It is not uncommon for startups and established businesses to outsource software development. There are different reasons that will necessitate the development of custom software in a business. Even if you’re in the tech industry, it will still make sense to outsource the development of software. Regardless of the reason for the development of the application, there are a couple of factors that you need to put into consideration before outsourcing and we’re going to highlight some of them.
Nature of the Software
Before you can start looking for a company to outsource the work, you will need to understand the key competencies of software that you want to be developed. If it is a startup in the tech industry, the rule of thumb will be not to outsource the development of key competences no matter how tempting it will be. You don’t want people to know the secret recipe, as that could be the value proposition for the whole business. If the development is not the core of the business, you can go on to look for a software company for the job. Any developer will agree that once the code is written, it will not take a lot of effort before the final result is delivered to the client.
Cost
Cost is always going to be a big consideration in any decision making process and software development is no exception. When thinking about outsourcing, it is crucial that you’re looking at both the short-term and long-term costs involved with the project. Outsourcing will be preferable in the short-term when looking at the cost but will not be a preferred choice in the long-run. There are other indirect costs that might not be clear from the onset and you will get to know about them during the development or when the software is finished.
Intellectual Property Issues
When you develop new software, there will be intellectual issues to worry about. There are some jurisdictions that don’t pay attention to intellectual property rights. That is why it is important that you have everything sorted out before entrusting the development of the software to someone else. Did you know that 90% of the software used in China and Vietnam is pirated? You don’t want to experience such a predicament and the only way you can mitigate risks is by having the software copyrighted.
Getting the Skills When Needed
If you decide to develop the software on your own, you might find yourself needing specialized skills. It will not make sense to hire the developers full time since they will only be working on that particular development project.
Technology Standards Matters
The standards and levels of technology will matter a great deal when choosing a software development agency. It is crucial that the company is keeping abreast of the current happenings in the technology world. Tech is constantly changing and evolving on a daily basis. You want to work with an agency that values the importance of keeping up with the trends and game-changers in the industry.
Accuracy of Software
Before you can outsource, you will need to determine the accuracy of the software. It goes without saying that the higher the accuracy of the application, the better the productivity and efficiency in the organization.
Compliance of Software
The main objective of any business is to maximize profits while minimizing costs. This will only be possible if there are efficient systems in the business. You don’t want to be spending a lot of time and resources scraping the web manually when you can achieve the same Google Search API working together with the custom software. To ensure that the app will achieve its intended purpose, there must be a high level of compliance. This can be achieved by working with the right software development agency.
Focused Strategy
One of the reasons you’ll be outsourcing will be to increase the productivity of the business by lowering the operational costs. The big question would be how the development of the software will help in achieving efficiency in the business. You might need custom software that handles payroll based on certain set parameters.
To sum it up, it is important to know the parts of software that will need to be outsourced and the ones that can be developed in-house. A good company should have the expertise to manage the core activities in-house. Can you imagine Google outsourcing the development of its core SEO algorithm? The company wouldn’t have been in business today.
