Questions To Ask When Hiring Software Development Team

You have decided to hire developers who will create the basis for your project, identify solutions and ways to improve the application. However, it’s one of the highest first costs for the company, which means you should make your choice carefully.

This is why you need to devote extra attention and time to searching and interviewing before hiring a software development company. This article will help you make a decision and ask the right questions.

What experience do you have in my field?

The more your team understands your business, the better they will implement your project. However, it can be challenging to find professionals with experience in all aspects of the business.

It will be expected that the development team will take time to study your client, your market, and your business models. Most likely, they will ask you questions and learn as much as possible about your project. In many ways, the team should become substitute “experts” in your niche and field. Thus, it will inform the user and ensure that the desired results can be achieved with the intended use of the software.

What about a team structure?

You need to know how potential development teams will manage the project from big goals to small details.

There are so many different command structures, and there is no one “right” option.

It would be best if you asked about clear leadership and responsibility in the team structure. Also, check if there are UX / UI designers and project managers who can work on your project too.

The project manager will help make sure the development team understands your business model and target audience to develop a product that your customers love.

This is why you should choose an IT company that provides development services and cares about understanding what you and your customers need.

How do you communicate?

The main goal is to get open communication and ongoing transparency throughout the development process.

Technology allows us to communicate in many different ways, as many aspects of a project need to be expressed differently.

Various quick questions can go through informal channels, while more formal inquiries require other means of communication.

What type of access will I have?

It is crucial to know what is happening on your project. A trusted development company will have no problem giving you access to the tools you need so you can track your progress. For example, you can ask for access to channels like this:

• Source code (Gitlab, Github);
• Project management tool (JIRA, Trello, Asana, etc.);
• Communication tools (Slack, Skype, or similar);
• Access to the project management board.

Will you sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA)?

Depending on your business and project, you may need a confidentiality agreement. It imposes fines if a development company discloses classified information without your knowledge. Many teams easily agree to sign such a document, but you need to be sure of this before granting the development team access to any of your resources or systems.

What resources will you need from me?

Depending on the nature and scope of your project, your team may need some resources from you, such as AWS space, access to tools to create integrations or documentation for existing systems.

How do you ensure product quality?

It is impossible to develop a product without errors or clearly according to your idea. But there are several ways you can keep them to a minimum.

Let’s start with validation/verification, which answers the questions: “This is what I asked for” and “This is what I want.” It might seem like the main idea is that what you asked for will be what you wanted, but this is rarely the case. Your requirements document is the key to your desired outcome. The challenge is to make sure that this is precisely what you want.

Therefore, you should check with your development team to make sure they advise you ahead of time on any implementation strategy for any critical functionality.

Another part of quality is the user interface. Are text boxes, widgets, tables, images, etc., aligned? Are there overlapping objects? Is the user interface well consistent? The developers themselves are not always well versed in the user side of the application. To keep your application looking professional, check and make sure a dedicated team is on the team.

Finally, the application is tested to ensure there are no bugs. Unit testing is the first step. In addition, you should test the use cases for all types of users. This should be done by a QA team experienced in regular testing of various applications.

Can you provide references?

In this case, it is essential to communicate with past clients before starting a relationship with a software company. Unfortunately, there are not enough cases. Talk to past clients about the success of their project, any difficulties in the work, and if they would like to work with this development team again.

If the company does not provide such links, treat this as a wake-up call.

How do you deal with challenges?

This may seem like a pointless question. But this is where problems arise. At the beginning of the project, you received an estimate of the work to be done. This was based on a detailed project document. Thus, any change entails a change in value. If you don’t have an endless budget, this issue can become essential or very costly.

Most people see the application evolve as the project progresses. New ideas and new features to be added are natural progress. So that you don’t have to face a huge bill, it’s wise to have a clear and transparent change control process. Make sure the development team notifies you of any additional costs associated with the change. Depending on your budget, you may require no changes to be made until you have approved the estimate.

Conclusion

As you can see, the questions are essential! The development team will need to provide you with world-class service and treat you as a valuable partner. You, in turn, will need to exercise due diligence before starting a working relationship. Be sure to ask these questions to the developers you will be interviewing to understand better if you are the right fit for each other.