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Valuable insights when working with outsourcing development teams
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When outsourcing your software development there are certain key indicators that you need to make sure you are constantly paying attention to in order to get the most from your outsource development. This is true right the way through the development process, and you should bear in mind that if you fail to take care at any stage of the process it can make your software development inefficient and ineffective.

Of course, if you are new to outsourcing your development, you may fall into one of several traps which will reduce the cost-effectiveness and quality of the development work done. Newbies to outsourcing development teams need a little bit of guidance to make sure that everything runs smoothly, and that you get the most from your software development.

Below we will share some pointers that you should pay attention to at different stages of the process:

Stage 1: Pre-sale and deal closing

You can tell an awful lot about a company even before the work starts, and by making several important observations you will be able to gauge how your development will turn out. At a very early stage, when negotiations are still ongoing and you are dealing with the sales manager, you should ask necessary questions of the development experts to ensure that you are getting the quality that you will be paying for.

In a nutshell, you should be able to learn a great deal about the company by asking the right questions and analysing the responses from their software experts. Everything should feel professional, and they should be able to prove that they can add value by bringing expertise and experience to your project. If they foresee any particular challenges, they should have the good sense to point them out to you and offer you solutions.

Here is a checklist of subjects you should consider during the pre-sale stage:

  • What questions are you asked by the opposing party? Do they offer any relevant solutions or share wisdom from their past projects and experience? You should pay close attention to their general behaviour and attitude towards you, and gauge whether they are positive, confident and motivated to solve problems.

  • It is now mandatory to hire a technical expert at the sales stage who will be able to analyse your request and offer the best solution, so make sure you make best use of this and prioritise your expert's opinion. For example, you can involve an analyst whose job it is to interview the client, collect details of the necessary requirements and draft a preliminary project concept that will serve as the basis for further assessment.

  • If you need to have an assessment, the way that it's prepared will tell you an awful lot too. Both the deadlines and the questions that you are asked, as well as the final result, are very important here. For example, you should consider how the assessment is presented. If the final cost of the work and the deadline are the only things you get from the developers, then you can rest assured that this is not a good sign - you need something much more thorough and well thought through. A spreadsheet with separated tasks is much more useful at this stage to help you to visualise the development journey. Quintessentially what you are really looking for is a full-scale presentation covering the terms of work, the risks, what's been estimated and what is impossible to predict yet, along with a project team introduction, outlining options for implementation, etc.

  • If you already have the TOR and simply need to assemble a team, this doesn't necessarily mean that the pre-sale stage is skipped. Here, too, it is important to ask the right questions. For example, you should always figure out what kind of specialists will be required, what tasks are to be fulfilled, whether there are important distinguishing features of the project - all this will affect your choice of candidates for the project.

The same applies when you sign the contract. Here are some considerations when you reach this crucial stage of the development process:

  • The conclusion of the contract process and the general speed of stage-to-stage movement indicate the level of bureaucracy in the company you're employing. Many long-standing large companies are so overgrown with regulations, standards and mandatory procedures that they may become cumbersome to work with. This may make it more difficult to negotiate with them, as they tend not to compromise, and will instead take an "all or nothing" approach. Always bear in mind that in today's world, flexibility and willingness to change go a long way.

  • You also need to consider rank and file employee empowerment and their freedom over decision-making. For example, can the manager you're working with decide on giving you a discount or does he need to get permission from multiple superiors?

  • And finally, the speed of response, the frequency, relevance and accuracy of questions, and whether the company takes the initiative, all show how valuable a client you are to the company. If you still have concerns and issues at this stage, it may be wise to walk away as the situation is unlikely to get any better.


Stage 2: Learning more about the company and getting acquainted with team members

After deciding to work with a particular software development company and signing the contract, you need to get to know team members to learn their skills, background and expertise so that you can make informed decisions when the project is due to begin.

With regards to the company as a whole you should pay close attention to its history and standing. This will include:

  • Where they come from, the techniques they use when they develop, how many permanent employees they have, their financial performance, their legal reliability, as well as their litigation history.

  • Which existing clients the company has, which industries its expertise is concentrated in, and of course you should look at past case studies of their work.

  • How team selection is organised. This should be a thorough process including interviews, CV checks, and looking at code samples.

Stage 3: After the start of work

After the work has begun, you should continuously be assessing and re-assessing performance in order to make sure that you are always getting the most from the development team and that they are not underperforming by cutting corners to save time.

Here are some things to consider during this stage:

  • Will you be allocated a dedicated account manager for discussing and resolving all issues?

  • What is the level of client service you receive? You should look for excellent standards of competence, politeness, responsiveness, willingness to reply at any time, openness in negotiations, and desire to do their best.

  • How is the project management? This includes planning, reports, expectation management, guidance and consulting. Make sure these are up to the standard you expect.

  • How will the time spent be calculated? You don't want to be overpaying for inefficient work.

  • Is the company able to deploy everything at their premises?

  • You should run a tight ship in terms of discipline, including standards of time logging, meetings, regular commitments, reports, demos and documentation.

  • You should question how quality in general is being ensured? How is information security being ensured? Are there robust testing procedures? Is everything running smoothly with automation?

  • What about the product vision? Does the team always have a clear vision of how the project will conclude?

  • How wide is the range of services you are paying for?

  • How is documentation being handled? Discussing the details verbally is not enough, everything must be documented so you can refer back in the future.

  • Does everyone in the team know clearly what you want and what you're trying to achieve? You should constantly be reiterating what your goals are (not just to write the code according to the TOR, but solving particular tasks in the overall framework of the project).

  • Do they care about the result or merely the working hours spent?

  • Can they deploy their work and then launch it into production successfully?

  • What about follow-up support or development? Will they take care of that to make sure that the project has longevity?

  • Will they make sure that you are left with the most important things in the grand scheme of your business, including expertise, code, documentation and ultimately satisfied users?

  • If they mess up or fail to meet your expectations, are the incidents reviewed and will they be held to account?

  • And finally, do they comply with the NDA?

Summary

To summarise the above considerations, there are certain key qualities that you should look for from an outsource development company every single time you start a new project. These are:

Openness throughout the project, so that you have full visibility, transparency and honesty around the project. You need to be able to hold productive and open conversations with each team member so that you know exactly how the project is progressing.

Professionalism in every task completed. You will be paying a significant amount of money for software development expertise, and you have the right to demand utmost professionalism from everyone who works on the project, and from the software company as a whole.

Flexibility in adapting to constantly shifting challenges and needs for the project. Things won't always go according to plan and so you need the right team helping you who are flexible in their approach and are adept at problem solving.

Care for the client so that you know that the company has your best interests at heart; first and foremost you should select a software company that cares about your business and the outcome of the project, rather than one who only cares about the paycheck.

The result of work is the long term, ultimate goal of any project and your software development company should always have this in their minds when they embark on the project. Pay attention throughout the process so that they fully understand your vision and your expectations.
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