Forward-Deployed Engineering
An engineer inside your operation.Working software in weeks, not months.
We don't ask you for a requirements document. We work alongside your team, in your hours and your tools, understand the problem first-hand and build on your real data until the software does what your business needs.
- 01UnderstandDoneWorked alongside the people who do the work, found the spreadsheet nobody admits to, agreed on the first problem worth solving.
- 02BuildLiveFirst version connected to your systems, on your real data.
- 03UseNextYour team tries it. We watch what breaks and what nobody touches.
- 04AdjustNextFix what real use showed, then back to Build.
02 · Sound familiar?
If you've tried custom software development before, this will sound familiar.
- They quoted before they understood the problem.
- The demo worked; production didn't.
- They delivered and disappeared.
- Your team still runs on the spreadsheet.
It's not bad luck.It's the model.
03 · Why it happens
The traditional model separates the people who build from the people who use.
An agency or dev shop quotes against a document, builds far from your operation and stops when the contract ends, not when the problem is solved. Every layer between your team and the engineer is a place where the software drifts from what you needed. Add time zones and handoffs, and the drift compounds.
- Your teamquote
- Saleshandoff
- Spec documenthandoff
- Project managertime zone
- Remote engineer
04 · What we do differently
An engineer who works from inside your company.
We call it Forward-Deployed Engineering (FDE): a senior Dodderware engineer joins your operation, sees the real process and builds the first version where it will be used.
Not a consultant who leaves a report, not a vendor waiting for a ticket. They own whether the system works in your operation, and that's how they're measured.
| Traditional agency | Staff augmentation | Dodderware FDE | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who understands the problem | A sales team and a spec document | You do. They wait for tickets. | The engineer, first-hand, inside your operation |
| Where it gets built | In their office, far from your users | In your backlog, one ticket at a time | Where it will be used, on your real data |
| When it's done | When the contract ends | When the hours run out | When your team uses it every day |
- Your hours
- Your tools
- Your team rituals
It's the model Palantir, OpenAI and Anthropic use to put their systems into production inside companies. We bring it to growing businesses and operators.
05 · How we work
How we work with you, week by week.
We call it the FDE-SDLC: a software development life cycle run by a forward-deployed engineer from inside your operation, not from a distance.
| Phase | What the engineer does | What you walk away with |
|---|---|---|
| 01Understandinside your operation | Works alongside the people who do the work and sees the real process, including the spreadsheet nobody admits to. Together we agree on the first problem worth solving. | A scoped problem, a one-sentence success criterion and a proposal. Not a requirements document. |
| 02LoopBuildon your real data | Builds a first version connected to your systems and your data, reusing the DWS Suite where it fits. | Something you can open and use, even if it's rough, instead of a status deck. |
| 03LoopUseyour team tries it | Puts it in real users' hands and watches what breaks, what's missing and what nobody touches. | Evidence from real use instead of opinions. |
| 04LoopAdjustwhat real use showed | Fixes and extends in short cycles, then goes back to Build as many times as needed. | A product that changes with what your team learns, without reopening a contract for each change. |
| 05LiveRunyour team owns it | Leaves it stable, documented and in your team's hands, with ongoing support. | Software running in production and a team that knows how to operate it. |
The cycle ends when your team uses the software every day, not when we hand over a file.
06 · Design partner
Your operation shapes the product. You use it first.
We work with you as a design partner: you bring the real problem and your team's time; we bring the engineer and our product base (the DWS Suite) so we never start from zero. You use what we build before anyone else, with a bounded scope and better terms than those who come later.
The dealDesign-partner terms
You bring
- The real problemThe one your operation actually lives with.
- Your team's timeThe people who do the work, available to the engineer.
We bring
- The engineerInside your operation, building on your real data.
- The DWS SuiteOur product base, so we never start from zero.
What you gain
- First useYou use what we build before anyone else.
- Bounded scopeA defined scope, so the work stays on your problem.
- Better termsLower pricing than clients who arrive later, and a say in what ships first.
The questions we get
Fair questions, straight answers.
- 01So I'm the experiment?
- No. You're the first user of something built to solve your problem, and you see it working from the early weeks.
- 02Will you sell what you build for me to my competitor?
- What's specific to your operation is yours. What we generalize into the DWS Suite are patterns, and that benefits you: the product improves with every client. If you need full rights to the code instead, we agree on that up front.
- 03Isn't this just expensive consulting?
- A consultant bills hours and leaves a report. An FDE is measured by the system left running.
07 · Proof
Software born inside our clients' operations.
Three operations, what the engineer did inside each one, and the products that came out of that work.
field-log · client-casesProblem → inside the operation → result
| Client | The problem | What the engineer did inside | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 · LaunchingSetthaWeb platform · Business management · Tours app | Build their tours platform from scratch. | We built the app and the website. Travelers explore tours, watch real videos and book; agencies manage bookings, a calendar, guide permissions and priority chats from one panel. Publishing on Google Play and the App Store is in progress. | Public launch in October 2026. Usage metrics come after launch. |
| 02 · In productionCamila Perez SportE-commerce · Systems integration | Some garments were still offered online after they had already sold. | Integrated Shopify with their ERP to sync online and in-store sales and deduct the matching inventory. | The integration has been running in production for two years. |
| 03 · PartnerJEM TechnologiesCustom solutions · Automation | They needed a website to show their products. | We built their website. | JEM became a partner: the partnership has brought us other clients, and we install solutions together. |
The DWS Suite
Products that came out of the field.
- Born inside telecom operators
DWS Support
One console to find, diagnose and fix every CPE.
Explore DWS Support - Born inside telecom operators
DWS Operations
From alarm to answer, in one console.
Explore DWS Operations - Born inside businesses
DWS Business
Your whole business in one system.
Explore DWS Business
08 · How to start
Start with a conversation, not a quote.
In 45 minutes, an engineer (not a salesperson) listens to your problem and tells you honestly whether this model fits. If it does, we start with a two-week Discovery Sprint inside your operation. It ends with a proposal for the first cycle: clear scope, success criteria and price.
After the call
01Two weeks
Discovery Sprint
A scoped problem, a one-sentence success criterion and a proposal with scope and price.
In § 05Phase 1 · Understand
02Monthly
Embedded FDE team
An engineer inside your operation, building, testing with your team and adjusting until it runs.
In § 05Phases 2–5 · Build to Run
No price before we understand the problem. It comes in the proposal, at the end of the Discovery Sprint.