Dispatches From The Virtual Software Team Trenches

This sections outlines some of the experiences gained and the lessons learned while establishing and operating virtual software development and maintenance teams by an Irish based company, Software Future Technologies (a pseudonym) who were partnered with a large US financial organisation Stock Exchange Trading Inc. (a pseudonym). Stock Exchange Trading Inc. had been in operation for more than forty years and was a market leader in their field. As a result of their sustained success and expanding market share they had an on going requirement for the development and maintenance of bespoke financial software. Until this juncture all development and maintenance activities had successfully been undertaken in-house. Having reviewed their operation they identified that their in-house IT strategy had become too expensive and could not be sustained. The solution was to find an efficient alternative, which would leverage the experience of their existing IT department while maintaining the level of quality and support required at a cost effective price.