Dedicated Software Development Team: how to get professionals on your project

You have a fantastic product idea and work hard, success is about to be in your pocket. However, a couple of steps before the finish line, it turns out that your development team fails, the product lacks functionality, while your competitors are ahead of you. You're almost out of money and time. Can you imagine such a nightmare? This situation is not for the faint of heart. It is better to get professionals on your project from the very beginning, for example, by hiring a dedicated team.

Take our word for it. We have 13 years of experience working with clients in various industries. In the search for quick solutions, many companies, when faced with unforeseen obstacles, stopped halfway. In the end, they decided to hire a dedicated software development team to get the job done. What are the benefits of such a collaboration?

There are some compelling arguments. Keep reading to find out.

What is a Dedicated Team model?

There may be not enough resources at your disposal to implement all of your business plans. It could be a lack of the experience needed, a tight deadline, your in-house specialists may be busy with other projects. This is where the option “hire dedicated software development team” comes into play.

It implies a collaboration between the business (the customer) and the development team (the contractor), in which the latter implements the idea of the former. As a rule, dedicated team activities are based on the principles of Agile project management. The work process is flexible and adaptable to any changes.

It goes without saying that it's up to you to choose the collaboration model that suits you best. This can be your in-house development team or an augmented team. Each option has its pros and cons.

In the case of an in-house team, the benefits may seem more obvious. You know the specialists personally, it's easier to manage the team, and tasks can be solved faster through direct communication with employees. The downsides include a long and expensive hiring cycle, issues related to employee retention, licensing of tools and software used, and more. The dedicated team model, on the other hand, frees you from those operational issues.

A starting point for collaboration with a dedicated team

Here are a few strong aspects to consider to have a well-qualified augmented team on your side.

First of all, the prices. They are transparent and clear. Each month, the customer pays a fixed amount to the provider, which includes the vendor's service fee, as well as the salaries of the team members.

Besides, the dedicated team becomes an integral part of your current team and works closely with your in-house staff. How is this done? An explanation is available below.

What’s it like for a software development team to be dedicated?

The term dedicated means exclusive, specific. In other words, a dedicated team handles only your project, not being distracted by the other clients' tasks.

Compare: your in-house programmers can handle several client projects at the same time, switching from one task to another and getting tired quickly. When you hire a dedicated software development team, you get professionals focused on your project exclusively.

A fresh set of eyes and an extra set of hands not only fill a technical gap in your skillset but also cover pressing business development issues.

But for that to start, you should provide your vendor with clearly stated requirements for the future product and the team to be hired. By setting KPIs for each team member, you'll be able to stick to the plan, track performance, and ensure that everyone involved is on the same page.

A dedicated team model is best for getting smart people on board, wherever they are. You don't have to be a big company with a big budget to do this. You can hire a dedicated software development team from Ukraine right now. It will help you strengthen your position in the marketplace while you strategize.

Team size and structure for successful Agile software development

You can hire both a small development team and a large one, depending on the scope of tasks to be solved. In any case, the team consists of subject matter experts dealing with different technologies. Who it may be depends on the type of work to be done.

Usually, you have such tech talent at your disposal:

• Project manager. They act as mediators between you and your dedicated team, maintain team spirit, make sure the project goes as planned and on schedule, and bill you.
• QA engineers. They make sure the product is fully compliant, write and execute test cases, conduct all types of software testing.
• Front-end engineers. Everything related to the visual part of the application is taken care of by the front-end developers.
• Back-end engineers. They are hired to deal with the application business logic, integration issues, APIs, databases, and anything else invisible to users.
• DevOps engineers. They help make the development process smooth and agile and reduce time to market. Essentially, DevOps engineers serve the development team, speeding up the development process while maintaining quality.

Each of the above specialists comes into play depending on the stage of the project. Other or additional technicians can be brought in as needed.

Hire a dedicated software development team: How to get started?

It may not seem obvious, but hiring professionals is just as important as the quality of the product or service provided. Recruiting new professionals into your team should be a priority on an ongoing basis. Any product starts with a team, and the team determines how successful a future project can be. Statistically, only 20% of new hires end up being a successful choice.

When looking for a contractor, it is crucial to be able to distinguish between a bad contractor and a good one. A good contractor is not only about professional talent, but also about a cohesive team that works like a fine-tuned clockwork machine. Think about how a Swiss watch works. They are perfect, aren't they?

Is there a recipe for successfully hiring a dedicated team on the first try?

The following steps are recommended.

Look for a dedicated team as business partner

Narrow your search to 2-3 providers by following these steps.

Check out the portfolio

It's important to be aware of the experience of those you plan to work with. Visit their accounts on Behance, GitHub or Dribbble. Developers and designers usually see fit to share their work on industry-specific websites.

Pay attention to reviews

We can assume that you would not want a fly-by-night company involved in your important project. Most likely, you would prefer to work with a mature dedicated software development team. If so, first take a good look at the company's reviews and visit the Clutch and GoodFirms sites to do so.

Pay attention to how quickly you get a response

The contractor's answers should be timely if they are interested in working with you. At the same time, the communication should not be intrusive, they should not pressure you while waiting for answers or decisions.

Consider the background of the company

Pay attention to how long the company has been on the market, what the principles behind employee recruitment are, what the employees' English language skills are, and what the cost of dedicated team services is.

After gathering information about several providers, compare all the points and decide on your choice.

Describe the work to be done

Describe in as much detail as possible the task to be assigned to the IT service provider. Your prospective partner should be able to see in advance whether they have enough resources and capabilities to get the job done.

Stay in touch with your recruiter

The recruiter should be on the same page as you. It should be easy for you to communicate with each other as well as hire the people you want. Make sure you check your email or other channels you choose as your primary communication channel regularly so that you can respond to the recruiter in a timely manner. Great programmers are in high demand. As long as you are slow to respond, you may miss out on the best technical talent.

Interview selected candidates

Once the members of the dedicated software development team you're interested in have been selected, you need to interview them and make sure they fit you as individuals. You can conduct testing, talk to each candidate in person, or set up a team interview.

Provide interview-based feedback

If you decide to hire a particular professional or want to conduct a follow-up interview, let your contractor know. As you know, time is a precious resource. The longer it takes you to make decisions, the longer your project is out of order. Is this really what you want?

Let's get to work

Once the dedicated team has been hired, the next step is to start integrating them into the in-house team. Introduce the new employees to the existing staff, assign and delegate responsibilities, and get to work.

How to get the most out of your software development team?

Working with a dedicated team can be much more beneficial in the long run than you might think. With professionals hired through outstaffing, you get reliable partners ready to help you with even the most complex task or when your business needs the most support.

Take your time and don't settle for the first IT service provider you meet

Of course, your ideal partner provides custom software development services. However, having relevant industry experience is vital. Check to see if there is similar work in their portfolio, or ask directly. Reach out to some of your potential contractor's clients as well - it's an easy way to get first-hand feedback.

Be clear about your expectations

The dedicated team would need the following information to work properly: whether you are going to create a product from scratch or improve an existing one; what role this product should play in achieving your business goals; what your specific requirements are; who your target audience is; how you plan to meet their needs with your product. The best way to gather all this information is through an online meeting. Your input will be carefully processed by our business analysts and salespeople so that we can make the best assumptions and forecasts.

Get ready for onboarding

At the very beginning of the cooperation according to the dedicated team model, you need to get your in-house team ready for the fact that additional specialists will be added. Take your time and make everyone aware of their responsibilities and tasks.

Concerns related to dedicated software development teams

In these turbulent times caused by COVID-19, when remote work became a must-have rather than a free option, every business was caught off guard. Teams that previously had no experience with remote working faced the challenge of properly organizing remote work, managing teams, and measuring performance.

While your in-house team is just learning to adapt to the new realities, the dedicated team already knows how to work remotely. All the necessary tools and strategies are in place, and all processes are streamlined, which saves you time, money and other resources.

How much money and time will it take?

This is one of the most frequently asked questions. Don't worry about it. The cost of the work will be agreed upon at the outset. It can change both in the direction of decreasing and increasing if changes in the product are needed. Usually, our clients' doubts about the budget disappear with the first results of work, which increases customer trust and loyalty.

How is the onboarding of a dedicated software development team carried out?

This stage cannot be ignored. You will have to spend time familiarizing newly hired employees with the rules and conditions of working under the roof of your business. Your investment will quickly pay off.

How can I be sure the dedicated team is up and running?

Let's face it, communicating with remote teams poses some trust issues. You can't look over a developer's shoulder and see what they're doing, you can't know how many breaks employees take per day. However, working cohesively remotely isn't all that difficult. Set up communication rules appropriate for all team members. Use online collaboration tools, set call times and working hours. Yet the key to productive teamwork is trust and demonstrating it to your employees.

We hope that we managed to dispel at least some of your doubts.

When is it time to hire a dedicated team?

Let's move on to specific cases.

You need lower employment costs

There may be no ability/resources to hire in-house. In some countries, the cost of hiring in-house employees can indeed be a fortune for a business. For example, the average UK startup spends around £23,000 on organizational and administrative costs, not including product development, marketing and payroll.

Hiring a dedicated team will save you a lot of money. Almost your only expenses will be the fixed monthly payments (provider fee plus developer salary).

You are looking to build an MVP and/or scale your product as quickly as possible

Market expansion and new product launches require a company to have not just additional employees, but also a well-coordinated team of experienced technicians. In this case, the MVP is viewed not only as an MVP but also as a standalone enterprise in need of sustainable growth. You will need specialists to build processes, develop a strategy, build a community around a product, provide detailed analytics, and so on.

You’re focused on long-term cooperation and there is no technical specialist on your side

Let's be honest - there is no point in hiring an augmented team for a short-term project. A scalable, multi-level, sophisticated product is where a dedicated team comes into play. Keep doing what you are particularly good at - business environment, market research, calculations - and entrust technical issues to the extended team technical manager.

You need flexibility in managing a development team

You can have both a small development team and a large development team at hand, depending on the stage the product is at. For example, a UX/UI designer will be needed at the first stages, but their involvement may be reduced later. Unfortunately, this is not the case if you hire in-house.

Benefits a dedicated software development team brings to you

Imagine being given a difficult task that can't be completed using only your skills. But the deadline is tight, too tight to spend time looking for a solution. Time is running out. What are you supposed to do?

The good news is that you have a friend by your side who supports you by taking over the hardest part of the assignment. A dedicated team is that friend of yours. If you're still on the fence deciding whether to hire a dedicated team, here are some strong arguments for hiring.

They are committed to results

New engineers are open to making quick changes to a previously approved action plan, delivering interim deliverables and holding regular meetings. A dedicated team is the same as your in-house team but in a different country. You can easily hire a dedicated software development team in Ukraine by simply emailing us. Our services are of utmost importance if you plan to scale your project or if some rare skill set is required.

Proven technical expertise at your fingertips

Experienced professionals are well aware of all the possible pitfalls of the software development process, therefore, they will promptly respond to the encountered difficulty and provide an effective solution. Dedicated team members will complement each other in terms of competence, and everyone will try their best.

Your recruiting issues are solved by a vendor

It is believed that nearly half of employers have difficulty finding and hiring the right people. With this in mind, consider how much faster your product creation process will be if you hire a dedicated team. A software development service provider will take care of all the hassle of finding the right experts.

You are free from paperwork

Your contractor will take care of all paperwork and legal issues. Considering that the work process usually involves various office issues such as equipment difficulties, power and Internet outages, sick leave, etc., the prospect of getting rid of these worries by hiring a dedicated team looks even more attractive, doesn't it?

Additional benefits of having a dedicated team:

• Full control over the team.
• Easy access to specialists and the ability to make changes quickly.
• Full developers' immersion in your business.
• Prospects for project growth and product value retention by bringing in valuable technical specialists to support your project.
• Adaptation of a dedicated team to your time zone.
• Technically sophisticated project implementation that makes it more market competitive.

Need a team right now? You can stop looking for engineers by choosing the DDI Development team as your trusted partner.

What are the benefits of working with us? The main benefits are briefly listed below.

Benefits of hiring a dedicated team when working with DDI Development

Experienced in working with different verticals. Our team brings together specialists from different verticals with different life and professional backgrounds. These aspects contribute to creating a product that best meets the needs of your clients.

Coherence and innovation blended together. Years of teamwork mean that our actions are streamlined, speeding up work on every new project. Not only do we use tried-and-tested approaches, but we also offer our vision based on experience with different challenges and goals.

Your requirements are at the heart. DDI Development company does not provide a typical team of specialists to work on every client project. Quite the opposite. We team up to meet the specific customer project requirements. In any case, it will be a cohesive team of highly motivated professionals with the expertise to implement the necessary product features and capabilities.

The team is ready in the shortest possible time. We can put a team together at your request. The progress of each expert will be available to you, allowing you to monitor the process and respond to changes in a timely manner.

What is behind the term “Dedicated DDI Development team”?

In addition to all of the above, let's list the aspects that accompany each of our clients' projects:

• Privacy and data security;
• Control and flexibility at the same time;
• Ability to adjust team size and development costs;
• Integration with your business processes;
• The product owner is you.

The team you should start with largely depends on the scope of tasks and time frame, as well as your business goals. To agree on terms of cooperation, let us know when you're ready, even if you are still on the fence about deciding on an IT service provider.

Bottom line

As is already clear, a dedicated team is one of the most complex but profitable collaboration models. Although it may seem to be all about software development, it actually covers much deeper issues. It is not only the experience and skills of the technicians that are crucial, but also the negotiation skills of the project manager, the sales manager, and the C-level people.

At the same time, this model is flexible and suitable for any type and size of the company. Even a novice enterprise can get the most out of this type of collaboration. To take that first confident step toward your product being made by skilled professionals, just contact us. We will do our best to make a fruitful collaboration happen.