There is no absolute right way to the process of software development, whether it is web application, mobile app, or an hybrid application solution. Software developers and businesses can choose from a range of several different approaches for creating software. Developing and releasing software for clients or as Saas products is not just about code or design alone; but also about seamless process architecture and development practices.
If you are running a Software Development Company, here are five things you must know without exception:
1. Code Reviews are Non-Negotiable
When your team of software developers writes the code for a product, get acceptance testers to test it. Validate the belief that the piece of code is ready to become a full-fledged software product. Allow the team to craft a suitable code review process in collaboration with your client. Establishing a peer code review program that works across team boundaries is an essential component of agile methodology.
Not only are peer reviews an effective way to improve software quality by reducing defects upstream, but they also offer a renewed focus on interaction and collaboration. Allow the software development team to explain how the code accomplishes the goals laid out in the schematic. The purpose of the code review process must be to establishing accountability within the team and client satisfaction.
2. Show Commitment Towards the Customers’ Success
No matter whether you offer custom software development services to businesses or have a Saas product, it is essential to keep clients satisfied. If you are a SaaS company, work on ensuring recurring revenue from existing customers and try to keep churn rates low. A reasonable customer attrition rate would stick to single digits.
Have a dedicated team at the workplace that works exclusively to monitor customer usage levels, send them product updates, and get satisfaction surveys filled from them. Having the customer- service team trained in sales gives you leverage over your competitors. Host customer-advisory board sessions to ensure you cater to your customer’s pain points.
3. Be Vigilant and Pivot Seamlessly
If you are a software development company building custom software for a client, passing the review process isn’t all. While your software product may seem ready on paper, it might be not deployment-ready. Be prepared for scenarios where the code fails. You may have to roll back into production with a new refurbished software development plan.
In case you are working on a Saas product, getting to the MVP stage is a huge milestone. Test the product and learn from the feedback you get. Marketing campaigns built around the Saas concept that highlight the pain points it solves; can validate the idea even before you make the product. Open up a free beta period to the people who opt-in through marketing channels, give them questionnaires to fill and gather crucial customer data.
Increase your beta user list and offer free one-on-one demos to signees, so that you can learn how to provide a better experience or products to serve them. Never hesitate to pivot the direction of the product if it doesn’t gel with the need of your target audience.
4. Post Release Assessment is the Secret to Long term Profitability of a Software Development Company
If you believe that delivering a working product that suits the needs of your clients is the end of the game, you are sadly mistaken. What is a wise man who doesn’t learn from his mistakes? Regardless of the outcome, the software development process needs to be assessed in great detail after it ends.
Answering insightful questions about software testing, estimates, profitability, client expectations, and implementation process brings out the flaws in the software development process. Once configured, you can easily avoid in upcoming projects. Some basic questions that every software development team must collectively answer at the end of the development process can be:
- Were the testing scenarios an apt replica of actual production scenarios?
- How was the product performance when the team revisited the implementation and testing of checkpoints?
- Is the product running well in production?
- How accurate were timeline and cost estimates made before the software development process?
It is also essential to gain feedback from the operations team and the client to improve the overall process followed at the company. Aim for accountability from the development team during the review process to avoid team members from dodging responsibilities. Revisiting the process, in the end, sheds light on discrepancies and paves paths to profitability in future procedures.
5. No Successful Software Development Company aims for Hyper-Growth
Creating hyper-growth is short-term thinking to achieve inflated valuations for funding and acquisitions. Contrary to popular industry beliefs, entering a blind can be detrimental to a software development business. Be more than just profit-minded, and resist outside cut-throat competition and pressure for hyper-growth.
On the other hand, a steady eye on the progress of our product, focus on market fit, and smooth functioning of the company add up to be key ingredients to success. Build a slow-moving business development strategy that increases revenues and user base month by month.
If you are a software development company with a SaaS product, focus on creating long term chains of recurring payments. The revenue pool, when scaled steadily, can comfortably accommodate new costs like server expansion or fresh recruits to help offset bugs.
It helps you to judiciously utilize resources till the time you are ready to scale. Scaling conservatively also provides a beautiful learning curve to your team and prepares them for more significant challenges in the workspace.
Conclusion
Running a Software Development Company with success is all about the seamlessness synchronization of the process and people involved in it. The aim should be to engage the team in building an easily repeatable process for every single member. Best practices include encouragement for adjusting the development process after every run-through to achieve the desired end product.
We hope the pointers mentioned above will help you achieve more significant successes in the software development space you function.
