[LOGO]
[ADDRESS]
[PHONE]
[CONTACT EMAIL]
[DATE]
###Summary:
I will always do my best to fulfill your needs and meet your goals, but sometimes it is best to have a few simple things written down so that we both know what is what, who should do what and what happens if stuff goes wrong. In this contract you won’t find complicated legal terms or large passages of unreadable text. I have no desire to trick you into signing something that you might later regret. I do want what’s best for the safety of both parties, now and in the future.
####In short:
You ([CLIENT COMPANY]) are hiring me (Scotty Nelson) to [PROJECT NAME OR DESCRIPTION] at the weekly rate of [WEEKLY RATE] per week. Of course it’s a little more complicated, but we’ll get to that.
###What do both parties agree to do?
As my customer, you have the power and ability to enter into this contract on behalf of your company or organization. You agree to provide me with everything that I need to complete my work including text, images and other information as and when I need it, and in the format that I ask for. You agree to review my work, provide feedback and sign-off approval in a timely manner. Deadlines work two ways and you will also be bound by any dates that we set together. You also agree to stick to the payment schedule set out at the end of this contract.
I have the experience and ability to perform the services you need from me and I will carry them out in a professional and timely manner. Along the way I will endeavor to meet all the deadlines set but I can’t be responsible for a missed launch date or a deadline if you have been late in supplying materials or have not approved or signed off my work on-time at any stage. On top of this I will also maintain the confidentiality of any information that you give me.
###How I work
####Schedule I consult 4 days per week, Monday through Thursday, roughly 9am-5pm PST. I leave Friday open for work on maintenance retainers, personal projects, and other miscellaneous tasks unrelated to your project. By making Friday a wildcard day, I am able to dedicate 100% of my attention to your project the rest of the work week.
####Communication All communications will be made during regular business hours (Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm PST, excluding holidays) and I will return any contact requests within one business day unless I notify you ahead of time that I will be out of the office.
Shit happens. If anything happens after hours and you need me to drop everything for any reason whatsoever and give my full attention to you, know that my time will be billed at [EMERGENCY RATE], and only if I am available.
I appreciate communication in a text-based medium, but understand that not all discussions are easily done this way. I’m happy to speak to you on the phone, over Skype/Google Hangout, or in person if you are in the Orange County area, keeping in mind that any decisions that are made will be written down and require your written approval.
####Project Management I practice an agile, iterative development process, which consists of three key practices: a digital kanban board, brief daily face to face communication (standups), and weekly retrospectives.
If you do not have a preferred project management tool, I will set you up with a free Trello account where you will be able to see the status of your project down to the specific task, so you will always be kept up to date. I’ll be relying on you to participate by answering my questions, stating your approval, requesting changes, and verifying completeness through this tool as well. I ask for a one business day turnaround time on responses so we can keep things moving along at a pace that will allow us to hit the milestones we decided on together. To keep the project organized and the management of it easier, I prefer not to communicate any of the information stated above over ordinary email.
I believe regular face time is a crucial part of agile product development. Here is how we’ll structure our regular face time:
At 10am on Monday morning of the first week, we will have a kickoff meeting where we will lay out a plan for the upcoming week in the project management tool.
Each additional week at the same time and day (10am on Monday morning), we will meet for a review and retrospective on the work that got done during the week, and to plan the upcoming week. We can do this meeting remotely via Skype or Google Hangouts, or in person at a location in Orange County.
If you are available, we will do a daily 10 minute remote checkin (via Skype or Google Hangouts) at 10am each morning that I am working on your project to discuss what I’ll be working on for the day as well as any needs or hangups preventing me from moving forward. I understand that not everyone is able to do this every day. When we can’t do a face to face standup, I will instead provide a summarized update through the project management tool, or via email.
If 10am is not a good time for you, we can arrange for another time that works best for you.
####Version Control Git allows me to keep track of all changes that happen in your application. This way, if a bug is introduced I can quickly find where it was added and roll back to the previous bug-free state while I fix things up! I require code be under version control so I can work on your application with your employees or other contractors without worrying that I may be undoing or overwriting each others changes.
####Testing I write tests before I write my code, which allows me to make sure that all required functionality is not only present, but works no matter how often I change things around. If your employees or other contractors will be working on the project along side me, I require that they also write tests for all code they produce to make sure we are all on the same page and not stepping on each others toes.
####Browser Compatibility I have agreed to test my code in IE9+ as well as the latest releases of Firefox, Safari, and Chrome. Additionally I test on mobile Safari and mobile Chrome (iOS devices, Android devices). If you need browsers other than those listed tested, please provide me with a list of the browsers and devices. Testing additional browsers requires more testing time as well as potentially needing to code for that specific browser. I code everything with progressive enhancement in mind. This means that modern browsers may show slight differences to older browsers (such as text and box shadows, rounded corners, etc) based on what a browser is able to render. Any changes will not affect the user experience.
###Legal stuff
Although I test extensively, I can’t guarantee that the functions contained in any application will always be error-free and so I can’t be liable to you or any third party for damages, including lost profits, lost savings or other incidental, consequential or special damages arising out of the operation of or inability to operate this application and any other web pages, even if you have advised me of the possibilities of such damages.
If any provision of this agreement shall be unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable from this agreement and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions.
Phew.
####Copyrights
You guarantee to me that any elements of text, graphics, photos, designs, trademarks, or other artwork that you provide me for inclusion in the application are either owned by your good selves, or that you have permission to use them.
When I receive your payment for the week’s work, copyright is automatically assigned as follows:
You own the graphics and other visual elements that I create for you for this project. I will give you a copy of all files and you should store them safely as I am not required to keep them or provide any native source files that I used in making them.
You also own text content, photographs and other data you provided, unless someone else owns them. You own the unique source code I produced for your project. I will be sure to notify you in writing of any pre-existing code I bring into the project.
I love to show off my work and share what I have learned with other people, so I also reserve the right to display and link to your project as part of my portfolio and to write about the project on web sites, in magazine articles and in books as well as speak about them publicly at conferences, with your approval. Of course I’m happy to keep this information to myself until your project goes live or 6 months from the handover date, whichever is sooner.
###Payments
I am sure you understand how important it is as a small business that you pay the invoices that I send you promptly. As I’m also sure you’ll want to stay friends, you agree to stick tightly to the following payment schedule.
####Payment Schedule
A pre-payment for the first week is required as a deposit before I begin work.
If you are not satisfied with the work I do in the first week, I will refund 100% of your payment, and cancel this contract. I will not refund any payments beyond the first payment.
After the first week, invoices will be sent once per week on Friday morning for the prior week’s work.
Any payments not received within 7 days will halt work until the payment is received. If payment is late twice during the project, I retain the right to ask for a pre-payment or to end the project, whichever is deemed more fitting for the situation.
If either party chooses to end the project, it must be done in writing. Please keep in mind that any deposit payments will be forfeited and any work that has been paid for up to that point will be turned over to you.
####Rate Increases
The rates included in this contract are good for 6 months from the date of signing. If our engagement continues beyond 6 months, any rates may be increased, but by no more than 10% of the previous rate.
###But where is all the horrible small print?
Just like a parking ticket, you cannot transfer this contract to anyone else without my permission. This contract stays in place and need not be renewed. If for some reason one part of this contract becomes invalid or unenforceable, the remaining parts of it remain in place.
Although the language is simple, the intentions are serious and this contract is a legal document under exclusive jurisdiction of California courts.
###The dotted line
Signed by Scotty Nelson
Signed by [DECISION MAKER] and on behalf of [CLIENT COMPANY]
####Dated [DATE]