Top factors to consider when evaluating a Software Development Vendor

Software development plays a crucial role in every company. As businesses compete, those in possession of the latest tech are winning the battle. Outsourcing Enterprise software development has a number of benefits such as

• Eliminating manual efforts,
• Reducing human errors,
• Custom processes for development
• A Well-placed organized system tracking time and milestones achieved.

Choosing a software development company may be your priority at the moment but given the number of choices available it can get a bit tricky. That is exactly why in this article, LKMA Inc. has put together a simple yet effective approach when it comes to picking out the right development company. This article is based on our personal experience from the past 2 decades as an enterprise software developing vendor and suggestions and tips, we received from our long-term clients and experienced developers.
Business list
First things first create a List Having a business list helps you place your priorities in check. This helps your company avoid any shinny unnecessary offers and focus only on what is on your list. List down what are the specifications and aspects of your project you wish to address. Create a list based on

• Objective of the project - what is the objective you wish to achieve through this project? Is your chosen developer equipped to understand and deliver the same?
• Milestones review - how often can you review each milestone reached. What sort of assurance and milestone reviews does the developer promise?
• KPI’s - what are the key performance indicators (KPI) and how will it affect your project?
• Complexity of project - the complexity of the project can determine the effort and time it will consume. Is it a simple project or does it require extra resources? Your pricing and project final product can be affected by this vital factor so make sure to have a clear idea.

Check for company credentials
Knowing your vendors is important. Check whether

• The company has experience in the given subject? Does the company have expertise in the given topic?
• Does the company have required certifications? Certification, expertise and credibility are very important. It helps you avoid unnecessary risks related to software development as you have made sure to eliminate any such vendor that does not match your requirements.
• How does the vendor offer support and performance reviews? As mentioned above tracking KPIs and milestones save your project from missing deadlines. Talk to your vendor and previous clients who can confirm whether the vendor was able to deliver the project on time.

Customer reviews and Portfolio.
Every business has a different approach. Reviews and feedback by their previous customers can help you understand how the company works and delivers and also evaluate your options. A good portfolio also shows the expertise and usual company size that the vendor works with. If they only have large companies, they may not devote enough time to your product or the other hand a small start-up may have less experience under their belt.
Agility
The primary goal of most businesses is to grow. So, it’s important to consider if your software development vendor will be able to handle a scale-up? The product and the vendor both have to be flexible and agile in a way to assist any growth-related challenges you face. The last thing you need is to re-evaluate and purchase new software due to the previous one being rigid or incompatible.
Communication
Communication may not be one of the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of specifications. But it does play a vital role in delivering the project you have envisioned. Here are some key reasons to consider in order to communicate better with the other party

• Convey what it is that the project needs to achieve. - your service provider should have through knowledge and understanding of what it is that your company aims to achieve through this project.
• Ask for a simplified and adaptive approach- often the sales team are in charge of selling you the service may or may not understand the software you wish to achieve in detail. Ensure your requirements are conveyed to the developers in an accurate fashion.
• Meet with the developers- as mentioned above, it is the team of developers who are in charge of your project. Meet with them so it helps you and their team relate and understand each better, making it easier to work with.
• Ask about safety- when projects are outsourced one main concern is the safety and security of data shared. The vendor must be able to assure you of active security protocols in place that ensure safety of any and every data (client/ customer) on your software.

Core Competencies
The people working on your project and the capabilities or access to resources are very important. Core competencies, simply put is asserting that the team working on your project are capable of delivering it. Here is what your core competencies checklist should include

• Are they skilled with the required set of platforms and languages your project may require?
• Can the vendor party provide a dedicated Development team that works solely on your project?
• In case of resources being unavailable does the vendor, have substitute resources available with the same skill set? Meaning, Does the vendor have a contingency plan?

Knowledge transfer and Exit process. In case of a breakup who gets the data? Some development vendors may charge a phenomenal exit fee or hold onto your data. It’s important to ask these questions in order to protect your business from any unforeseen losses. Knowledge transfer and training your employees and transfer of ownership are aspects of the contract that you have to pay special attention to as well. Besides the above-mentioned factors here are some other questions to always worth asking your vendor before making any decisions;

• Pricing compare the price that suits your budget the best.
• Training will they provide training and necessary knowledge transfer to your employees before and during deployment.
• Updates and upgrade management ask how will the vendors manage maintenance, updates and will they provide periodic upgrades etc.
• Ease of integration ask about how will the software work with your current business model, how complex is it, how well will it scale up in case of a company growth spurt etc.