Buying software2 min readBy Ry
Nine questions to ask before hiring someone to build your internal tools
How to hire a developer, agency or freelancer for automation and internal software without ending up with something nobody can maintain.
Most bad software projects do not fail because the developer could not code. They fail because the wrong thing was built, nobody could maintain it afterwards, or the business became dependent on one person it could not reach. You can screen for all three before you sign.
About the problem
1. “What would you not build?”
A good builder will tell you when an off-the-shelf tool, a setting you already pay for, or a process change beats custom software. If every answer is “we can build that,” be careful.
2. “How will you find out what is actually slow?”
Listen for talking to the people who do the work, watching the process and measuring time, not just taking a feature list from whoever is paying.
3. “What is the smallest version that would be useful?”
Useful software early, in front of real users, catches wrong assumptions while they are cheap to fix.
About ownership
4. “Who owns the code, the hosting and the accounts?”
The answer should be you: the repository, the cloud accounts, the domain and the API keys, in your name, from day one. Avoid arrangements where the software lives on the developer’s own infrastructure.
5. “What stack will you use, and why?”
Prefer widely used, well-documented technology that another developer could pick up. An unusual stack is a hiring problem you inherit.
6. “What will I have at handover?”
Expect documentation, a walkthrough, a list of every external service and its cost, and a way to deploy changes that does not depend on one person’s laptop.
About working together
7. “How will I know how it is going?”
A regular written update (done, next, blocked) is worth more than a weekly meeting. Ask to see an example.
8. “How do you price changes to the scope?”
Scope will change. You want changes quoted before they are done, not discovered on the invoice.
9. “What happens when it breaks after launch?”
Ask about monitoring, response times and whether support is optional. You should be able to walk away and still run the software.
These are the same questions I would want a client to ask me. The answers are on the services page and in the FAQ.
Written by Ry, Evenbuilt · Los Angeles
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