Companies interested in developing digital solutions have been preparing for a long time for the transition from internal to external interaction with development teams, which was primarily due to economic efficiency and the desire to start working on the project as soon as possible. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic only increased the popularity of outsourcing services, forcing many businesses to rethink their internal development prospects and perform the necessary changes as soon as possible. One such outsourcing service model is collaboration with a dedicated team. Let’s consider its specifics below.
What Is Dedicated Software Development?
First, we invite you to learn the basic concepts and features associated with dedicated development teams.
Definition and Basic Concepts
A dedicated software development team is a model of cooperation with a digital service company in which software development specialists are provided to the client on a long-term basis. A composition for a team of specialists is selected in accordance with the requirements of the project based on their experience and skills.
Key Features
One of the main distinguishing characteristics of cooperation with dedicated teams is the ability to reduce the project budget at times more than in the case of cooperation with an in-house team. This is achieved by eliminating the need to equip workplaces in your office and pay taxes and vacations to your full-time employees. Moreover, you can always choose a team from a country where the average market rates for software development are lower than yours and, thus, achieve benefits in this direction as well.
Also, with a dedicated team, you can protect yourself from the trouble of constantly supervising your project since such teams usually have full-time in-house managers.
And, of course, do not forget that the specifics of this cooperation model always imply a complete immersion in the features and nuances of your business, which means that you can not worry that the final solution will turn out to be unprofessional and non-compliant with the standards and policies of both your company and your business industry as a whole.
Advantages of Dedicated Software Development
Now is the time to learn about the key benefits of dedicated software development teams.
Customization to Unique Business Needs
According to its concept, collaboration with a dedicated team means full adaptation to your business processes and goals. Thus, you get a kind of guarantee that the final product will turn out as if it was created by your internal specialists.
Scalability and Flexibility
As the project becomes more complex and its requirements change, you can scale your dedicated software team, as well as hire and remove employees with specific expertise from it. This is much easier and faster than with local commands.
Improved Security
Dedicated software developers usually sign a non disclosure agreement (NDA) with their clients before starting work. In such agreements, the clients can specify any requirements for non-disclosure of data about the project.
Enhanced Integration Capabilities
Dedicated teams have their own verified practices, which allow them to seamlessly integrate into the business processes of the client’s company and, thus, work inseparably from the rest of the in-house staff.
Competitive Advantage
The formation of dedicated teams and the signing of the NDA usually take no more than 2-3 weeks, after which such teams immediately start working on the project. Thus, the project can be launched to the market as quickly as possible, providing the client’s company with an additional competitive advantage.
Best Practices for Implementing Dedicated Software Development
What about hiring and best practices for dealing with dedicated teams? Below we have prepared a short list of experts that you should check out.
Clearly Define Project Scope and Objectives
Before looking for outsource dedicated software development teams for cooperation, you will need to try to identify the requirements for the project, its scope, and final goals as accurately as possible. This will make it easier for you and your future contractors to get along right from the start.
Choose the Right Development Team
When choosing, you will need to make sure that your future contractor has the expertise you need (and preferably already has projects identical to yours in the portfolio) and also has an affordable and transparent pricing policy. Also, it will not be superfluous to read the reviews of real clients – for this, you can conduct research on such independent resources as Clutch.io.
Establish Transparent Communication Channels
Before starting work on a project, you will need to agree on how often and through what channels you will interact with your dedicated team. Timely preparation of all these aspects will eliminate unnecessary delays and inconveniences during the work processes.
Prioritize Security from Day One
Before starting cooperation, you will need to discuss the security policies that your dedicated software developer should follow while working on your project. All of them must be formalized in the NDA, which will be signed by both parties before work begins.
Implement Continuous Testing and Feedback Loops
Since you will not be able to audit the development project on-site, you must first agree with your team on the frequency of its testing with the possibility of demonstrating the work done directly to you.
Challenges to Be Aware of
Finally, a few words about the challenges you may face (however, if you work with an experienced outsourcing provider, you will most likely never experience them).
Managing Expectations
You must understand that project management will be carried out on the side of your contractor, which means that regular intervention in these processes will be redundant. This is not suitable for some clients who want to conduct sudden and unscheduled audits of the work done.
Budgetary Considerations
Typically, dedicated project teams collaborate with their clients according to the Time and Materials model, which means that in the case of changes in project requirements and additional edits, the final project budget may be different from what was calculated at the beginning of the cooperation.
Time Commitments
Although the deadlines for the project are negotiated with the contractor at the very beginning of cooperation, in the case of global changes in the requirements for the project on your part, as well as possible changes, its release date may be slightly shifted.
Conclusion
We hope that we helped you understand the peculiarities of cooperation with a dedicated team and now you understand whether this hiring model suits you or not. If you are looking for a highly professional dedicated team to work on your project, feel free to contact us.