Circle Of Success Methodology

Over the last several years in developing software solutions, we have tried many different software methodologies. Some methodologies through our experience seem to be very good at a particular phase in the work flow, but not as efficient in other areas. We have taken the best ideas that have worked for our customers and for us and developed the Circle Of Success Methodology.

If you Google software methodology, you will find the definition to state:
A software development methodology or system development methodology is a framework used to structure, plan, and control the process of developing an information system.

By following a software methodology, simply means you are not developing custom solutions by the seat of your pants. But that does not mean by following a proven methodology guarantees success. You still must know what you are doing and what type of information to gather in order to utilize the methodology. This is where our expertise becomes fully recognized and appreciated. Knowing what type of data to look for and how to obtain it is the foundation in developing a successful project.

Define Project Scope

Before we can create your custom software solution, we must first define the core nature of the project.
Essentially we want to:

Development

 

The development phase is where we work with you and/or your team to come up with the best cost-effective solution for your company. It’s a team effort to make sure we are all on the same page and there are no hidden surprises.

 

Once a solution has been agreed upon, it is validated and authenticated against the Define Project Scope for Quality Assurance and Risk Factor purposes before we move forward.

 

By nature, software development is a highly iterative and dynamic process. It is very common for parts of an application to go through the Circle of Success several times until it is right. For example, we may discover an Accounts Payable module does not work as intended. This would cause us to re-clarify the requirements (Define Project Scope) stage and revisit the design before making the required coding changes.

 

It is in the Development phase where we start having weekly reviews and progress Reports with you and/or your team either face-to-face or remotely depending on your location. The Development Phase is the longest phase in the Circle Of Success and can expect the following:

Stabilization

                   

In the Stabilization phase the newly created software technology undergoes strenuous  testing(Quality Assurance) and assessments. Here we try to answer three main questions:

1. Does it meet the business and technical demands that guided its design and development ?
   


2. Does the technology work as expected ?
   


3. Can it be implemented with the same characteristics over time ?

Every custom software application has it’s target audience. For example, the audience of an engineering application is much different than that of a financial one. The Stability Phase in the Circle Of Success must determine if the software will be acceptable to it’s end user’s, target audience, purchaser’s and stockholders.
Stability attempts to make these assessments.                       

 

A study conducted by the National Institute Of Standards and Technology(NIST)  reports that software bugs and improper software design costs the U.S. economy nearly $60 Billion annually.

 

Deliver Product To Customer

                           

 

In the final stage of the Circle Of Success, is the delivery of the product.  This is an important milestone. It is in this stage that we turn over the custom software to you, your users and in some cases your IT Staff. Our main objective in this stage is to have a smooth transition to production mode.

 

Once the transition has been a successful one, that does not mean the job ends there. We provide training and support for 45 days after project signoff.