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We build software that solves problems

σύνοδος

Synodos is Greek for travelling together: syn, with, and hodos, road.

For twenty years I saw business from above

In trade and working capital finance you see businesses through their numbers. The same problem kept showing up: good businesses slowed down by paperwork.

From up there you can see a problem, but you can’t fix it

Fixing it took a large team and a large budget. Then the way software gets made changed: someone who knows the work can now build the tool and run it.

So I came down to where the work is done

Strategy is the view from 40,000 feet. The work happens on the ground. I’ve always been most useful moving between the two.

What I bring down with me:

  • I’m as comfortable in a boardroom as in the spreadsheet behind the decision.
  • I turn a strategy into a plan a team can actually run.
  • I stay steady when a market turns, and honest about what’s worth doing.
  • I keep partners on the same road, and fix problems before they become fights.

  1. Listen

    Sit down with the person who does the job by hand, every week, and let them tell it their way. The care records tool started at my own kitchen table, while I was helping to care for my dad.

  2. Hear

    The problem you’re told is rarely the whole problem. A late invoice is often a customer in trouble, not a forgetful one.

  3. Think

    Decide what matters, what to leave out, and what not to promise.

  4. Build

    Build small, specific software that keeps a person in charge. Then put the kettle back on and listen again.

So far, the road has led to four problems

  • Customers who pay late

    A credit tool that spots the customers putting your cash at risk, and chases them before the invoice goes unpaid.

  • Chasing clients for paperwork

    Bookkeeping software that chases clients for what’s missing and leaves only the exceptions for a person.

  • Marketing stuck in review

    Software that drafts posts in the firm’s own voice, sends each one to two people to approve, and keeps a record of who signed off.

  • Care records that don’t travel

    A care record the family owns, ready for whoever is caring that day.

The rest of the road is better travelled together

For partners, investors and owners who know one of these problems first-hand: I’d be glad to hear from you.

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Steve ScottFounder and director