6 factors to consider before choosing your software development partner

Creating a new software system is not merely a technological challenge, the bigger obstacles usually lie in the detailed understanding and describing of the business and its processes. Every company knows its own essence and challenges the best, but when it comes to development of the business-critical software, a partner with ability to think in the customer´s perspective using their versatile experience offers a greater value.
Uptime recommends some factors to consider before making the choice.

A good development partner is among other criteria:

No matter how global the business is, local understanding of the corporate environment, competition and general culture is far more effective than a company operating somewhere abroad. Not to mention that if the communication is in a foreign language, important information might go lost in translation.

Access to other nations´ experience will provide a wide-ranging knowledge base, more diverse teams, and a bigger network of contacts and partners. List of customers and co-operation ties in several countries also increases the confidence that the company knows a thing or two.

Organizations are developing at a rapid pace and no matter how thought-through the plan is, additions and modifications are inevitable. Priorities are changing, business processes evolving, even the technological possibilities may shift during the course of the project. Thus, it is important to have a flexible development partner, able to secure a team with necessary skills and knowledge, and if necessary, seamlessly reshape it.

With a well-functioning team
A good team performance does not depend on the sum of its members certificates. What matters, is finding people with the right skills and attitude, and empowering them to become synergistic. That will not happen in a few days or weeks. Therefore teams that have proven the capability of working together offer a definite advantage.

With previous experience in a similar business sector
Completed projects in the same industry or with similar functionalities enables the partner to understand the customer´s needs faster, accurately assess the complexity of the software solution and the project´s volumes. There are vital key factors in each business sector, knowing them and the ability to pay attention to details only comes with experience.

Sector competence is helpful, but the partner should also be able to see the bigger picture. Experience from different industries and years of accumulated know-how give the development team an always updated set of skills to solve complex problems and handle issues that may arise during the software project.


An infographic to visualize: