3 tactical tips for working with development shops to build your minimal viable product
Product discovery is done. Based on the findings from "customer interviews", you’re ready to start building your minimal viable product (MVP). But how do you go about building? Do you start hiring employees or some contractors? Perhaps you’ve considered working with a software development shops or agency? How do you think about this?
No single right answer, but there is a continuum
That continuum depends on your answers to three fundamental questions.
What is the available budget?
What is the time available or is there a deadline?
What type of people, skills, and resources are needed? What is the scope of your MVP?
In short, start your process by using the “triple constraints” in project management to define your constraints.
Defining your budget, time, and scope.
What are your finances, regardless of the cost of the development? How serious is this constraint? Perhaps it isn’t a constraint at all?
Most individuals don’t define their budget/cost until after they’ve received bids from contractors, consultants, or services. If that’s the case, congratulations, you probably don’t have a very hard financial constraint.
Next, define the time constraint. Is there a hard-commitment to have the MVP available for launch by XYZ date? How hard of a commitment is this date? Is it created artificially or does it serve an real-purpose such as a contractual agreement or pitch competition?
Lastly, how well have you defined the value proposition of your MVP? This doesn’t mean wireframes or test cases. Instead, it means clear MVP goals and success metrics. Perhaps, you’ve even a draft press release.
Seek missionaries over mercenaries.
As you start talking to potential employees, contractors, or software development agencies, now’s the time to evaluate the reason why someone is joining your cause. While everyone needs money to live, you need to find missionaries to support your MVP. That’s because MVP are like newborns. They require nurture, care, guidance, teaching, and love to succeed, not just sustenance.
How do you spot if you’re working with missionaries? Ask yourself, does the person/organization…
care about the why, more than the what, how, when, etc. They seek to understand your product’s why. Do they add to your product’s why? Have they read about your product discovery processes?
care about the product value. When you talk about the MVP’s value and pain points it solves, do they understand in the same way your customers understand. Does it elicit a “wow” or “ah-ha”?
care about your customers. While it’s hard to care about your customer the way you care, their actions should demonstrate they do care. Are they internalize the customer personas? Have they suggested a change to the customer’s favor, even if it was detrimental to yours?
Cooperative co-development
Until this moment, you’ve been focused on product discovery rather than on figuring out the “how” or feasibility question. But figuring out the feasibility question requires cooperative, co-development. This isn’t the time for someone to just say “Yes sir” toall your requests.
This means:
Working together at the same time/locations. It’s hard to be cooperating, when everyone is working sequentially. But to cooperate, you have to be communicating together, frequently and repeatedly. And if you can’t be co-located, it’s even more important to use technology (video, headphones with microphones, sharing doc) to work together.
Do tasks together, even if it can be divided. It’s natural to want to divide by assigning tasks to the person who’s most efficient at it. But that doesn’t benefit cooperation and co-development. Pick 2 - 3 tasks in the software development process and do them together. Great examples including sprint retrospectives, personal celebrations, and manual testing. Mixing both some fun/celebratory events with some details, mundane tasks demonstrates cooperation in action.
Share risks and rewards. Most employment, including employment arrangements, don’t share rewards and risks evenly. While it cannot be possible to be equal in risks and rewards, be equitable. This works also as a test to determine if you’ve found missionaries to work with you.
Examples of shared risk/rewards.Additional financial payout when MVP success metrics via cash, warrants, or shares
Optionality to deepen contractual relationship written into the contract
Flexible triggers to end relationship early, with minimum/no lock-in
Candid conversations and feedback. While it’s impossible to be transparent about every topic, candidness is incredibly important. This means neither party is trying to “please” the other by spending energy to avoid conflict/friction. Disagreements should be discussed openly, with respect.