Business
|
Staff Augmentation vs. Software Outsourcing: Which to Choose?
Douglas da Silva | Apr 04, 2024
Fact: there is a myriad of mobile app development companies out there and choosing the right one is far from trivial. Another fact: it’s fairly common that customers of some of those companies get disappointed with the results. To help you through this choice, we’ve listed some points about the right partner and how to identify it.
#1 – Comprehension
The developers have to grasp your idea and embrace the concepts you want to bring up. It’s also important to explain carefully what you want: a good briefing makes it easier for the companies to understand your project and offer the right budget to deliver it. They can’t just be coding machines, your partners need to be more than that. The mobile dev company must be an extension of your own, contributing to your thoughts and ensuring there will be a great experience for everyone. Encourage brainstorming and joint-design sessions, to increase involvement from the developers, getting even more from their knowledge of UX/UI libraries.
The tool for this:
www.cocoacontrols.com – List of best UI components for iOS and OS X, to help both parties — your company and the developer — to get visual on the ideas that you wish to implement.
#2 – Qualification
It’s indispensable that you know how qualified the team that you want to hire is. Case studies, referrals and insights from other clients are some ways to highlight the expertise of your potential partners. Remember that qualification is not just about coding requirements being met, but also about business and customer goals being checked too.
The tool for this:
https://clutch.co – Platform of B2B reviews and research.
#3 – Feedback and Iteration Cycles
The right partner doesn’t feel threatened to deliver regular reviews of how they are faring in the project, showing that they really are on track. It’s a common fear that outsourced companies get lost in the middle of the process of production and the lack of communication results in an awful application or a buggy codebase. But when you commit yourself to stay tuned for their incremental changes, confidence will be maintained in high levels and you will remain on control throughout the process. In more technical terms, you and your partner should establish an MVP and keep short iterations cycles (daily/weekly discussions) in order to fine-tune your objectives and the directions of the project.
The tools for this:
https://try.crashlytics.com – A crash reporting and tracking tool, also really useful for sharing builds.
https://slack.com/ – Communication tool for fast iterations.
https:/mixpanel.com/ – An advanced analytics for integrating app and website data in one tool.
#4 – Price and Benefits
Don’t pay cheap only to pay twice. If your partner has an outstanding set of technical capabilities, it will probably cost more than others. The mobile development market is overheated with professionals of all types and from many backgrounds. Pick the ones that offer a fair and competitive price, but with the right skills to complete your project on the timeline that you demand. Stock options, if available, should also be offered to the partners so they also become part of a shared dream. Actions like that show how everyone is an important gear of a greater machine working to get closer to the common goals.
The resource for this:
https://contractiq.com/
At Cheesecake Labs, we work really hard to reach excellence and fill all those parameters, as a mobile app developer partner that cares not only about the technical abilities of its crew but with its commitment to the project, adding creative value with seamless communication with the stakeholders. Now it’s your turn: send your thoughts regarding great workflows and share how your partners perform based on those topics, so we can improve the world’s connectivity and help the mobile boom to continue reaching for the stars!
About the author.
