Nguyen Manh Thang
Chief Executive Officer, AgileTech Vietnam
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When buyers evaluate technology agencies, they are often trying to answer a question that goes beyond whether a team can write code: can they trust this agency with important product decisions? ITProfiles spoke with technology agency leaders about what buyers notice before and during those crucial early conversations. The broader findings are covered in “Agencies Are Losing Deals in the First 10 Minutes: What Buyers Decide Before You Even Pitch.” Among the perspectives is that of Nguyen Manh Thang, CEO of AgileTech Vietnam, whose approach centers on technical judgment, commercial restraint, and knowing when not to build.
Buyers Are Looking for Judgment, Not Just Execution
For Thang, buyers already know an agency can develop software. What they really want to establish is whether the team can think beyond a task list.
“They are trying to determine whether we are an active product engineering partner or just another passive order-taker.”
That distinction becomes visible in the questions an agency asks. Buyers listen for whether the team understands user workflows, scalability, integrations, and the business logic behind the product.
They are also assessing the risk of handing over architectural decisions.
As Thang Nguyen explains, “In those first few minutes, they are calculating the operational risk of trusting us with their product architecture.”
That is why he believes an agency can be eliminated quickly when “The agency doesn't seem to understand the actual problem.”
The Signal That Builds Trust: Knowing What Not to Build
Thang’s strongest trust signal is surprisingly simple: tell the client when a complex feature may not be worth building.
“The strongest signal is when the agency actively advises the client not to build a certain complex feature right away.”
He gives a specific example of what that conversation can sound like:
“We can build this custom module, but using a ready-made service or simpler workflow will save you 2 months of development and 40% of your budget.”
For Thang, that kind of recommendation communicates something difficult to fake. The agency is prioritizing the client’s outcome rather than maximizing development hours.
“Demonstrating commercial restraint and prioritizing the client's timeline over maximizing billable hours creates immediate trust.”
This is where technical expertise becomes more than implementation capability. It becomes the ability to challenge an assumption, identify a simpler path, and explain the trade-off clearly.
Put Technical Judgment Into the First Conversation
Thang believes agencies should also rethink who leads their initial buyer conversations.
His advice is direct: “Stop letting non-technical sales representatives conduct first calls alone, and bring a solution architect into the meeting.”
But having a technical expert present is only part of the equation. The agency should already have done its homework.
According to Thang, teams should study “the buyer's product, industry regulations, and existing software stack before picking up the phone.”
That preparation changes the nature of the conversation. Instead of asking basic questions and promising to return with answers from engineering, the agency can discuss actual architectural and business challenges from the beginning.
When Expertise Becomes Visible
Thang points to a complex AI platform deal as an example.
During the first technical discussion, AgileTech Vietnam did not simply request the client's product requirements document. The team identified potential latency problems in the proposed data pipeline and presented two architectural fixes.
The client saw that the developers were prepared to take ownership rather than wait for instructions.
As Thang explains, “The client realized right away that we would actively protect their product from bad design choices.”
That recognition removed pricing friction and helped the agreement close within days.
For buyers comparing agencies that appear equally capable, Thang says the deciding factor is ultimately “Understanding of the business problem.”
And that may be the clearest lesson from his approach: the strongest technology partner is not necessarily the one that says yes to every feature. Sometimes, the most valuable answer an agency can give is a well-reasoned no.
Source: https://agiletech.vn/blog/why-the-best-agency-advice-is-sometimes-dont-build-it/ · (c) AgileTech Vietnam. Printed from agiletech.vn.
