launch: automated checks, a pen test and evidence to keep
How IT leaders at a mid-sized company can get a custom web or mobile app through security review before launch: a short list of what the app protects and who could misuse it, automated checks in the deployment pipeline for dependencies, secrets, code and cloud settings, tests that prove each role sees only its own data, an independent penetration test scoped and timed so there is room to fix findings, and the evidence your security team and customers will ask for.
9 min read
Process · Budgeting
What drives the cost of custom software, and how to compare quotes
How to budget for a custom software project before you have a number: the scope decisions that drive cost, the running costs to plan for, how to put quotes on a like-for-like footing, and the questions that explain why two quotes differ.
8 min read
Process · Buying software
How fixed-price software projects work, and how to scope one
What makes a fixed-price software project work: a written scope with clear boundaries, acceptance criteria, a change process and a real handover. Includes a scoping-call prep checklist and quote red flags.
6 min read
Process · Buying software
Questions to ask before hiring a software development firm
A vendor-neutral list of questions for IT leaders hiring a software development firm: code and cloud ownership, who does the work, fixed price vs time-and-materials, changes, security review, handover, proof you can inspect, NDAs and exit terms.
7 min read
Process · Ownership
What a proper software handover should include
What your team should receive when a software firm hands over a system: repositories, infrastructure as code, credentials, monitoring and alerts, runbooks, architecture docs, knowledge-transfer sessions and support options, with a checklist.
6 min read
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