In This Section:
Who We Are | Who's Who at Oak Bay Softrends
 

How We Work

Did we mention that we're big on collaboration and customization? It bears repeating. We collaborate, then we customize. It's our modus operandi.

We approach our work with energy and enthusiasm. Not to mention a whole lot of talent. Oops, there's that lack of modesty again. The way we see it, we're not just building software solutions for our customers, we're building relationships with our customers. Successful relationships require effort, commitment, a sense of humor. And they all have to start somewhere.

The first time I saw your face
Do you want to work with us? Do we want to work with you? Do we have the skills, the ability to address your needs? Who's to say until we get together for the first time.

To help answer these questions, we'll have a preliminary meeting with you. These meetings generally run 1-2 hours. This is the sizing-up meeting - you're checking us out to see if we have what it takes, and we're checking you out to see if we can help you. Ideally this is a face-to-face meeting; however, it can be done by phone.

And the good news - for you anyway - is that we don't charge for this meeting. Talk about a perfect first date.

Design Standards survey
One of the ways we help you prepare for the custom software development process is by getting some feedback from you regarding your expectations; check out our survey.

You like me; you really, really like me
If we hit it off at this first meeting then we should - that's right - meet again. This time, the focus will be on needs analysis. We recommend a round-table discussion involving as many of your key people as possible - people involved with the systems and procedures you want to change.

Expect this to be a half-day meeting at least, possibly followed by some one-on-one interviews. Depending on the complexity of the project, the needs analysis stage will require anywhere from three to 25 hours of our time. And this will cost you - we'll bill you at our standard consultation rate.

The proposal
Once we've digested the needs analysis information and put our thinking caps on, we'll articulate our thoughts in a proposal that will outline how we will approach your customized software development, how long the work will take, what you can expect to pay, timelines, project primes and so on.

A consistent theme that you'll see reflected in this proposal is collaboration. We see you as a partner in the design and testing of the software. It's going to be your software, after all, so you should have a say in how it's put together.

Moving in together
So far, so good. We like each other. You were thrilled - hopefully - with our proposal. We know what to expect from each other. Now it's time to get to work.

We'll do some of this work in our own shop. We'll also spend a lot of time at your place, working hand-in-hand with your project primes - their input is essential to ensure the software we design actually meets your needs and expectations. It is often possible for us to design your software in modules or stages, allowing you to get hands on as early as possible.

Once the software is ready for more rigorous testing, we'll install it in your office so you can use test it in your real world. If necessary, we'll run it in parallel with whatever we're replacing - that allows the two systems to co-habit to ensure that everything performs as it should. Once the new system is ready to stand alone, we can help you migrate data from your old system.

Happily ever after
The new database is online in real time. Your old system is but a fading memory. You know who to call when you want to add to, or revise, your 'family' of software. Life is good.