Outsourcing Software Development When You Don’t Have A Technical Team or Background (Lunch session)
Join our panel of industry experts to discuss outsourcing your software development needs. Hear from panelists who have been on both sides of the business – those hiring external developers, and also software engineers who have been hired to develop products for startups. We’ll discuss the pros and cons of different methods of finding and contracting developers, and how to avoid pitfalls you’re likely to encounter along the way. Hear stories from the trenches, and bring your questions about software development.
Lunch will be provided,
Moderated by Dan Piltch, Partner at Broad Sound Partners
Panelists:
- Drew Barrett, Founder/CEO of Park Thrive
- Waldron Faulkner, Technical Advisor and repeat CTO
- Hugh Redford, Founder at FourbyTwo
Bios
Drew Barrett is currently the founder / CEO of Park Thrive, which provides SaaS tools to turn underused parking spaces into thriving revenue streams. Prior to Park Thrive, Drew was the VP of Global Sales at FareHarbor, where he grew the sales team to 150+ account executives and was a key player in the company’s $250M acquisition by Booking.com. His track record focuses on opening new markets, effectively scaling teams, and the development of customer driven products. Drew holds a BS in Civil Engineering and prior to a career in sales, was a bridge inspector, including working on the renovation of the Longfellow Bridge in Boston. Outside of his startup, he spends time running, bowhunting, ski touring, often with his 1.5 year old in tow.
In recent years Waldron Faulker served as CTO for Cobalt PE, a private equity data analytics service which was acquired by FactSet in 2021. Since then he served as CTO for Protobrand, a market research firm specializing in AI and behavioral science. Currently, he’s returned to advise friends at WheresTheBus LLC, which provides GPS tracking and analysis for fleets of school buses across the USA and in Canada. Waldron specializes in building collaborative, supportive dev teams that build great products. Waldron has a bachelor’s degree from Berklee College of Music in Boston, and an MBA from Columbia University. He lives in the Portland, Maine area with his amazing family and various four-legged overlords.
Hugh Redford has spent his career helping companies through growth. He’s sold, consulted, founded, managed, acquired, and a whole bunch of other verbs along the way. Most recently he’s founded FourbyTwo, an iOS studio building software for older adults.
Dan has launched over 100 digital products over his thirty year career. He co-founded an international software design and development firm where he led software development initiatives for enterprise companies and startups. He had previously founded a Maine-based marine technology company integrating satellite communications, electronic navigation and weather forecasting technologies. Earlier in his career, he led an emerging technology team Accenture (then Andersen Consulting) in New York, working with C-suite executives from several global banks and insurers.
Dan graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, with a degree in Computer Science and Engineering. He now lives with his family in Freeport, Maine where he is a member of several non-profit and government boards, and serves as the Chair of the Town Council.