Template

Software Development SOW Template

Bonsai Freemium Beginner

A ready made statement of work template with sections for deliverables, milestones, timelines, and acceptance. Use it as a skeleton so you do not forget to define what done means and when the money moves. Adapt the milestone and acceptance sections to match a small first slice and a final holdback.

  • A written SOW forces you to define deliverables and milestones.
  • Include acceptance criteria and payment triggers explicitly.
  • Reuse a template so nothing important is left unsaid.

The question it answers

  1. What's a fair way to structure a milestone-based contract with a dev agency?

Read with it

  1. Michael Seibel's crisp framing of holding the problem and customer tightly while holding the solution loosely, the mindset that... Y Combinator Startup Library Video · ~15 min How to Plan an MVP Michael Seibel
  2. Basecamp's battle-tested, opinionated system for shipping meaningful work in fixed cycles without endless backlogs, a primary... Basecamp / 37signals Book · free online book Shape Up: Stop Running in Circles and Ship Work that Matters Ryan Singer
  3. Michael Seibel, who ran YC, makes the blunt case for shipping something almost embarrassingly simple and learning from real... Y Combinator Startup Library Video · ~10 min video How to Build an MVP Michael Seibel
  4. Once you have described a feature, acceptance criteria is how you say what done means so you and the developer agree before... Atlassian Article · 9 min read What is Acceptance Criteria? Definition, Examples, and Tips Atlassian
  5. A short, plain chapter that makes the case for keeping money and dates fixed while trimming features. It is the cleanest... 37signals Essay Getting Real: Fix Time and Budget, Flex Scope 37signals
  6. Spolsky shows why big vague tasks hide the truth and why breaking work into small pieces surfaces real progress. That is the... Joel on Software Essay Painless Software Schedules Joel Spolsky
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