Dedicated Software Development Team: The Key to Business Success

According to a survey done by ManpowerGroup, the tech market is facing an unprecedented talent shortage. Tech roles are some of the toughest ones to fill, and this happens to be one of the major reasons why businesses today opt for dedicated software developers. Many leading software development companies provide their clients with the option of hiring a dedicated software development team.

In this blog, we will take a look at everything related to hiring a dedicated software development team.

What is a Dedicated Team Model for Software Development?

Before we delve into the topic of the dedicated team model, we will first clear the basics. The dedicated team model is one of the three most popular engagement models for hiring developers. The other two are the time and material model and the fixed price model. We will discuss these two models later in the blog.

In the dedicated team model, the clients get a team of dedicated developers selected specifically for their projects. The dedicated team becomes a natural extension of the internal team of the client.

The main idea behind the dedicated team is that a dedicated team of developers works only on the project of the client that has hired the team. Thus, it is akin to hiring your own in-house team of developers without the hassle of office infrastructure and other liabilities like salaries and utility bills.

While selecting a software development company, is a step-by-step approach and you should make sure to include the following members in the team.

• Project manager
• Business analysts
• DevOps
• UI/UX designers
• Front-end developers
• Back-end developers
• QA engineers

With the dedicated team for your custom software development, you as a business owner have peace of mind. This is because the responsibility of hiring resources for your project lies solely with the software development outsourcing company. The outsourcing firms are responsible for finishing the project of software development on time. This way, you can focus on your core business while your dedicated team of software developers finishes your project.

Dedicated Team vs. Time and Material Model

Now that you have some basic idea about what a dedicated team model is, we shall compare the dedicated team model with other popular engagement models.

In the time and material model, you have to pay an hourly rate according to the task. For instance, if the remote software developers say that they will require 1000 hours to finish your task and their rate is $20 per hour, then you will have to shell out a minimum of $20,000 for your project.

The benefit of the time and material model is that you pay only for the productive hours. This means that you do not pay the software development service provider’s team for coffee breaks and social media scrolling.

The biggest advantage of the time and material model is that this is a result-oriented model. At the same time, the biggest disadvantage is that it is hard to control the budget of the project in the time and material engagement model.

The dedicated software development team engagement model is best when;

• You require control over the project
• The project size is large
• The project duration is long
• The project requires scalable resources

Choose the project engagement model according to your project’s specific requirements.

Dedicated team vs. Fixed price Model

In the fixed price model, the price and scope of the project is fixed right at the onset of the software project. The deadline of the project is also fixed before beginning the development of the software project commences.

In the fixed price engagement model for developing software, there is no scope for alteration. In the fixed price model, as the budget is fixed, the preparation of detailed specifications of the project will take up a lot of time.

You can go for the fixed price engagement model if;

• The project has clear specifications
• The project has a fixed deadline
• You don’t want to control everything

The fixed price model is best when;

• The project is small
• The project scope is dynamic
• The project starts with an MVP
• Deadline and budget are adjustable

The biggest advantage of the fixed price model is that you can plan your budget in this model. This is because the cost to develop software is fixed in this engagement model.

However, the fixed price model offers the least flexibility in terms of project scope.

When to choose a dedicated software development team model?

Before you zero in on the engagement model for your software development project, you need to evaluate your business needs first. The following are the cases where the dedicated team model works best.

Projects that expand quickly

Look for a dedicated software development team if you expect that your project will grow quickly. The dedicated team approach is best for such projects as you can hire additional software development resources quickly with this approach. You can skip the tedious recruitment approach with this engagement model. Your in-house team can focus on more important tasks while the dedicated team handles additional work.

Long-term projects

Long-term projects often require high flexibility. This is because, over the course of a few years, the technology and user demands change. To adapt to the dynamic needs of the industry, you must adopt a flexible engagement model for your software development requirements. The dedicated software developers team model is a flexible model, and if you do not embrace flexibility, then you will lose opportunities.

Projects with good workflow

The dedicated team model works best for software product development projects that have a visible and continuous workflow. You will need to provide your dedicated software development team that works remotely with tasks bifurcated based on a streamlined workflow.

If you want to expand into new territories

Find and hire the best software developers in the form of a dedicated team in the country in which you plan to expand. This way, you will have trusted partners who can give you some insights into the new market. The dedicated team working remotely can easily onboard new in-house team members and help you gain footing in the new country. They can do this because the dedicated team members will already know the ins and outs of your projects.

When the Dedicated Software Development Team Model should not be opted?

Understand that the dedicated team model for software development has its own limitations and is not suitable for all situations. We have listed below a few situations in which it is not advisable to go for the dedicated team model when looking to build software for your business.

Fixed timeline and budget

The benefit of a dedicated team is that as and when the scope of the project changes, you can hire software development team members to handle the project. The dedicated team model proves to be very effective in the case of projects that have dynamic scope. This very trait of the dedicated team model makes it an unviable approach for software development projects that have a fixed timeline and budget.

Small short-term projects

The dedicated team model works best when you know that your software project is big and difficult to set a fixed deadline. The dedicated custom software development team model allows you to start your software project with a few remote team members and augment the team as and when the need arises. This is not viable for small short-term projects since these projects have a specific deadline set and will require to work with definite resources. For such projects, you can just hire a software development company to do the job.

Fixed project scope with a limited budget

The dedicated model for developing software is not the best if the scope of your project is set in stone. If you have made a detailed plan of the project and know exactly the features and technologies that you would like to use in your software, then there is no point in going with the dedicated software team model. The fixed price software development model will work best in such cases.

In the fixed price model, you provide the remote software development team that works remotely with a list of detailed instructions. The probability of going wrong is very limited in the fixed price model. In the time and material model, you can scale up and down your team or change the software development team when you feel that it’s not working anymore between you and the hired team.

Lack of trust

When you hire a dedicated team of software developers, you are investing a lot of time and effort in the process. Hiring a dedicated software development team to work remotely is a long-term relationship, and no relationship can be successful without trust. That’s why to achieve success with this engagement model: You should trust your software development partner.

How To Manage a Dedicated Team hired for Software Development Project?

Managing a dedicated team is not as difficult as it seems, even if you work with a remote software development team located in Software Development Outsourcing Countries. You need to take care of certain aspects to make the process easy for you as well as your dedicated development team.

Regular standup meetings

Though these tasks will be carried out by the Project Manager for you and will keep you updated about the progress having the understanding of a standup call will provide a better insight about what to expect from the team.

Regular standup meetings are important as they will keep you updated regarding the progress of your software project. Make it a point to get in touch with your remote software development team through video conferencing and ask the following questions to the team members.

• What is the progress so far?
• Did you face any issues?
• What’s the work plan for tomorrow?

Holding standup meetings on a daily basis is a great practice. These meetings keep everyone updated and allow the dedicated software development team members to plan ahead and work accordingly to get the project delivered on-time.

Ensure that too much time is not wasted on these standup meetings. The meetings should be short and to the point. You can talk to individuals directly if they are deviating from the agenda of the meeting.

Leverage tools

There are plenty of tools available in the market that help you track the progress of your software development project. The following are the names of a few such tools.

Best Project management tools:

• Trello
• Jira
• TeamGantt
• MeisterTask
• Basecamp
• Monday

Trending Document collaboration tools:

• Bit.ai
• Google Docs
• Document360
• Zoho Writer
• Dropbox Paper
• ClickUp
• Notion

Essential Communication tools:

• Skype
• Slack
• UberConference
• Zoom
• Google Meet
• TeamViewer
• Zoho Meeting
• Flock
• ProofHub
• Microsoft Teams

Ensure that your hired dedicated remote software development team members know your work methods. This will ensure that your dedicated team follows your work procedures effectively. The remote dedicated team for the software development project should be clear about the following things.

• Who is responsible for which task?
• How to create new tasks?
• Who should the team contact in case of problems?

Provide constant feedback

Always provide consistent feedback to your dedicated team members. Whether positive or negative, your feedback will guide your dedicated team on the right path. Your software developers might have dozens of questions. You will need to answer these questions if you want your product to meet your expectations. If you do not clarify the doubts of your developers, it will slow down the development process. Your procrastination can also frustrate your software development team.

Treat them as equals

Many times businesses make the mistake of treating the dedicated team as inferior to the in-house team. To avoid friction between the dedicated team and the in-house team, always treat both teams as equals. Understand that equal treatment is warranted because both the teams are experts in their fields with relevant experience and are working to benefit your business.

Consider the ideas of your dedicated team. Do not forget that you have hired dedicated software developers specifically for their tech expertise. Praise the dedicated team members as you would praise your in-house team members. A little motivation can work wonders for your project.

Manage Your Remote Software Development Team

Wrap up

To sum it up, the dedicated team model is best for those projects that have a lot of unclear requirements.

The dedicated software development team model works best for startups and evolving businesses. This is because such businesses normally seek long-term collaborations, and their projects have dynamic scope.

The dedicated model for software development often proves to be the best fit in terms of software development cost and the quality of professionals hired. Start your software development journey by choosing a dedicated software team that has experience in delivering projects similar to your project.