Advanced Services

Meta-consulting, for developers

Kevin Frank & Associates is larger than our offices – we’re part of a community. After more than 20 years of FileMaker development and training and problem-solving, we’ve cultivated an extensive network of colleagues and talent. And as certified developers, we’re proud to be part of a community dedicated to helping each other – in a spirit of cooperation and mutual gain.

If you’re a filemaker developer that’s hit a wall, and found out about us through filemakerhacks.com or elsewhere, you’d be right in thinking we’re honored to consult for you when your project is particularly thorny or esoteric. Our extensive experience has taught us that outlier problems get solved faster when you make and help friends. What are you stuck on? We’d like to help.

Data analysis, reporting, and charting

Of the more important services offered by Kevin Frank & Associates, data analysis, reporting and charting stand out. Your database may hold thousands or even millions of data points, but your ability to strategically utilize all that information is based on how you design your access. We mean to address more than just dashboard design – this goes to the heart of the questions you’re asking about your data – and we’re very good at helping you ask and craft the right questions and strategies for best outcome.

Let us help you identify and achieve the sophisticated analysis you desire, using the most appropriate tools for the job. The results of our analysis can feed back directly into your operations, helping you manage your data more effectively and powerfully. Contact us.

Filemaker Go / Mobile

Kevin Frank & Associates offers custom Filemaker Go services and solutions to give you real-time (or offline) access to your remotely-hosted FileMaker databases. With our help, you’ll be able to access your data on the go – on both iPhone and iPad – and experience newfound freedom and flexibility. Whether we’re adapting your older filemaker system or starting from scratch, we look forward to helping you optimize your workflow and access.

Key features:

collect barcodes and capture signatures
create invoice and proposals on location
dispatch tickets to onsite technicians
take pictures and insert to your database
email pdf documents
view formatted reports away from the office
work off-line without internet connection, and upload when ready

Let us free you from your office – contact us today!

WebDirect

Kevin Frank & Associates is here to help you when you want to combine the power of a desktop application with the simplicity of your web browser to share and manage your data in our increasingly mobile world. Liberate yourself from the office!

Not familiar with WebDirect? Available in Filemaker Server 13, this breakthrough technology runs your custom solutions directly through your desktop or tablet’s browser, allowing you to extend your reach. Supported browsers include Safari, Chrome and Internet Explorer on the desktop, and Safari and Chrome on a mobile browser; both HTML5 and CSS3 compliant.

Interested? We’re here to help transform your Filemaker experience. Fill out our ‘inquires’ form so we can learn more about your needs.

Project Management

Deep communications are the essence of our project management style. We’re not merely selling a proposal and building a database – we build a relationship based on trust, transparency, and collaboration to achieve project success with the greatest possible value to you. We seek to understand your company’s needs at a much deeper level than just a features list. And we are dedicated to discussing your requirements, challenges, and our solutions candidly and thoroughly for the entire project cycle. Whether sorting wish lists, and determining possible scope-of-work in the beginning, or testing and evaluating an implemented solution much later in the development phase, we strive to keep you as informed as you want to be.

We see to ensure clarity and good decision making throughout — ours is an ’iterative’ process, ensuring you have a sense of the project all along the way; our focus at every stage of your project is to reduce uncertainty and “dis-ambiguate” so we can make the best possible decisions and achieve the most advantageous outcomes for you.

We have more than 20 years experience in Filemaker development and look forward to making your solution clear, value-laden, and powerful. Ready to begin the conversation?

Training and Support

Training needs come in all sizes and flavors, whether you’re trying to squeeze the most from a legacy system, or preparing your company for a transformative solution. We’ve been certified developers since the distinction was first made, and we cover them all. No matter the size of your first project with us, you’ll discover a level of expertise and on-going commitment that we hope will make us your go-to solution providers every time. Whether you’re looking for extended support packages, temporary support and one-off solutions, or in-house mentoring – let Kevin Frank be your first and last name in Filemaker support. Schedule your free consultation.

Why Our Clients Choose Us

Convenient

No two businesses or organizations are the same, and your business occupies a unique niche, though your software may not reflect that to the degree you wish. When we build a custom solution for you, many of our clients understand the learning curve will be far gentler with our results, since it was built from the ground up to address your particular needs. There will be no distracting “features” you didn’t ask for. No five steps when only two were needed. Your convenience means time, aggravation, and money saved.

Tell us how we can best serve YOUR needs.

Competitive

The cost of custom software might seem prohibitive, but in many cases, there is great savings and opportunities for efficiency to be had. In nearly all specialized industries, the cost of commercial software is comparable to or exceeds the cost of custom development. Whether you’re developing software for Taxi companies, school districts, wineries, retail systems, or product manufacturers, we can competitively streamline your systems and improve your business model.

But first you need to call.

Expansive

“If you’re a hammer, all the world’s a nail” – but if you’re Kevin Frank and Associates, there’s a vast toolset we can bring to bear when solving your problems. Discovery is both the first and an on-going part of our design process – and we commonly identify both achievable short-term objectives, as well as larger goals and opportunities for your organization, in a continuous process.All companies are evolving, as are the technologies available. Our clients depend on future flexibility, and we strive to create solutions that will grow with your industry and individual needs.

Let us help you manage your future growth – by design!

Empowering

You require one or more features that aren’t available from commercial software packages. Sound familiar? Don’t be limited by off-the-shelf. Our clients are one-of-a-kind, and are trying to custom serve their clients in a unique manner as well. You occupy a unique value proposition, and are best qualified to know how to serve YOUR clients, often DESPITE your software! If your database tools aren’t supporting you as they should, step up and let’s change it. Let us know how we can make the difference for you!

We’d like to help.

Specific

Our clients range from knowing EXACTLY what they want, to more vaguely sensing the insufficiency of their software. Fortunately, our design process involves deep discovery of your needs and best possible outcomes – beyond just enumerating a few added features. You can rely on us to help you determine their needs – and divide them according to their immediacy. In many cases, our discovery allows transformative change in the organizations we serve. We’re skilled at assessing and developing projects of all sizes for just the right fit.

Initial consultation is free.

Reputable

You’ve seen or heard about our work, or know of our reputation as one of the top development firms in the area. Perhaps you know us from the filemakerhacks.com or other online forum and discussion communities, or have seen us speaking at the developer’s conferences in Cupertino. We’ve been ‘certified developers’ as long as the distinction has been made, and doing this for more than 20 years and are here to stay, and are excited about the changes and opportunities the next 20 years will bring. Let’s begin making a difference in the future of your organization.