Choosing the right software development company for your bespoke project is a high-stakes decision. While research from McKinsey shows that outsourcing software development can cut time-to-market for new products by 25%, bespoke projects throw up any number of unforeseen challenges and breakages. With that in mind, finding a provider with the right experience — who aligns with your way of working and has compatible, effective communication — is the best step you can take to give your project the highest chance of success from the outset.
Keep reading as I unpack the most common issues businesses face when outsourcing custom software projects, how to assess your needs, and exactly what to look for in a software development partner.
Common problems with outsourced bespoke software projects
Firstly, let’s take a look at some of the most prolific pain points that businesses experience with outsourced bespoke software projects.
Maintaining quality control
When you’re outsourcing, you need external developers to understand the goals of the project, and how they align with the direction of the business as a whole. The company you’re working with might not adhere to the same standards as your in-house team (if you have one), or have different testing practices. You may even find that some software houses will only deliver the finished product, rather than providing full visibility of the code, which makes maintaining quality almost impossible, should the project need to scale up.
Overcoming communication barriers
Every business has its own specific knowledge base, preferred way of working and communication cadence, so it’s no surprise that 21% of companies outsourcing projects report communication as the biggest challenge. Depending on your software partner, you might be dealing with factors like different time zones, language barriers and even cultural differences. Some degree of miscommunication is to be expected, but a good software development partner will see these instances as a productive part of the process, which helps to ensure that mistakes don’t happen more than once.
Similarly, a choice software partner will be well-versed in the intricacies of project governance, and equipped to find the most effective split of roles between their own people, and the professionals on your team.
Dealing with a lack of understanding
There’s no place for a “no questions asked” approach in bespoke outsourcing. Some companies find that — without a thorough understanding of the intention for the project, or broader context of the domain — external software houses take instruction very literally. The relationship between client and software development partner should be an open discussion, where your provider builds a deep understanding of the project, which enables them to take an analytical approach, and make educated suggestions.
Proper handling of scope creep
By their very nature, bespoke projects present an unknown, making a certain level of scope creep inevitable. The parameters of what you want will shift and grow, and if a software development company promises they can do it all with no room for nuance, I consider that a red flag. Instead, your software development partner should identify the likelihood of scope creep upfront, and constantly fight to minimise it — while staying focused on commercial value.
Challenges with integration
Issues with integration are another thing that blindsides unsuspecting businesses. It’s standard for bespoke software to require integration with other tools and platforms, but this process almost always takes longer than you think, and requires developers who can speak the language of the external tools in question. At CCQ Tech, we believe that empowering clients to integrate in the right way, streamlining tools and removing unnecessary connections is a key part of the service we provide on bespoke projects — as well as taking action to implement abstractions that help to future-proof those integrations.
Accessing ongoing support and maintenance
Many businesses find that once the software is technically delivered, their chosen software development company can’t offer the long-term support they need for ongoing maintenance and updates. This can create skills gaps in the team, which forces in-house devs to quickly train in order to plug those gaps, and operate the software without external help.
The importance of assessing your needs
Before choosing the right bespoke software development company, you need a clear sense of your needs as a business, as well as the specific requirements of the project. Here are a few key things to consider:
- Objectives.Firstly, it’s worth establishing your main objectives — do you have a defined project roadmap? What metrics will you use to measure success?
- Timeframes. If the project is beholden to a strict deadline, you’ll need to find a software development company with sufficient capacity, within the right timeframe.
- Technical expertise. The expertise you need from a software partner will vary hugely in line with the nature and scale of the project, so be sure to list out any non-negotiables.
- Security. If you work in a highly-regulated sector, or your project involves high volumes of data, you might have specific security requirements to adhere to, so make sure you know the details of these from the outset.
- Communication. What level of service does your organisation need? Do your in-house devs need continuous support, or will they need ongoing maintenance once the project is delivered?
What to look for in a software development company
Once you’ve taken some time to assess your needs, you might start weighing up your options. Here are a few of the key green flags to look for when you’re on the hunt for a software development partner:
Experience
For a custom software project, the value of experience can’t be underestimated. I don’t just mean choosing a company with a number of case studies in your specific domain, but with experience working on a project entailing a similar amount of code, or a track record of successfully scaling. Not only will this enable your software partner to get a deeper understanding of the project more quickly, but it also means they’re more likely to foresee breakages, and proactively prevent them. Look for a company that doesn’t rush the discovery phase, as this is when the problem is diagnosed and the shape of the solution is defined, so you can solidify the concept and set the parameters for the project and its costs.
Flexibility
If you’ve been burned by outsourcing a project before — maybe even a first attempt at this same project — you’ll already know the importance of flexibility. Most developers prefer (and have expert knowledge of) certain coding languages and frameworks, but you need a team who can pick up a project written in another language, and pinpoint how it’s gotten too big or complex to evolve.
Bespoke calls for adaptability, and a good software partner will be able to prescribe a framework and tech stack that actually suits your needs, rather than prioritising their own preferences. At CCQ Tech, we’re both tech-agnostic and agile enough to flex to your individual way of working. The only universal element of our approach is that we practice constant iterations and deployments — we get the code quickly, test it, and minimise bugs. The smaller the iteration loop, the better the quality of the code, and the better the project is going to be.
Accountability
While the standards you prioritise largely depend on your domain, it’s well worth checking that any provider you’re considering adheres to industry standards for security and data privacy, and has measures in place to ensure these are maintained.
For instance, we use OIDC and OAuth protocols for authentication and authorisation, but outsource to an external provider, so our clients are never responsible for their upkeep when a new vulnerability emerges. Similarly — when it comes to quality control — we bring in an experienced third party to carry out external reviews and objectively check our code.
Availability
This quality goes hand-in-hand with communication — does the company bury their team behind red tape, or are their devs accessible to you for questions and collaboration? Many software development companies have a siloed, bureaucratic approach that’s designed to boost productivity, but actually hinders progress.
Take our team as an example — we ensure every project has a dedicated project manager to oversee it, but no one at any level is beyond writing code. We pride ourselves on hiring exceptionally talented people from a range of academic backgrounds, so even on the rare occasion your dedicated PM isn’t available, every team member is equipped to answer your questions, and you have a direct line to our experts.
Finding your software development partner
Ultimately, there are plenty of reasonably-priced options out there for bespoke projects, but are you looking for a software house, or a long-term software development partner?
A software development partner like CCQ Tech doesn’t just do what’s requested, but makes intelligent suggestions to reframe and solve problems, and takes the time to build a deep understanding of the project, your organisational needs, and the wider context within your domain. Our team fits smoothly into an organisation and its existing processes, while bringing new ways of thinking, and a wealth of diverse expertise with us.
Trust is integral to the success of a bespoke project, and we aim to foster a culture of open discussion, where decisions are made collaboratively, and any misunderstandings are a productive part of the process.
Want to hear more from the experts?
There’s an exciting webinar coming up over at CCQ Tech where we will be delivering a session on the key pain points organisations face when outsourcing bespoke software, and digging into exactly what makes a great software partner.
Secure your spot below, and join us on Wednesday 26th March at 11am.