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Blog Summary:
This blog takes you through the various factors that affect the structure of a team when recruiting a team. It’s a handy guide for tech decision-makers who are often in a dilemma about which approach they should take to avoid common pitfalls. At the end, you’ll have your answers on why your organization should outsource skills to ensure you have the right member for the right role.
Table of Content
A strong software development team works like a well-fueled machine, with each team member contributing to the project’s success.
Building a software development team is a decisive step to every thriving project. However, for Project Managers, structuring the team the right way is a skill that involves adding members who have both technical and soft skills.
Building a team with experts who know the importance of project planning and adaptability in facing project-related challenges is crucial. Here’s why:
It all boils down to the fact that a groundbreaking project idea can soon become a failure if there isn’t the right team to execute that vision. Keep reading ahead as we explore more the importance of having a proper team structure, the best practices, and strategies that Project Managers can use to enhance their productivity.
Your product’s success depends on people. Even while the absence of some specialists may seem natural during the development phase, it may have an impact in the end.
For instance, if you hire a high-end designer but your team lacks UX knowledge, it might leave your development team puzzled. Why? Because the team doesn’t have enough knowledge, and the designer is a specialist in excellent graphics and animations. They will be puzzled while using the software. If such a specialist is off the team, you will receive expertly built software with unmatched functionality, but it will fall short of meeting the needs of consumers. The user-centric nature of the software or application you are creating calls for focusing more on satisfying the user’s needs.
Along with users, when developers enjoy the process, it reflects on the product. You have made a stunning app, but the journey counts more than the destination, so what about if, during the project, the developers are stuck in bureaucratic formalities or if you can’t predict the delivery tasks? It is good to know beforehand the preferred road to your destination. A brief comparison between the two most adopted approaches while building a dream team of developers is helpful in the development process.
The traditional development follows a step-by-step approach, i.e. only when the previous phase is completed it jumps to the next phase. In contrast, the agile approach is more iterative and flexible. Additionally, Agile is a more accepted model when security is a priority in a project. The traditional approach is less reliable when security is a critical parameter in a project.
The traditional approach is used when simple software is designed; on the contrary, the agile approach is implemented for complex software or apps.
An agile environment is more feasible when working on projects that demand frequent changes, whereas, in the traditional approach, the changes in a project are difficult to implement due to its step-by-step execution. You’ll have to re-run the whole project after making changes.
In a traditional setup, the ownership lies with the project managers making the team members feel less responsible. However, in an agile team structure, the team members share ownership of the software project, increasing responsibility and transparency.
Drive success by optimizing your software development squad with industry-leading experts.
Start Building Your Dream Team
A great team is formed with a leader and its members holding different roles to contribute to the development process.
A standard software development team structure comprises a business analyst, a product owner, project managers, a product designer, a software architect, software developers, software testing engineers (including test automation engineers), and DevOps engineers. These roles are adjusted in a team depending on the requirements.
A dedicated software development team is generally more helpful in remote partnership projects. It is very much suitable for budding start-ups and well-accepted firms as well. It is an ideal pick when:
These factors call for a dedicated software development team for the project.
To answer the “how”, starting with a clear vision of your product is a good idea. Other factors include researching the market, listing requirements, and talking with the company. It helps in aligning with the decision of choosing an effective software development team. Depending on the need and the type of project, the team is chosen with expertise and skill.
Building products with unclear defined goals leads to confusion. It causes unnecessary delays in the project delivery time. Hence, understanding the client’s expectations and then delegating the tasks to the project’s team members is crucial. The agile team structure resolves this challenge in the requirement phase.
The complexity of a project increases due to changing requirements in a project. The traditional approach and Agile development methodology have an initial phase for listing the requirements.
However, it becomes a problem in the traditional approach since it is step-by-step. So updating the changing requirements becomes an issue. With the Agile team, this can be avoided as it has flexibility.
Poorly communicated tasks often lead to wrong execution. Poor communication with clients will affect the understanding of business requirements among the team members, leading to conflicts and improper execution. Agile team structure encourages teamwork to increase efficiency and, in turn, effective communication.
Interpersonal disputes between the software testing teams and software developers are inevitable. These disputes are brought on by various factors, including the fundamentally different nature of development and testing, working under high-performance pressure, distinct attitudes, different job responsibilities, and different perspectives. If these arguments are not properly controlled and managed, they could severely impact the overall project.
Your development teams need to be comprehensively aware of their challenges. They also need a plan in place for how to solve them to be successful. Why? Because the software business is dynamic, highly influenced by shifting technological trends and tested by numerous internal and external forces.
It is challenging to meet the recent market trends in a world where the transition from mobiles to AI took no time. If you don’t have access to knowledgeable resources about the newest and most well-accepted technology market trends, your time to market will surely suffer.
To keep your resources current, make sure they are always improving their skills. This entails keeping abreast of market trends and looking into new software and technology trends as they emerge.
The common question while building a dream team is – “Are there any team structures to follow? And if yes, how many types of team structures are used in software development?”
There are broadly three approaches – Generalists, Specialists, and Hybrid. Let’s look at them in detail.
A generalist team has professionals with general skills and experience. Every team member has a general knowledge of many products but not in depth. It is like “Jack of All, King of None.” They form the basis for each team and are apt for small and simple projects.
Everyone on the team has experience in a specific area but needs to familiarize themselves with the broader development concerns. In such a team, each member is sufficiently knowledgeable about their respective specialty or technology to handle a specific task.
A team with this kind of makeup ensures the quality of your projects. However, it might be easier for separate professionals to speak with one another with a moderator.
The hybrid team is made up of both experts and generalists. Hybrid teams can typically get started on the project and then focus on more specific aspects as needed.
Compared to other forms, the hybrid team structure method wins the day as a mix of both worlds. As a result, many startup co-founders see this format as being the most effective among all others keeping in mind the project scope.
However, there are drawbacks to the hybrid team structure, and one of them is communication. Given that they practice in many fields and specialties, it could be difficult for hybrid specialists to reach a consensus on certain topics. The key here is, again, excellent facilitation.
The type of software determines the type of team. The skill level and expertise needed for simple or web apps differ from those for complex software or applications like Uber, Facebook, etc.
Every project requires a unique skill set and tech to work on. Therefore it raises the need to hire people with dedicated skills. A simple project can be accomplished with fewer team members, or a whole team of generalists can work.
Here the flexibility of an agile environment helps as you hire people with specialized skills and can opt for hybrid or generalists. Defined roles and responsibilities effectively impact the team and, eventually, the software projects.
Budgeting is another step that can “make or break” your project. Sometimes it becomes expensive to hire a person with a unique skill set and not get any results. The key to excellent management is to use the budget efficiently to get the best pool of talent and success in the project.
The number of members included in the software projects depends on the project type. For example, only generalists can suffice the need for a small and simple project.
However, generalists and specialists, or hybrids, are equally needed for more extensive and complex projects with tight deadlines. Optimal team size, including the team lead, depends on the business objectives and software project type.
Get expert advice on recruiting the precise type of team you need for your project.
Choose the Right People
In Agile teams, the project manager is responsible for the flow of the project. Responsibilities include timely delivery of the project with an agreed budget. A project manager is also responsible for guaranteeing that the project will abide by the defined quality standards.
Once the product is developed, its success depends on how well it is marketed. A business analyst bridges business requirements with technology. The main objective of business analysts is to analyze customer and market trends and place the product exactly where it is needed.
A scrum master has a distinct place in an agile team. The Scrum Master takes on the responsibilities of a mentor and agile team facilitator. They facilitate the team’s comprehension and use of Agile ideas and practices, take out roadblocks to progress, and ensure the Agile teams run smoothly. The Scrum Master also conducts meetings like sprint planning, retrospectives, and daily stand-ups.
The prime goal of a software architect is to design the technical architecture of the project, which is technically feasible and has a good business model. Deep knowledge of governance and policies is a must for a software architect. A brownie point is an excellent coding experience and awareness of emerging tech.
The reason it is called a software development team is because it is made up of front-end and back-end software developers. Their sole responsibility is to code the front-end and back-end of the project.
Their primary role is developing “what the user can see”. Their main objective is to develop a visually appealing software interface. A good front-end developer knows front-end and back-end as well.
A front-end developer must know how the front end will interact with the back end. Some typical front-end developer responsibilities are developing cross-device responsive pages, usability, and coding to fetch data from various layers.
The back-end developer is responsible for managing the underlying logic, setting up the database, configuring the servers, and integrating third-party APIs. These are some core duties of a back-end developer. They have to coordinate with front-end developers to implement the logic seamlessly.
DevOps is implemented for efficient interaction between the development and IT team. A software engineer is particularly given the post of DevOps engineer to abridge the two departments.
Companies can proficiently implement automated, optimized, and cost-effective workflow with DevOps. Some responsibilities of a DevOps engineer are maintaining CI/CD pipelines, release cycle optimization, providing cloud solutions, etc.
User experience and User Interface are the most important aspects of designing. A common trait of all successful software or applications is the ease of use and experience for the user. UI/UX designers are responsible for the end-users usability and the user interface’s aesthetics.
Quality assurance is the phase where the finished product is tested. QA engineers test the final product to determine whether it suits the user without crashes or failures.
The agile software development methodology is trending due to its flexible approach and defined roles and responsibilities from product managers to team members.
Flexibility is the USP of Agile principles. The traditional approach opts for step-by-step execution of any project, whereas Agile is perfect for ever-changing needs in a project. An agile team responds with effective flexibility in such projects accepting the need for evolution in projects.
The agile team structure approach boosts teamwork. The model promotes collaboration as a unit. Cooperation is something that builds teamwork leading to the success of any project.
These values align very well with the core organizational values. The Agile software development team thrives better in a teamwork environment. Clearly defined roles are also important to avoid conflicts among the agile teams.
A user-centric approach helps define a vision clearly. The final goal is to accommodate the software for users. The agile team addresses a user-centric approach and makes it feasible.
An agile team environment encourages iterative development and everlasting improvement. Organizational values advocate improvement, and continuous incremental improvements can be achieved with regular feedback and learning.
When your organizational goals align with these Agile team structure approaches, opting for it is wise. It helps make changes easy, increases productivity, and makes collaboration feasible.
When working in agile teams, communication plays an important role. Effective communication starts with the product owner and project manager delegating the responsibilities to UI/UX designers expressing their concerns about the user interface. The whole software development process depends on and works well when the key ideas are flowing through all the channels amongst the team members.
Building a software development team structure is a part of the software development lifecycle (SDLC). The approach you take in your software development team structure depends on you. Whether you choose traditional or agile while building the team structure depends on your business needs, project requirements, and developers’ skills.
Both of these processes have different levels of flexibility, ownership, transparency, and approaches to problem-solving. Agile team structures are becoming increasingly popular over traditional ones, allowing for more control and close team member collaboration.
Whatever strategy is used, the ultimate objective is to create software applications that are effective, secure, and simple software applications. Moon Technolabs is proud to have served numerous organizations as their go-to source for software development.
We serve as an extended team for these firms, carrying out all the necessary groundwork to assemble the proper team, implement the proper processes, and abide by policy requirements. Contact us to learn more about how we can assist you in creating and maintaining your SDLC and helping you build your dream team.
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Jayanti Katariya is the CEO of Moon Technolabs, a fast-growing IT solutions provider, with 18+ years of experience in the industry. Passionate about developing creative apps from a young age, he pursued an engineering degree to further this interest. Under his leadership, Moon Technolabs has helped numerous brands establish their online presence and he has also launched an invoicing software that assists businesses to streamline their financial operations.
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