Discover Anthroware, a human-centered software development company transforming businesses with innovative, user-friendly solutions that make humans happy.
Table of Contents:
- Who Is Anthroware and Why Should You Care?!
- Overcoming Common Problems of Software Development Companies
- Project Management Methodology: Anthroware's Strategy
- Human-Centered Software Design: Anthroware's Philosophy
- Anthroware: Looking to the Future of Software Development
Who Is Anthroware and Why Should You Care?!
If you've come here to learn more about Anthroware because you're determining which custom software development or consulting partner might be right for designing and developing a core product for your organization, you've come to the right place 😀.
In a different light, if you're looking to just learn more about what other options are out there when it comes to the approach that different software companies take to develop digital products, you've also come to the right place!
Overview of Anthroware's Software Development Services
Anthroware is a human-centered software development company known for delivering bespoke digital solutions to businesses of all sizes. We consider ourselves a wisdom firm because we've "been there, and done that" in our 10 years of experience in the software development industry. Our team of experienced developers, UI/UX researchers and designers, and product strategists come together to transform your company's ideas into digital realities.
Our founders Jon Jones and Jason Stewart started Anthroware because they got tired of hearing things like, "Our end-users will take what we give them" from previous development companies they had worked with. They've always had a keen focus on client's needs and industry trends to ensure the digital products they deliver, make the end-users (the humans actually using the products) feel truly delighted with the quality of life improvements these products give them.
Understanding What Makes Anthroware's Software Unique
If you're comparing Anthroware to other development firms in the vast industry of software, Anthroware stands out due to its unique, human-centered approach. We value our relationships with clients, ensuring that each project reflects a deep understanding of their needs and expectations. This doesn't mean we simply study our partner's stakeholders to understand their business model and objectives (along with which specs or workflow they're looking to build) for a new core product. We believe in going beyond simple software development by ensuring we understand the day-to-day, feelings, wants, and needs of the end-users that will actually be using the software.
Another flaw in the software development industry that Jon and Jason identified before founding Anthroware was that the size of the teams deployed on a given project was far too large for what the project actually needed (in most cases). Even many of the most popular and largest software/technology firms (that sometimes cost tens of millions of dollars to employ) have very high software project failure rates (often above 50%). Jon and Jason decided that Anthroware would leverage small teams that can be more agile and have better cross-functional communication to complete start projects from start to finish to ensure a very low project failure rate.
Anthroware's Approach to Software Development
At Anthroware, our approach to software development is centered on creating high-quality, custom solutions that solve real business problems. To achieve this, we follow a rigorous process that combines ideation, development, and meticulous testing to ensure each software solution is robust and reliable. Beyond the technical aspects, our development process is collaborative and transparent, fostering a strong partnership with clients and ensuring they are engaged at every step. This approach not only delivers exceptional software but also enriches the client experience, ensuring their vision is realized and their business objectives met.
Our process at Anthroware begins by deploying consultants and researchers to interview and survey users to truly understand how to nail product-market fit. We want to make sure we have the best scope possible to set up our design team and development team for success. Our full-cycle software development process is designed intentionally to deliver digital products that make people truly happy and delighted to use them.
Overcoming Common Problems of Software Development Companies
The article we linked above explains some of the other common problems that you'll see with software development firms that have higher-than-average project failure rates. In this section, we focus on the ones that resonate the best with Anthroware and the problems we have intentionally developed our internal processes and development process around to try and avoid.
Identifying Typical Issues with Software Development Companies
Software development companies often struggle with common challenges such as communication breakdowns, lack of transparency, and subpar project management that make handoff from design to development a nightmare. These issues often lead to delays in delivery, cost overruns, and poor-quality or completely failed products. Additionally, a common complaint is that the solutions provided are not truly customized to the needs of the client, leading to a mismatch between business requirements and software functionalities.
When this mismatch occurs, the result is that the users end up not actually using the digital product. They are just stuck with it because management forces it upon them, and they ultimately create new workarounds for their day-to-day workflow. In the end, the software ends up in the trashcan and all of the money spent on design and development has essentially evaporated. If the end-users aren't using the product, the desired outcomes or business objectives will not be met. The business model will fail.
How We Address Software Development Problems
Our human-centric approach at Anthroware ensures clear communication and transparency at all stages of the project, mitigating the risks of delays and misunderstandings that can cause problems during the handoff from one department to the next. We employ a mix of agile and waterfall project management methodologies (depending on the project and scope), ensuring flexibility with a unique framework and rapid response to any changes or issues that may arise.
Most importantly, our software solutions are truly bespoke, crafted with a deep understanding of our client’s business needs, ensuring the end product aligns perfectly with their requirements and truly delights the user. Using small design and engineering teams and conducting research directly on the end-users of the software we're going to build, we believe "small teams win big" and really help understand product-market fit.
How We Turn Software Challenges into Opportunities
At Anthroware, we see challenges as opportunities for innovation and improvement. By staying abreast of industry trends and technological advancements, we turn potential problems into solutions that benefit our clients. Recently, for example, we trained our engineers to leverage Large Language Models (LLM) to not only assist with our custom software development but also to be able to embed this Artificial Intelligence technology into the software apps we build. This proactive approach not only ensures the resolution of potential challenges but also drives our continued growth as a leading app development company.
Because we leverage smaller design and engineering teams, we have increased agility to learn. Our learnings can be quickly communicated not only within each team but cross-functionally. The importance of rapid communication cannot be understated. As Margo Kosnik states in his article, 75% of software projects fail, and proper communication is one of the main reasons for this:
Another critical matter to address is ensuring that all members of the project are well-informed about the objectives and have clearly delineated roles and responsibilities. This pertains to the structuring of tasks, which directly impacts effective communication. It is crucial to efficiently manage this aspect to prevent any misunderstandings or potential conflicts of interest from arising throughout the project. Kosnik, M. (2022, February 14). Why do software projects fail? most common reasons. The Codest. https://thecodest.co/blog/why-do-software-projects-fail-most-common-reasons/
Project Management Methodology: Anthroware's Strategy
Anthroware employs a flexible approach to software development, leveraging both Agile and Waterfall methodologies based on a project's unique requirements. With Agile, we foster continuous collaboration and improvement, while the Waterfall approach ensures structured planning and execution for projects with fixed requirements.
Anthroware's PM Approach to Software Development
For projects requiring rapid iterations and flexibility, our team usually employs Agile, which allows for continuous improvement and adaptability. On the other hand, for projects with clearly defined requirements and where changes are unlikely to occur during the development process, we use the Waterfall methodology. Our focus is to choose the most strategic approach that best aligns with the project's objectives and the client's needs, ensuring efficient and effective software development.
Sometimes, the software we're building requires a little bit of both! We might have an app that has very strict requirements for certain features within one segment of an app, but another segment that is flexible. For example, let's say an Enterprise Resource Planning app (ERP) has functionality like payroll that must not be changed or manipulated due to taxing/legal reasons. However, another section of the software that adapts to the company's HR policies (that might change over time) do not need restricted requirements.
Benefits of Agile Methodology in Software Projects
Agile methodology plays a crucial role in many of our projects at Anthroware, facilitating continuous collaboration and communication among teams, stakeholders, and the data we collect from researching the users. This approach allows us to incorporate changes swiftly and effectively during the development process, enhancing the product's final quality.
When we leverage the Agile methodology, it helps us to deliver products and large digital transformation projects that specifically meet our client's dynamic needs. Regular feedback cycles ensure we're on the right track and that the product aligns with the client's and users' expectations, leading to increased client satisfaction and end products that are actually leveraged by the end users and don't just sit on a shelf or force workarounds.
Benefits of Waterfall Methodology in Software Projects
On the flip side, Anthroware recognizes the importance and benefits of the Waterfall methodology for certain projects. This traditional approach to software development, with its linear and sequential design process, allows for comprehensive documentation at every stage. With clearly defined stages and deliverables, the Waterfall methodology provides a structured framework that can be particularly beneficial for large-scale projects with fixed requirements.
Being that we've done a lot of work in compliant-heavy industries such as Finance and Healthcare, this methodology has definitely come in handy when we have to develop products that meet certain legal requirements or specific security standards. It allows us to accurately estimate the timeline and budget, reducing the risk of unexpected changes or costs, and ensuring we deliver an accurate, quality product on time and within budget.
Human-Centered Software Design: Anthroware's Philosophy
Anthroware champions the importance of human-centered (also known as user-centered) design in software development, implementing it meticulously to create intuitive and engaging software solutions that meet user needs and business goals.
Importance of User-Centered Design in Software Development
The impact of user-centered design in software development cannot be understated. By placing the user at the center of the research and design process, developers are better able to create interfaces and functionalities that are intuitive, engaging, and highly usable. The end result is a software solution that truly meets the needs of the user and contributes to a more efficient and satisfying experience.
"Software that behaves exactly the way you expect it to, exactly when you expect it." -Jon Jones, Anthroware CEO
Our user-centered design process also has huge business implications. When software is designed with the user in mind, the odds of successful adoption increase. It helps reduce the cost of customer acquisition, boosts customer retention rates, and enhances the overall brand perception. At Anthroware, we call this Bottom-Up Value Creation.
How Anthroware Incorporates User-Centered Design
At Anthroware, we believe in continually improving how we leverage the power of user-centered design. Our design process starts with understanding the needs and constraints of the end-users by getting very personal with them. Our consultants and researchers engage with users directly through interviews, surveys, and user testing, gathering insights that shape the design decisions we make.
Once we have a clear understanding of the users' needs, we create prototypes, iterate on them based on user feedback, and then fine-tune the final design. We often use what's labeled as Double-Diamond thinking until we arrive at what we deem will absolutely nail the product-market fit. This iterative process ensures that our software solutions are not only functional but also provide a seamless user experience. Our end goal is always to create software that users love to use and that solves real-world problems effectively.
5 Ways to Improve Your Research & Design Processes
- Prioritize User Research:
Before embarking on any design process, it's essential to have a clear understanding of your user's needs, preferences, and pain points. Use methods like interviews, surveys, and usability tests to gather this data. - Foster a Culture of Collaboration:
Design should not be an isolated process. Involve all relevant stakeholders, including product managers, developers, and most importantly, end-users. This fosters a more holistic design approach that considers all aspects of the user experience. - Embrace Iteration:
The first design is rarely the perfect one. Be prepared to create multiple iterations of your design based on user feedback and testing. - Invest in Design Tools:
The right design tools can streamline your processes, foster collaboration, and allow you to create high-quality design mockups and prototypes. - Continual Learning:
Design trends and best practices are always evolving. Ensure your design team is continually learning and staying up-to-date with the latest design thinking.
By adopting these practices, companies can improve their internal user-centered design processes, leading to better-designed products with improved workflows that delight humans, and create a stronger intimate connection with their users.
Anthroware: Looking to the Future of Software Development
In this emerging fast-paced world of AI, Anthroware stands tall, consistently delivering robust, reliable, and intuitive software solutions that strike a chord with end-users. This tenacity and commitment to human-centered research & design, adaptability in project management methodologies, and a relentless drive to turn challenges into opportunities set Anthroware apart from the crowd.
Moving forward, Anthroware's vision is clear: to continue innovating, learning, and adapting, staying on top of new technology while always maintaining a core focus on the people who use the software we build. We plan to keep refining our methodologies, techniques, and processes, unceasingly seeking ways to improve and grow. Our teams will continue leveraging both agile and waterfall approaches, depending on each project's unique needs and circumstances, to guarantee the optimal balance between flexibility and structured planning.
Anthroware, in comparison to other software partners you might find, always has a keen eye on future trends, particularly the ongoing advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning. We are committed to leveraging these technologies to enhance their software solutions, not merely by incorporating AI capabilities, but by embedding these technologies directly into the apps we build. We believe that this proactive approach toward the future of software development will allow us to deliver even more powerful and efficient solutions to our clients.
Our company's vision for the future, however, extends beyond merely adopting new technologies. We will remain steadfast in our commitment to user-centered design, as we firmly believe this is the cornerstone to building software that resonates with delighted users and truly meets their needs. Anthroware will continue its ongoing endeavor to understand its users better, creating designs that are not only functional and aesthetically pleasing but are also deeply rooted in the users' experiences, feelings, and needs.
As we look to the future of software development, it is clear that companies like Anthroware, with our unwavering dedication to user-centric design and development, and our clear vision for the future, will lead the way. We are not just building software; we are creating experiences that enhance the quality of life and bring joy to humans. In a rapidly evolving digital landscape, Anthroware stands as a beacon of what it means to be a truly human-centered software development company.
