Business Patterns for Software Developers

by Kelly, Allan

• ISBN13: 9781119999249
• ISBN10: 1119999243
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-02-27
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

A must-have recipe book for building software Perhaps you can relate to this all-too common scenario: you know all about your software product but could do with some help in understanding the strategic side of things. If so, this book is the one-stop resource youll need in order to become a successful software entrepreneur. Patterns expert Allan Kelly provides you with the step-by-step route that needs to be followed in order to understand business strategy and operations. Each chapter starts out with a solid introduction and theoretical overview, which is then further illustrated with patterns and case studies, all aimed at helping you move into the management of software. Teaches you the ropes of business strategy and operations for software Places special emphasis on the patterns for those who make software for sale Addresses patterns philosophy, patterns strategies, business strategy patterns, and software company lifecycle Shares practical tools, tips, and examples of best practices so you can see how each specific pattern fits in and needs to be implemented. Business Patterns for Software Development divulges strategies, operations, and structures for building successful software.

Author Biography

Allan Kelly has developed for and managed at virtually every type of software company in the industry. A London-based consultant who works with companies to improve the way they develop software, Kelly specializes in the management of software development, business strategy alignment, product management and business analysis using Agile approaches.

Table of Contents

Contents	p. ix
Foreword	p. xiii
Acknowledgements	p. xvii
Introduction	p. 1
The Whole	p. 2
The Journey to Business Patterns	p. 6
Audience	p. 8
A Story Book	p. 9
Limits of the Book	p. 10
Book Structure and How to Read	p. 10
Sequence Diagrams	p. 11
Comments Please	p. 12
Structure of the Software Industry	p. 13
Types of Companies	p. 13
Outsource and Offshore	p. 22
Vendors and the Software Stack	p. 24
The ISV / ESP Divide	p. 27
Closing Words	p. 33
Software Company Lifecycle	p. 35
Early Days	p. 36
Growing	p. 37
Post Start-up Middle Age	p. 42
Investor Exit	p. 43
Death of a Software Company	p. 45
Death Throes	p. 46
Walking Dead	p. 48
Closing Words	p. 49
Strategy	p. 51
What is Strategy?	p. 52
Strategy, not Plans	p. 54
Strategy as a Pattern	p. 56
Generative Patterns	p. 56
Identifying Strategy	p. 58
Strategy Parallels Software Design	p. 62
Strategy for Software Creators	p. 65
Closing Words	p. 68
Funding the Start	p. 71
Bootstrapping	p. 72
Friends and Family	p. 73
Banks	p. 73
Angels	p. 74
Venture Capital	p. 74
Private Equity	p. 75
Investor Exit	p. 76
Funding Timing	p. 77
Love-hate with Venture Capital	p. 79
Closing Words	p. 81
What to Build - Patterns about Products	p. 83
Customisation, Platforms, Frameworks and Product Lines	p. 87
Poacher Turned Gamekeeper	p. 91
Customer Co-Created Product	p. 95
Simpler Product	p. 100
Same Customers, Different Product	p. 105
Core Product Only	p. 110
Customisable Product	p. 115
Simple Product Variations	p. 121
Marketing	p. 125
The Missing Link	p. 128
Whole Product	p. 131
Homogenous Customers	p. 136
Segmented Customers	p. 141
Customer Understanding	p. 146
Expeditionary Marketing	p. 153
Distribution Model	p. 157
Direct Sales	p. 159
Distributors	p. 163
Choosing a Distribution Model	p. 165
Different Product, Different Channel	p. 166
Patterns of Direct Distribution	p. 169
Branded Shops	p. 172
Internet Store	p. 177
Named Sales People	p. 182
Account Management	p. 187
Sales/Technical Double Act	p. 192
Patterns of Indirect Distribution	p. 197
Local Guide	p. 200
Value Added Reseller	p. 203
White Label	p. 208
Independent Retailer	p. 213
Wholesaler	p. 217
Services	p. 221
Crossover	p. 222
The Missing Pattern: Product from Services	p. 225
Tailored Products - 'Specials'	p. 229
Customise or Co-create?	p. 233
When Services Distract from Product	p. 234
Closing Words	p. 238
Patterns about Services	p. 239
Products with Services	p. 242
Initial Help	p. 248
Lifetime Services for Products	p. 252
Professional Services Team	p. 258
Services Feedback	p. 262
Personal Service	p. 265
Self-Service	p. 268
Corporate Certified Experts	p. 272
Packaged Services	p. 276
Patterns about Organising Product Companies	p. 281
Capabilities	p. 283
Structure	p. 286
Services Before Product	p. 288
Single Product Company	p. 292
Product Portfolio	p. 296
Product Roadmap	p. 302
Complementor, Not Competitor	p. 309
Innovative Products	p. 313
Separate Imaginative Teams	p. 318
About Patterns	p. 323
What Is a Pattern?	p. 324
Pattern Languages	p. 332
Pattern Sequences	p. 333
Improvising with Patterns	p. 335
Anti-patterns	p. 336
How to Read a Pattern	p. 336
How to Write a Pattern	p. 338
Closing Words	p. 342
Patterns Philosophy	p. 343
Patterns and their Implicit Context	p. 343
The Quality Without a Name: Wholeness	p. 345
Events or Things	p. 347
Sustainability: Living and Dead Patterns	p. 347
Classifying Patterns: Good, Bad, Dead and Alive	p. 348
Worse is Better: Path Dependency?	p. 351
Knowledge Management and Patterns	p. 353
Storytelling and Patterns	p. 355
Closing Words	p. 358
Future Work - Patterns Arising	p. 361
References	p. 365
Index	p. 375
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