Business Management Data Base

El_Jefe

I am currently designing and putting together a fairly complex and detailed data base that will greatly improve efficiency throughout my company. I unfortunatley do not have the knowlege to write the code for this software and am negotiating with a company that can.

My concern is that I put all this effort and knowledge into a product that, if it ends up being what I think it can be, will be an incredible asset to a lot of companies in the construction industry, especially competitors.

My questions are; Has anyone else gone through a process like this? If so, were there any licensing issues addressed (ie: Ownership of the final product). If you are using an out of the box product, what is it? Any other thoughts?

MOTB

To begin, I would be one of those competitors. But I feel you are focused on a long term issue that may not come to fruition if you do not get out of the gate. You can not negotiate when you do not have the knowledge. Based on experience in building four technology firms, rarely will version 1 of anything be the correct result. Version 2 and 3 usually are when you hit the nail on the head. Rarely do outsourcing companies provide the correct budget and time frame. Licensing issues should not be a concern. It is that simple when negotiating, and that is you own all title and copyright to anything developed for you. But since you will be undersold on the time and cost, perhaps you may want to create a separate legal entity and you give equity to the outsourcing group so they have incentive to eat the cost for the cost and time overruns? Your barking up the right tree when it comes to this topic. The biggest thing you have to consider is "Are you building a product for you, or are you attempting to build a product for the industry? It is a totally different development cycle if building a product for the industry. Brian

DavidNTX

I don't know what kind of database you are talking about but here is what I know.

If you pay the software developer to write the code for you then it is your product. I would sure make sure and get this in writing up front so somewhere down the road they dont claim any ownership as being part of their payment.

You should also get a secrecy agreement with this company that you do business with. A non disclosure agreement and be sure to put an amount of time in which they can not disclose the information, the courts like that rather than saying a person gave up a right for a lifetime. Two or 3 years should be sufficient.

As long as you aren't copying this from someone else and you have your paperwork all lined up, ownership should be yours.

__________________

pcplumber

MS Access can create very sophisticated applications with no knowledge of code.

I posted several free MS Access applications in the File Swap threads. These are the programs we use to run our business.

The most difficult part of developing software is getting the customer and developer on the same page to determine what the customer wants the software to do. I ask people this question and they cannot answer because they don't know what the possibilities are.

Exactly what do you want your application to do? Go through the applications I posted and tell me what you like, don't like, and what you would like to have the program do.

We humans tend to be fascinated with programs that have hundreds of whistles and bells we never use. I like to make my applications so they make running the business fast, simple, accurate, idiot-proof, error-free, and so I can teach a dummy to use the program within a few minutes. This saves you time, money, makes running the business fun, and saves you from huge penalties and fines from audits.

I looked at a canned dispatching software that sold for somewhere around $3,000. I think the program had a screen with 18 page tabs. You would need another $3,000 to learn to use the program and another $50,000 a year to have someone manage the program. You buy the program to make your business more efficient and you actually pay deerly for time you spend inputting useless information and managing a bulky program.

We also tend to like programs with many tasks integrated into a bulky program that needs hundreds of pages of instructions. I find this causes too many problems to discuss. I find record keeping is more accurate when programs are not integrated. For example, my account receivable program is totally seperate from all other programs. Like canned programs, I would never want my invoices to be integrated with my receivables. With an integrated program it is possible to make more errors. For example, a person could make an error when making an invoice and send it to the receivables when they do not want the invoice to go to the receivables. There are hundreds of other reasons.

__________________
"The glass is always half full"
FREE MANUAL AND SOFTWARE
http://www.contractortalk.com/f65/up...ps-free-72501/

El_Jefe

First, thanks to all that have responded. I read them all quickly and will need to re-read them when I have more time - lots of great ideas and information - thanks again.

MOTB - The product will be for my company, although I think that it will be something that other companies will be able to use as well. I want to see this industry improve and I think that technology is an area that has an incredible potential that is essentially untapped at this point in time. I also understand that the people whith great ideas are not always the ones that can capitalize on them, which is why I am picking all of your brains.

You are so right in regards to getting out of the gate. When I was around 16 years old I worked for an Old Timer (very smart and hard working) who said to me; "I don't know if its right, but at least we are doing something". I love that line. Bottom line is I need to get this thing rolling.

Touch back later after reading more.

Magic Hammer

Work with open source people to help write your program.

__________________
Skye Builders, inc.
Decks,Sunrooms,Windows and Siding
www.skyebuilders.com

MOTB

My suggestion would then be to develop for a generic customer, with you being the first customer. You should start to use, wipe out the database, then start to use all over again until you get it right. For example, upon starting up or logging into the system for the first time, the system should ask your company name, address, phone, etc., for you to type in as a variable. Then you should have a second company do it to ensure no conflicts. It is extremely hard to revisit the foundation of any technology once it evolves so try to think of an industry product that will first be in use by you. If not, the programmers would inadvertingly fix certain things into the code.

modterry

I develop every day on our system. I am always upgrading when I find something I want to add. Best thing to do is create a paper system the way you want it to work. Draw out diagrams , make up forms you would like to see. Make a list of things you want the software to do.

Then, step out of the way, ask your staff to design their forms the way they would like to see it work , you may find some real issues there and maybe some pleasant suprises.

Don't try to do it all at once. May be get your prospect system working, then the contact management, then the marketing, etc.

Write down what information is important to the operation of your business. I created our operating manuals first, job descriptions, then worked on our production flow and production systems. I wanted the delivery of our construction product to be the most important first.
Now I'm working on the Marketing systems this year.

Terry

MattCoops

What modterry is talking about is called Flow Charts. You should definitely get a book relating to flow charts in developing applications.

What you rather do here is test the software for usability using a pre-screened group. Have a questionare for them to fill out before and after they tested your software. You may come to grips with the realization of what you thought worked, some people didn't care for.


I suggest reading about information architecture and how it relates to software development. An idea is meaningless without research work and testing.

__________________
Matt with Cupan Custom Tile & Paint of Lowell, Massachusetts
Design and installation of ceramic tile and natural stone for floor, wall, and countertops
(978) 601-8774 | cupantile@gmail.com | view tile pictures and more

RayContracting

This clearly makes no sense at all. If your Invoicing system/ program is not integrated with your receivables then you are doing a minimum of double entry on every transaction. If you create an invoice for $1000.00, you then must Credit your Accounts Receivable the same $1000.00. If you make an error with an Invoice, you then have to go and correct that same error in your Accounts Receivables account. When the Customer Pays, you then have to mark the Invoice as paid AND Debit the Accounts Receivable the payment amount.

I cannot imagine any sane contractor doing this by choice, unless of course you are harvesting PCP Lumber.

peterkalliney

I tried to do my own database, I gave up close to the beginning because I realized just how much work I would have to do and the ROI was no where close to what I was looking for. Just my experience.

__________________
Siding Contractors in NJ | Window Company in NJ | Roofers in NJ

Mobuilder

Give SugarCRM a look, it's free (open source) and probably does most, if not more than what you're looking for.

__________________
Mobuilder.com - The Construction Materials Marketplace
-----
6 Signs the Construction Industry is on the Rebound