Custom software development company in Quebec City

Start with the process you need to support. An existing product can fit standard work such as accounting, payroll or email. Custom software is worth considering when your process sets your business apart or several products leave gaps that staff have to bridge themselves. We will tell you if an existing product fits better.

A hybrid is another option. You keep a proven product for work it already handles, such as accounting, and build the missing workflow around it. The connection through its API takes work to specify, but you retain the established product and gain flexibility in the part that needs to match your process.

You also have a choice about how much to replace. Starting with a single workflow limits the change your staff have to absorb and lets you assess it before extending the system. Replacing everything at once is more suitable when the existing system is failing or being withdrawn. Browser-based software gives your team access on desktops, tablets and phones without installing it on each device.

If your software produces invoices for sales in Quebec, the calculation needs to handle QST alongside GST, with QST calculated on the amount before GST. We set up the invoice calculation so the taxes are shown against the correct base amount.

Sales to other places need a separate rule. The GST or HST rate depends on the place of supply, which can be where goods are delivered. We set up tax settings that use the relevant place of supply when calculating a sale.

Bring the material your team uses to do the work.

• Gather your spreadsheets, forms and sample records, with notes on the columns staff rely on.
• List the users and what each person must see, do or be prevented from seeing.
• Identify the records, their statuses and the links between them.
• Write down the questions your reports must answer, such as which jobs are overdue.
• Arrange admin access, or a contact who has it, for tools that need connecting.
• Name a decision maker and a staff member who will test and share feedback.

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  Copying a spreadsheet screen for screen

  Examine the process first, then build the simplest system that supports the corrected workflow.

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  Putting every request into the first version

  Choose the biggest bottleneck first and use what you learn to shape the next phase.

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  Leaving permissions until late

  Define roles while screens are being designed to avoid rework and exposing data to the wrong people.

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  Leaving the project without an internal owner

  Give someone responsibility for answering process questions and keeping testing moving.