About Us
FTL Software is a talented group of software developers with a diverse range of skills. We’ve been cranking out code since 1993 and have continued to grow and hone our skills as we’ve grown and adapted to the everchanging needs of business. Read more below about our team members and company history.
Our Team
Ross Richey
Ross wrote his first line of BASIC on an Apple IIe in 1985. Since then, he’s had a passion for exploring what computers could do. His path has taken many twists and turns, but he never lost that central drive.
These days his quest is to understand how to make software on a practical level. How do you make it easy for customers and employees to use? How do you make sure you’re building something that works without unnecessary complications? And most of all, how do you control your software budget?
Ross and his team have a lot of experience. They’ll make sure they understand your business before a single line of code is written, and they will walk you through learning to plan and manage your software project so that it meets the needs of your business.
Joshua Brown
Joshua has been writing code since his childhood. He took first place in a statewide computer programming contest in 1984–at 14 years old. His first consulting clients, starting in 1989, were local manufacturers. In 1995, he started experimenting with web based CRM and ERP systems.
Over the past 25 years, Joshua has worked on custom software development in executive, production, and technical sales roles. His specialty is employee and consumer facing multi user web applications. Over the years, he has designed, coded, and deployed 11 production custom business software applications solo, 7 as team leader and contributing developer, and 3 as a contributing architect/developer. He has also designed and coded about 2 dozen prototype applications and projects for various clients.
Joshua was a pioneer in using PERL and Linux to host web-based applications. He decided that programmers needed to have a full understanding of IT and the relationship between the server and the client in networked apps. The software industry now refers to these concepts as “devops” and “full stack development”. Joshua is still a serious coder, and is now also a seasoned, practical software architect with 26 years of experience designing web based apps.
Will Conant
Lucky enough to have his own computer at the age of 10 and inspired by the Nintendo games of the time, Will spent a decade designing and programming computer games after school and every weekend. In 1999, he was offered a summer internship at Adobe where he worked on networked applications and discovered an interest in business automation.
Since then, Will has been solving business problems with web based software in various roles including tech lead, chief architect, and engineering manager. He has a proven track record of bringing both a solid architectural foundation and an effective team dynamic to software projects of any size.
Our History
1993
Joshua is hired to design and code the very first CRM and fulfillment system for a now massive credit repair law firm. He recruits Will and Ross to help with the project.
1999
Joshua launches the startup Prospect Planet, a web CRM with email delivery. A year later the company has nearly 25,000 paying users and Joshua hires Will to help with development.
2003
Ross rejoins the team and the three expand the business into a general web CRM and checkout solutions for online businesses.
2012
Will decides the team needs a serious IT upgrade and starts the transition to javascript powered web-apps that work like Facebook and Gmail.
2015
After selling off the previous business the three found FTL Strategies with a focus on rapid business application development. Over the course of the next two years all of their custom development is brought together as a flexible custom development platform.
2021
After using the platform to develop six full software suites and dozens of smaller applications, FTL releases version 2.0 of their custom development platform. Code-named MODEST, it’s anything but.
Reach Out to Get Started
Whether you know exactly what you need or only have one part of the puzzle figured out, let’s start the conversation. Start by filling out the form here and give us an idea of what your needs are. We will reach out to you and set up a free consultation.
