You know 10 years ago you had to be this big company to succeed, especially in the software business. Nowadays with the Internet people can find you and you don't need to shell out big money for advertising campaigns and hire 100 developers just to make your product succeed.
Actually we think that a small team with some key people can make it all happen. Some of the advantages of a small team are:
- Less overhead. You don't need a big fancy shiny office, a location that fits 4 to 6 people will do.
- Less structure. Think about how easy it is to come up with a decision without hours of meetings.
- Less intrusions. A big team also means a lot of disturbances going on in the office. Ask any developer inside a big company. I swear they want to work in a room all by themselves …
- Less infrastructure. Obviously a smaller team does not require so many special arrangements. Your CFO will thank you.
All of the above leads you to one single thing; that is your product will get done sooner then later, you can act faster to market then big teams (think about how long it takes Microsoft to make its Mac Office 2004 available for the Mac 2 years after Apple made the Intel switch) and all in all your reaction time for your customers will outdo any big team.
