Work your way through the seven steps below to guarantee you have hired a dedicated development team that can think strategically, translate your vision, manage your projects effectively, and future-proof your company.
Step 1: Complete Your Homework
What are your objectives? Don’t only consider the app, platform, or website you’d like to build.
Do you want to create a basic MVP to see how users react before spending time and money developing a more full product based on their feedback? Do you have a specific market in mind for your product?
A good firm can assist you in defining your objectives. Simply said, do your best to flesh out your concept before drafting a Request for Proposal (RFP) that outlines everything. Potential partners will be able to deliver a more accurate estimate if you submit them a detailed RFP.
Step 2: Make a List of Possible Software Development Firms
Make a list of potential tech partners using all of the resources at your disposal, noting the advantages and disadvantages of each. You can obtain information by:
- Examining the websites of each company
- Examining their professional portfolios
- Reading client testimonials on sites such as G2 and Clutch
Send out your RFP after you’ve compiled a list of contenders and see who answers and what they have to say.
Step 3: Conduct a Preliminary Interview
A live interview, preferably by Zoom or another sort of video chat, is required. Is the firm contact person simple to communicate with? Do they respond to your queries honestly? Is this someone with whom you feel at ease as a partner?
Here’s a rundown of attributes to keep an eye out for throughout the interview.
- Curiosity
- Communication skills (includes fluency in multiple languages)
- Recognize the big picture (Are they aware of your goals?)
- They use software development approaches. For eg, Is an Agile strategy (working in sprints) fit for your project, according to them?
Step 4: Additional Interviews to Help You Narrow Your Search
You’ll want to schedule more interviews with the top applicants as you narrow down your choices. This entails speaking with various team members (for example, Project Managers, Business Analysts, Designers, and Developers) to learn how they work and whether they’re a suitable fit. Don’t be hesitant to test each member’s knowledge by asking technical questions.
You’ve probably narrowed it down to one or two front-runners at this point, but don’t sign anything just yet. It’s time to get to work on your schoolwork.
Step 5: Perform Due Diligence
It’s time to request references—past clients with whom you can speak and learn more about their experiences. Naturally, everybody given as a reference for the business is a fan of the firm’s work, but if you dig deep and ask some tough questions, you’ll probably uncover some useful information.
Was there anything you think they could have done better? Why not, if the client is no longer dealing with them? Ask open-ended inquiries to elicit responses. This is when people start to open up.
Step 6: Learn More About Our Services’ Dependability and Security.
Ascertain that everyone you work with follows rigorous data handling and server security processes, including well-established coding and quality assurance testing methods. In particular, you’ll want to inquire about:
- Standards for coding
- Practices of coding review
- Refactoring the code
- Server administration infrastructure
- Practices in terms of security
- The safekeeping of data and how it is stored
- Information management within the company, such as access levels for different employees and the need to update passwords on a regular basis, etc.
Step 7: Contracts Should Be Negotiated and Signed As Soon As Possible.
It’s time to sign the contract once you’ve decided on a dedicated software development team. There will be a lot of details to go over because this may be a long engagement. With this in mind, have the contract reviewed by an attorney to verify that your interests are protected.
