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Software development consulting: benefits, pros, and cons

10.02.2023

#App Development
#Custom Software Development

The time is coming when every business will need to have its website or mobile application. The level of digitalization is now reaching incredible proportions, and companies that remain outside the digital world risk becoming uncompetitive very soon. But where should a business start its journey into IT? What systems should be implemented? What kind of employees do you need? If you’re thinking about digitalizing your systems and processes for the first time, these and many other questions may be on your mind. But there is a solution: you can order software consulting services and find answers to all your questions. This article will tell you what it is and how to work with consulting services.

What is it?

The first and quite logical question you already have is, what is a software consultant? In simple terms, it is an expert or a group of experts in IT and related fields. These experts can analyze the current state of your systems, point out possible options and directions for work and development, and advise where to start and how to build the process. Also, such consultants can help even companies that have had their own IT part for years. After all, there is also a problem that large corporations face. The problem is that many processes are bureaucratized in such a large structure, and it takes a long time to make decisions, even about changing software. That is why the systems of such companies have become outdated and have not been updated for years. And if such a business is going to start everything, so to speak, “from scratch,” software development consulting experts can help start this process and point out what methods and systems to choose and make them modern.

How can it help

Starting development, you will encounter a number of issues that need to be resolved. And if you lack experience or need an outside perspective, software engineering consulting services are exactly what you need. They can point you in the right direction or even provide specific solutions to such issues:

  • Choosing a programming language, framework, and technology in general.

What programming languages have you heard of? Python, JS, C++ are the most popular… But these are not all available programming languages. Besides, do you know the difference between them and which language is better to choose for which cases? Such decisions require an expert or at least a Senior developer with 5+ years of experience who knows and uses a long list of technologies. In addition, new opportunities appear almost every day, and even the programming languages themselves are evolving and improving. To develop the most modern software that will cover your company’s needs, it is worth asking for advice before making the final choice of technology.

  • Setting up processes in the team.

There are different methodologies that a development team can use. You may not have to apply common methodologies and develop your work system if you have a small in-house team. It is often recommended for large teams, outsourced workers, and remote employees to work according to SCRAM or other similar methodologies. The consultant will be able to tell you in detail about the features of the available options, as well as advise you on the best way to proceed. After all, every business is unique, and you need to consider its peculiarities when making any decisions.

  • The choice of employees.

Speaking of the team. There is a high probability that you still need to have the right specialists on staff. In this case, a software development consultancy will tell you what specialists you need and why. If you’ve never experienced the world of IT before, it may surprise you that 10+ people can work on a single project — depending on its complexity, of course. In addition, you always have a choice: hire an in-house team or sign a contract with a contractor. Both options have pros and cons. For example, an in-house team is usually more familiar with your company’s context and knows all the procedural peculiarities of internal processes. A contractor is often a more profitable and faster solution because you don’t need to spend resources on hiring each employee and then provide the team with tasks after the main development stage is over.

  • Strategy formation.

Another thing that a software consultant does is help build a strategy for developing and growing a software product. What features should be implemented first? Do you need an MVP? What indicators will measure the effectiveness of the created website, application, or software? It can be quite challenging to develop a roadmap and set clear criteria.

  • Additional technologies.

Everyone has probably heard of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and cloud technologies. However, practice shows that not all software requires these technologies. A consultant will help you figure out whether it makes sense to use something from the list in your case. And if so, they will tell you where to start and how to do it right.

  • Increasing the level of staff knowledge.

Another possible function of IT consulting software is your staff’s training and professional development. Lectures on new technologies and their implementation, reviewing the current state of systems, analyzing indicators, and suggesting ways to improve them can also be a consultant’s responsibility. Given how quickly new technologies are emerging and becoming popular, even experienced programmers, project managers, testers, and designers may need to upgrade their skills.

What to look for

When choosing where to seek advice, pay attention to the following factors:

  • Examples of completed projects.
  • Feedback from those who have already used the services.
  • The level of education and experience of the expert or group of experts.
  • Pricing policy.

Most often, such services are provided by companies that develop and implement software. Therefore, we recommend you also study other services offered by such a company. After all, to be an expert and understand the issue, you need to have experience in consulting and working directly on projects. Therefore, please pay attention to what projects the company implements, what technologies it works with, and what feedback it has on completed projects.

Where to order the service

The Magnise team will be happy to help you get started on creating or optimizing your digital tools. We will thoroughly study the issue you are interested in and suggest the best solutions to help you achieve your desired goal. All our employees have many years of experience and the ability to work with different technologies.

Sign up for a consultation, and we’ll discuss everything during a live conversation.

Content

  • What is it?
  • How can it help
  • What to look for

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