Cobol Cowboys, LLC is an IT company that specializes in software development, integration, system-level testing, and technical support services. It serves clients globally.
Cobol Cowboys was founded by Bill Hinshaw and Eileen Hinshaw, who currently serve as CEO and COO, respectively.
SME Business Review contacted Mr. Hinshaw for an interview, and he offered valuable insights into the evolution of the software industry, shared his experiences as a software pioneer, and discussed the future directions of Cobol Cowboys. Here’s what he had to say.
Interview Excerpts
Could you elaborate on how Cobol Cowboys was founded and discuss the initial vision behind its establishment?
Cobol Cowboys was founded in 2013 in the North Texas Hill Country. The initial vision was based on offering consulting engagements for people who played a pivotal role in shaping the IT industry from its inception around 1959-60. This vision was influenced by my experience of being called back to work when the migration to newer software was delayed over several years. Eileen, my wife and co-founder, named the company “Cobol Cowboys” after the 2000 movie “Space Cowboys” in which experienced astronauts were brought back to fix a modern-day problem in outer space. The name “Cobol Cowboys” has become a magnet for companies needing our help, consultants of all ages seeking to join our stable, and media outlets requesting interviews.
Our business plan from day one was to employ experienced independent consultants, working remotely with clients, and with a written promise not to micro-manage them. Simply put, if we need to micro-manage them, they are not the professionals we wish to place on engagements to represent Cobol Cowboys. This plan has proven successful over the years for both our clients and consultants.
As a leading software consulting company, what are Cobol Cowboys' key focus areas?
We provide experienced consultants to support our clients in many industries. With IT skills and industry knowledge, our consultants quickly offer support when a client’s key personnel are no longer available or when there is a need to supplement the client’s staff. To further expedite the initial learning process, we offer our Discovery Handbook, a critical component of what we call “finding the light switch in a dark room.” Our key focus areas include typical IT functions such as system and program design, program development and maintenance, project management, and team leadership. Clients can also request our consultants to provide additional software functions and related software services during engagements.
How has Cobol Cowboys evolved from its initial focus on assisting its clients with COBOL deployments to now supporting their entire software landscape?
Our ever-growing stable of over 650 independent consultants, with their diverse IT skills and industry experience, enables us to support clients' software landscapes, whether for legacy systems or modern software. We are truly fortunate that our consultants allow us to offer tailored software solutions for our clients' ever-expanding business environments.
How does Cobol Cowboys ensure its deliverables and solutions address both legacy systems and modern software demands across various industries?
We ensure our deliverables and solutions address both legacy systems and modern software demands by assigning our most qualified software consultants to client engagements. These consultants are selected based on their proven skills and specific industry knowledge. They are adept at quickly understanding client needs, engaging effectively, and delivering solutions that meet the client’s current and future software requirements.
Could you provide an example of a recent success story where Cobol Cowboys’ services significantly impacted a client’s software operations or overall business performance?
We have two success stories involving companies, one onshore and the other offshore, that reached out to us urgently to resolve Y2K problems. Both companies, which were not yet clients, faced critical issues on the first day of the new year when they were unable to process any work. We resolved the Y2K issues swiftly, within a day for both companies.
Additionally, two other companies, also non-clients, contacted us when their key IT person unexpectedly passed away. We promptly identified consultants from our stable who were able to provide remote assistance by “finding the light switch” and addressing their needs. In both instances, the software documentation was either incomplete, outdated, or nonexistent.
After resolving these issues, all these companies signed engagement agreements and became our clients, seeking our ongoing software support services.
Will Cobol Cowboys be launching any new services that we should be aware of?
We are not launching any new services at this time, as we remain fully committed to addressing the needs of our clients. In addition to providing software support services, we offer software modernization and migration to the Cloud. However, when clients request new services, we ensure that solutions are delivered within acceptable timeframes. If necessary, we will temporarily assign additional consultants to help implement these solutions based on the client's specific requirements.
How do you see Cobol Cowboys evolving its services to address future challenges and seize emerging opportunities in the software industry?
We will evolve our software consulting services to address future challenges and seize emerging opportunities as they arise. Our ever-growing stable of qualified consultants is prepared to handle both today’s and tomorrow’s software requirements. We firmly believe that Cobol Cowboys is well-positioned to address future challenges as the software industry continues to evolve.
Do you have any final thoughts or comments before we conclude?
Cobol Cowboys has been fortunate to receive media attention over the years, which means we do not need to solicit clients or consultants—they come to us. At the same time, our business model for consultants is based on their becoming entrepreneurs, allowing them to take other engagements outside of Cobol Cowboys. Finally, we offer an opportunity for the people who helped start the IT software industry to continue working part-time or full-time.
Bill Hinshaw | Co-Founder & CEO
Bill Hinshaw is an experienced professional with over 60 years in the business software industry. As a pioneer, he has started successful software companies to develop, license, and maintain his software products. He has served as an expert witness on integrated software, an adviser for an AI company related to COBOL, and has testified before a State Senate on COVID-19 unemployment claims.
