5 Major Risks In Outsourcing Software Development... And How To Avoid Them
Posted 29th April 2013 at 07:05 AM by MobiDev
Tags application, development, mobile, outsourcing, software
The practice of outsourcing is widely discussed today; it's used in many industries and branches of business. And if you know the time has come to start or enhance business with mobile software, outsourcing may be the most obvious choice in terms of quality and costs. But this choice must be deliberate; just like any other business, outsourcing bears inevitable risks, which can be ignored, prevented, delegated, or subdued (after an undesirable scenario occurs). Let's outline five such scenarios and see how to deal with them.
1) You don't receive the software product.
There can be a number of reasons for not receiving the software product. While choosing a developer (hereby we mean not a single software developer, but a development agency), look for the one who has experience in creating similar kinds of mobile/web software. Check the portfolio and get a consultation regarding the project. A good developer will provide you with adequate communication and advice, tell you about the most common problems, faced during development of similar software.
It is possible to identify the majority of risks (including technical ones) before development, or at its starting point. In cases of innovative, sophisticated, unique apps, the software developer can perform a technical investigation to see whether your project is technically viable, supported by the current technologies.
2) The received software product is NOT what you wanted.
To avoid this scenario, you must not only establish the communication with the software developers, but also carry it out more closely, share all of your ideas and the vision of the product. Any documentation that clarifies your ideas about the product, is extremely useful - it will reduce the risks of getting not what you want. What helps thereafter, is checking results and achievements on each iteration of development - that's what you are sure to do anyway.
3) The received software product shows problems in use.
Software development process is followed by quality assurance (QA). That's where your software product is tested in various ways on various devices. Some software owners involve external QA services additionally. That's how these problems can be prevented. And if they show after the launch of the product, they are handled by user feedback (make sure that users are able to notify you about any problems and bugs) and support (for example, updates and server monitoring). Many software developers offer support services.
4) The software product is unpopular with users.
To be popular, a software product must have a clear purpose and target audience. It must be better than its competitors (that is why you should learn everything about the competitor software and see, in which way yours will be better). It must fully satisfy the users' needs under certain conditions. It must solve defined problems efficiently. The purpose and the users of the product should be defined beforehand.
Promotion strategy surely plays its huge part. You may build a free lite-version of the product and see how it performs on the market, receive user feedback. If you gather a group of people who wish a paid, full-fledge, functional version, you are safe to go for it. And when you create a really great software product, you should take certain actions to make it known. And since it's great, it becomes popular. If that's an app for internal use, pay attention to proper implementation.
5) You spend more resources than needed.
Here everything depends on your approach and the resources you have. If you are sure not to exceed some peculiar amount - that is one approach. If you are product-oriented and ready to invest additional resources in case of need - that is another one. The latter case usually concerns highly important projects. Anyway make sure to have some spare resources if some complications are discovered along the way. The better you think over the project and its features before its development, the more you reduce the risk of additional costs. Keep in touch with the software developer, maintain control over the process, and be demanding not only towards the developer, but as well towards yourself.
Offshore software development does not bear more risks than any other business. And keeping in mind these risks and tips, you will be able to effectively collaborate with the software developer you will have chosen by then, with maximum convenience for both sides.
1) You don't receive the software product.
There can be a number of reasons for not receiving the software product. While choosing a developer (hereby we mean not a single software developer, but a development agency), look for the one who has experience in creating similar kinds of mobile/web software. Check the portfolio and get a consultation regarding the project. A good developer will provide you with adequate communication and advice, tell you about the most common problems, faced during development of similar software.
It is possible to identify the majority of risks (including technical ones) before development, or at its starting point. In cases of innovative, sophisticated, unique apps, the software developer can perform a technical investigation to see whether your project is technically viable, supported by the current technologies.
2) The received software product is NOT what you wanted.
To avoid this scenario, you must not only establish the communication with the software developers, but also carry it out more closely, share all of your ideas and the vision of the product. Any documentation that clarifies your ideas about the product, is extremely useful - it will reduce the risks of getting not what you want. What helps thereafter, is checking results and achievements on each iteration of development - that's what you are sure to do anyway.
3) The received software product shows problems in use.
Software development process is followed by quality assurance (QA). That's where your software product is tested in various ways on various devices. Some software owners involve external QA services additionally. That's how these problems can be prevented. And if they show after the launch of the product, they are handled by user feedback (make sure that users are able to notify you about any problems and bugs) and support (for example, updates and server monitoring). Many software developers offer support services.
4) The software product is unpopular with users.
To be popular, a software product must have a clear purpose and target audience. It must be better than its competitors (that is why you should learn everything about the competitor software and see, in which way yours will be better). It must fully satisfy the users' needs under certain conditions. It must solve defined problems efficiently. The purpose and the users of the product should be defined beforehand.
Promotion strategy surely plays its huge part. You may build a free lite-version of the product and see how it performs on the market, receive user feedback. If you gather a group of people who wish a paid, full-fledge, functional version, you are safe to go for it. And when you create a really great software product, you should take certain actions to make it known. And since it's great, it becomes popular. If that's an app for internal use, pay attention to proper implementation.
5) You spend more resources than needed.
Here everything depends on your approach and the resources you have. If you are sure not to exceed some peculiar amount - that is one approach. If you are product-oriented and ready to invest additional resources in case of need - that is another one. The latter case usually concerns highly important projects. Anyway make sure to have some spare resources if some complications are discovered along the way. The better you think over the project and its features before its development, the more you reduce the risk of additional costs. Keep in touch with the software developer, maintain control over the process, and be demanding not only towards the developer, but as well towards yourself.
Offshore software development does not bear more risks than any other business. And keeping in mind these risks and tips, you will be able to effectively collaborate with the software developer you will have chosen by then, with maximum convenience for both sides.
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