Software Sweatshop

I may have lost a client, but I think I just made a friend... I just had lunch with the owner of a company we were trying to do business with. They sent out an RFI to a bunch of outsourcing companies. He was looking for a smaller shop that could grow with him give him the attention he needed. We spent two weeks looking over the RFI and crafting a very detailed response; and then we waited. We didn't end up getting the deal, but it looks like the beginning of a good relationship (he paid for my lunch today as a way of thanking us for responding to the RFI). We discussed our business, past failures, and the excitement of being a young entrepreneur a new father over fish tacos and guacamole. He just got back from a trip to India visiting some potential offshore partners and wrote a fun set of posts India is Winning...  and Delhi Belly (hilarious)

We didn't lose the deal because of anything we could control. We have a solid technical background and an aggressive, problem-solving attitude, but we lost the deal to an Indian competitor that was obviously much bigger and more experienced than us. Our size, the political situation in Pakistan, and the fact that we haven't completed our ISO and CMM certifications influenced the client's decision. But that's ok, it comes with being an entrepreneur, it's just a part of the growth process. The encouraging thing is that it seems like we're on the right track in terms of attitude, technical skills, and vision. This wasn't our first deal and it won't be our last. In fact, now that I've met with the client, I have the opportunity to learn from him and gain advice on how to grow my own firm. It's funny how things turn out... this may lead

This weekend, two of our guys and my partner, Nayyar, just got done putting in 35 hours of emergency development work for a client with a big demo on Monday. The client made some last minute changes and was freaking out because we hadn't fully implemented them... a real nail biter. After we took care of that situation, I was talking to Nayyar about our lost deal on Skype and he said "one more thing that is more important then anything else.. They may be agile, CMM whatever but r they committed and dependable? That he will only find out after working with them"  With offshore software development, the company can be ISO-this and CMMI-that, but at the end of the day, it's all about how committed they are. A client of our was working with an outsourcing company that was a Microsoft Gold Certified partner. He was burned so bad, he wanted to give up on outsourcing.

When Nayyar and I spoke later he told me that we're going to raise our rates higher than I thought. I have to admit, I was scared "How can I sell this rate?" Other companies are charging much less than this. No one's gonna buy from us, we're going to go out of business" But then I thought about what Nayyar said and I remembered that we're looking for good clients that demand quality and are willing to pay for it. It reminded me that we're selling high value, not low cost.

At first I was uncomfortable with the rate hike, but coming from a guy who spent 35 hours of his weekend helping a client in need, I'd say he's absolutely right.