Jonathan Stark joins as a guest discuss the risks of hourly billing and the parallels between risk in a rewrite and in hourly billing. He explains how hourly billing puts all the risk on the client and leads to stressful relationships and arguments about hours and costs. Jonathan emphasizes the importance of trust and how it can be built through delivering on promises and becoming an authority in your field. He also provides strategies for pushing back against rewrites and making informed decisions based on cost and quality. In this conversation, Jonathan and Jeffrey discuss the importance of taking risks and understanding the business side of software development. They emphasize the need for developers to consider the financial risks their clients are taking on and the value they provide. They also highlight the benefits of speaking in terms of dollars and business outcomes rather than technical details. The conversation touches on the challenges of system rewrites and the importance of considering the cheap and easy options before diving into complex projects. They conclude by discussing the concept of value pricing and providing the best solution for clients.

Takeaways

- Hourly billing puts all the risk on the client, leading to stressful relationships and arguments about hours and costs.

- Trust is crucial in client relationships and can be built by delivering on promises and becoming an authority in your field.

- Pushing back against rewrites can be done by presenting multiple solutions and discussing the trade-offs between cost and quality.

- Software estimates are important for budgeting and decision-making, and developers should be encouraged to provide estimates for different solutions.

- Developers should understand the financial risks their clients are taking on and the value they provide.

- Speaking in terms of dollars and business outcomes is more valuable than focusing on technical details.

- Consider the cheap and easy options before diving into complex projects.

- Value pricing involves providing the best solution for clients.

Jonathan's website: https://jonathanstark.com/.

Books mentioned (affiliate links):

How to Measure Anything

Thinking in Bets

Superstruct Manifesto