Your company is Accu-Phi, a new but burgeoning player in the corporate accounting software space.

Accu-Phi started out with a software offering that launched with a widely popular freeware version which attracts advertising revenue. Later, the company produced a premium version for an annual fee, which offers enhanced features and support. Initially, marketing the software and running a sales and support call center was a big focus for the firm.

The latest evolution in the company is a plan to offer consulting and training to existing customers, which we will generally call “services.” So far, the company has instituted a pilot services offering in one of its territories. The intention of the pilot program is to assess the potential of making consulting and training a major part of the overall business plan, with a nationwide rollout. This strategy comes with a substantial increase in costs, taking the company from a relatively small development firm with centralized staff to a multi-city, full services offering.

Various research projects will help the company in the coming period. One of these is explained next.