Have you decided to develop a website or mobile application for your business or automate your tasks with the help of software? If yes you need to hire a software development company. For that, several options are available in the market. Choosing among the numerous available options can be a little bit overwhelming. You have to find a software company that understands your business requirements, opportunities in your business, challenges they will be facing when automating your business tasks, and the pace at which your business is growing so that the software can be tailored according to your business and many more things. It is a very challenging task for you to choose a software company to whom you will outsource your software development projects. Let us see the attributes that you should be looking for while choosing your software development company.
1. Relevant Experience
Choose a company that has relevant experience in your field. For instance, if you want to develop a website the company must have an experience in website development. Go through their portfolio, case studies, client testimonials, and online reviews to know them better. While doing this you will get to know if the company can handle your project. You will also get information about the number of projects completed by them that are similar to yours and their success rate. Outsourcing your software project is a very risky job. It involves a huge amount of your money as well as time. An experienced software company will be knowledgeable about the terminology of software development and they can draw on their past experiences to provide insights to help you fulfill your objectives.
2. Effective communication
The communication between you and the company you choose must be constant as well as effective. To make sure you and the development team are on the same page, you must discuss, share, and clarify different ideas during the development process. They must explain to you what and why various things need to be done. They must inform you about the pace at which your project work is going on, and at which stage it is. They must focus on developing great and effective communication channels so that you will be aware of the development rate of your project every time. Good communication skills guarantee that everyone clearly understands what is required from them and what they can expect from others.
3. Should know about the latest technologies and tools
First of all, you should be aware of the team that is working on your project. You should be able to directly communicate with them. When you know the team, try to find out if they are well-versed with the latest technologies, tools, and programming languages specific to your needs. Also, make sure that they use the latest tools and technologies while developing your project. Cloud computing, machine learning, and Artificial Intelligence are the future of software development services. These cutting-edge technologies will permit you to benefit from new opportunities as they arise.
4. Must understand what customized development is
They must understand what you need and why you need the specific system that you are seeking, what are your objectives, and then tailor software specific to your needs. The more questions they ask, the better. They must listen to you to have a clear idea of what you want to build. This will also help them to help you decide the functionalities specific to their business requirements and how they can utilize the software in a streamlined manner to best suit their needs. If they are coming up with the plan without knowing your requirements, you should move on to the next company.
5. Can provide support and maintenance services
The needs of users are constantly changing, therefore, software products must be able to meet these evolving demands. This requires constant maintenance and updates in the software. The company you outsource your project must not only complete it but should also provide support and maintenance services. It should be included in the original contract. You must also know the time duration during which the development team will handle these services. Working out on all these details before you commit to using any one company will be the best course of action for you as well as the hired company.
6. Company culture
The working environment of a company determines its success. The company you choose to partner with must match your values and business perspective. A strong and similar culture binds your teams together and makes them more effective as a group. You should have an insight into how a company is organized, what roles different team members hold, and how team members work together.
You can find out about the company’s culture and values by reading its customer reviews and blogs. You can directly ask about their culture by reaching out to them. To better understand their working culture and get a feel of what it would be like to work there, you can speak to some of their current or former clients.
7. Efficiency in Planning & Delivering the HOW
You must know the company’s development process, and the plan they follow to reach your objectives. The company must plan the development of your project architecture, design, coding, analysis, testing sprint plans, and deployment, and most importantly you will need to understand your role in all of it. A development process in place will improve efficiency and facilitate the team in tackling challenges that pop up along the way. Ask them what their planning and overall development process strategy is.
8. Security measures
The software company you choose must handle your data and sensitive information with care. They must take proper measures to keep your information safe. You must know the measures that are in place to make sure your idea, product, solutions, and confidential materials are not handled inappropriately. The development team must have appropriate security practices in place to secure the project during its development. They must inform you about the security level that needs to be adopted in the development of the project.
9. Who can say “no”
This can seem like a red flag, but it’s a good thing. When a software development company can say “no”, they probably know what they are doing. Most businesses will want “yes men”, but excellent software isn’t created that way. It’s not to say that they should negative everything you request. It’s because an outstanding software development company should understand your tech needs more than anyone. They are there to give you the best advice and guidance. After all, you are hiring them for their expertise.
10. Cost of project
You must clearly state your project objectives and timeframe requirements. These two things will determine the cost of your project. You should neither go for a cheap solution nor a too-expensive one. The cheap one may help you in the short run but it would prove costly in the long run. The expenses will drain your resources on unnecessary things.
When partnering with a software development company, it is vital to ensure that its costs and pricing structure are conveyed to you. They must provide you with an initial quote for project development that may or may not be amended as the project changes, and those cost amendments will be conveyed to you as they occur.
