Best Practices for Software Development Teams

Evans corporation states that software developer count will grow from 26.4 million in 2019 to 28.7 million in 2024. Such demand for developers warrants the importance of software in the future. Even small business owners are switching to online platforms to save on infrastructure and labor costs. However, 31.1 percent of software projects get canceled before completion. Other studies suggest that 80 percent of development projects fail due to wrong forecasts, poor implementation, budgetary and resource problems. That’s why it’s important to adhere to best practices in the field to complete projects within budget and time.

Practices for Software Development Team in 2022

‍Define your Goals

‍Establishing your goals in the process’s beginning is critical to keep the team focused on them. You might want to achieve certain features within a certain timeline and cost. Elaborate on these goals and make them specific to guide your overall planning process. Aligning these goals with your stakeholders’ expectations will also help you achieve success with your project.

If you’re a software firm, always consider resource availability before you commit to deadlines. Evaluate and estimate the entire work, and quantify it in hours to understand better. If the client is pressing for stricter deadlines, explain why you’ll need extra hours to fulfill their requirements. Re-negotiate and agree on the plan only if they seem achievable. For firms specializing in HR software, managing resources effectively is crucial to meet client expectations without compromising on quality.

For customers, we recommend that you distinguish your needs and wants. Initially, you should focus on your needs.  If there's budget left, use these funds to get optional features as well! Also, realistically understand that some features may be more difficult to achieve than the others. If you’re aiming for a risky goal, inform your stakeholders in advance to prepare them for any mishaps. While it’s good to have firm goals, make sure they remain flexible to circumstances.

‍Hire the Best Talent

Software Development Team Good talent is difficult to find and impossible to let go of! Your project’s success heavily depends on your staff members. So, take your time and pick the right people to lead and run your teams. Consider relevant skills, experience, and personal responsibilities while choosing your dream team. Even within your team, assign the right task to the right person. You could also aid your team through various tools to boost productivity and efficiency. Equip your staff with the latest tools like PCs, hardware, development and testing tools, and automation tools to put their effort into good use. 85.71 percent of startups use Slack for communication purposes.

‍Use the Modular Approach

‍Software projects are huge and it’s impossible to tackle all features at once. Hence, you need to chop the overall task into manageable chunks. Initially, focus on outlining your tasks and breaking them down into basic components. Through this approach, you can easily allocate work to your development team. Additionally, you also isolate bugs and treat them well earlier. Hence, this approach contributes to the success of your software project.

‍Consider Agile Methods

If you’re still using the waterfall model to build code, you’re missing out on a lot! It’s no surprise that most customers don’t know what they exactly want. Hence, they may shift goalposts often, and increase your costs and efforts. Instead of wasting time following traditional methods, consider going the agile way. In agile programming, coders develop, test, and change software every two to four weeks. After each iteration, you involve your customers to offer feedback on a smaller deliverable. By failing early and incorporating feedback initially, you save time, efforts, and improve your product’s quality. Agile methods are 15 percent more successful than traditional projects. So, try changing the way you develop software to improve your results considerably.

‍Don’t Miss out on Testing

Similar to first drafts, the first code isn’t great either. Even the most well-written code needs rigorous testing. Also, a developer may forget to address some concerns or fill gaps. Many such issues can arise due to the lack of testing. Various testing tools, both manual and automated, can help you reduce bugs and test for user acceptance well. Common testing best practices include practices like the unit, integration, overall, and user acceptance tests.

‍Take your Time

‍Code development is a time-consuming process. Coders responsible for business-critical tasks need to carefully write code that doesn’t mess up operations. Shortcuts may save time initially. However, there’s no guarantee that its correction will not take more time than its development. Many developers obsess over writing perfect code from the get-go. This bad habit may compromise on coding best practices like simplicity and functionality. Hence, it’s critical to take time while coding initially to avoid all these pitfalls.

‍Document Everything

Documentation, an extremely underrated process, outline features, functionalities, and troubleshooting directions in detail. Every software needs to ensure it’s easy to evolve and accommodate future requirements. Even after the coding process, programmers try to find new ways to do the same things, add new features, and upgrade processes for speed. If you switch software firms, ensure you get comprehensive documents from your current developers. When you choose a new firm, these documents will help them understand your systems and support you effortlessly.

‍Consider Outsourcing

‍In 2017, 33.3 percent of firms outsourced their software development, and 78 percent of them feel positive about that decision. If you’re not technically savvy, outsourcing your development to a reputed firm might be a great choice! You get to choose among the best firms to create the best software for your business. However, if your internal team can do a good job, outsourcing may not be the right choice for you. Ultimately, make a decision based on what suits your firm the most.

Conclusion

52.7 percent of software projects go over budget by 189 percent. So, businesses need to use software development best practices to their advantage. When you look at software development, consider its long-term impact while making critical decisions. We hope these points helped you improve your software development processes.

With a partner like Invensis, you can be assured of end-to-end software application development services for any requirement that your company has. We understand the importance of speed-to-market and the best quality, and our team of experienced software development professionals focuses on delivering these.

With considerable experience in providing custom software application development services, Invensis can add value at any stage of the lifecycle. We also have the capability to work on multiple platforms and domains. For your convenience and business needs, we offer an onsite, offshore or offsite model