You know the drill – every single year software development companies like ours publish articles about how to choose the right vendor. But those companies are not like ours. You see, when we hire developers, we only pick the best on the market. We will prove it below. When we use tools, we stay ahead with AI-enabled automation and enhancement software. Try to beat this “2 in 1 formula”. This is the recipe for 2024 and beyond.
Introduction
The problem with choosing a software vendor is that there are multiple options all around the world. You can choose between price, cultural fit, in-budget production cycle, and effect or a few other, important factors. You can also try to find a great agency that meets all these expectations. Yes, it’s possible. The challenge comes from understanding what makes them different than the others.
You can still have great software but it’s not going to stand out or not be entirely up to modern standards. Technology? Obsolete in a few years; that’s basically begging for a technical debt. You need someone who can build your app using a modern technology stack. Great price? If it’s too cheap, something is fishy.
Today, you need not only a great software development vendor. You don’t even need a tech and development-oriented consultant. Yes, that too. But what you need is an agency that can cover all your needs, while providing services like product discovery, where the initial idea for an app can be changed by the feedback from the development team.
If you want to know what is the best reasonable mix, scroll down to the section where we talk about ourselves – people, methodology or how to pick them, and AI tools. But first, let’s focus on how to choose the right vendor. And why it’s important to expect the best possible, not good enough services.
How to choose a software development partner? A step-by-step process guide
Here is a process you might consider following. We find it reasonable and practical; especially given modern, slightly limited market conditions and especially high level of client cautiones.
- Go through vendors you have found yourself or recommendations you have received from your employees, friends, etc. Create a list of 5 – 10 of the most promising and reasonably looking companies you feel match your requirements.
- Try to evaluate what you can. Read through case studies, blog, and other important website tabs. Get a lay of the land. Is there a culture fit? Does the company have the right experience, projects, people on board? Do you feel they can handle a project of your scale? Can they act like technology and business consultant, not only mere vendor?
- Pay attention to the technology stack. What was the process behind choosing a particular technology stack? What are the technologies? Can your CTO verify them on the go and say with eyes closed that yes, this sounds contemporary?
- Look if the vendor is industry-oriented. It’s important since focusing on only one or several industries guarantees the right talent hiring process, the right talent distribution, time and resources management. Not to mention deep knowledge about utilized technologies, frameworks, industry-specific market conditions and requirements, compliance regulations, etc.
- Narrow down the list from 5 – 10 to 3 companies. Prepare a list of questions you want to ask them. They can be about experience, people, tech, or price-related – it’s always good to mention it all. Main questions, and that’s beneficial for both parties, should be reserved for your project. That’s where the delivery department, as well as stakeholders on your side, can talk and establish a connection over business and tech-related issues. What do you want to achieve with the app? What’s the timeline, what budget do you have for the implementation of it all? Ask about the workflow as well – culture fit is not everything, operational fit is important as well.
- Choose the company you feel a connection with. No, really. There are great vendors out there, but only a handful of them can treat you and your product with care. It’s always end-users that bring money to the table and not necessarily all companies agree with that. A team that understands UX/UI and related matters, can be a good fit. Especially in fintech and health tech, where things like data visualization can make or break a product.
Some additional hints
There are also a few other things that we want to point out:
- Understanding the product and technology to create it is one thing. Understanding business logic is another. Find the team that can help you out with everything.
- At the same time, don’t believe teams that are full of “know-it-alls”. Industry and technology focus will get you everywhere you want to go. Pick the right vendor for your product and stick to what they know. If you find the right match, they will know everything there is to know and some. They will not make up answers or leave you with “I can find out and get back to you” routine every time you want to pop up a question.
- Openly communicate your needs and expectations. Ask about methods of streamlining the development process and ways to optimize the flow, and the product itself. Today there are many methods of elevating the creation, testing, and maintenance aspects of the development itself. A company that understands it and delivers high-quality code, can always offer additional market value.
Current market conditions and why should you care?
Recent years are very interesting. We have witnessed a massive hiring spike during COVID-19. As the number of projects grew, so did team sizes. Now, it seems layoffs are everywhere. The market overestimated the need for a high number of developers but there are still needs for quality services. The stagnation seems to be over but the turmoil of 2023 left many vendors behind.
Even giants like Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft with their Xbox division have been compelled to downsize their workforce on a massive scale. According to data, over 1600 tech employees were globally fired each day. On average, through the entire year. That translates into a nearly 40% increase from the 202,000 layoffs that occurred in 2022. According to Layoffs.fyi, 2023 shows that over 200,000 tech industry employees lost their jobs as of August 2023 when in 2022 it was through the entire year.
Over-hiring during the pandemic wasn’t enough factor for the situation. Economic ramification caused by it was quickly overshadowed by inflation, high interest rates, cuts in hiring, and AI automation. Not everyone survived economically. Even in fintech.
Currently in the IT industry, the best engineers (truly talented, educated, experienced, and possessing social skills) are of even greater importance. They consistently represent value despite market headwinds. They are able to generate added value from AI tools that others will suffer from. A good example are our clients, who consistently scale teams with us that we build from the top 1.6% of engineers on the market.
Adam Pogorzelski, Co-founder & Parter at Code & Pepper
Why is that important?
Because whoever’s left is fighting for the same pool of projects. No matter how you slice it, there are companies fighting for the same pool of interesting, digital projects. And they are very similar. Many of them didn’t adapt. Didn’t draw conclusions from the current market situation. Finally – didn’t deliver. And that’s why you need someone, who does.
There are some interesting trends that have emerged from the crisis. Including wage pressure and inflation-driven, compensation system. That’s why, especially now, especially in fintech, you need trusted partners for your product development. With the right vendor on your side, you can optimize costs and scale your chances for market success.
Like Ramp, a tool for finance operations optimization. Or Payhawk, a platform for spending management. These companies are great examples of how 2023 got conquered by those who analyzed, scaled, and built despite the crisis. These companies were rocking it.
Code & Pepper – the missing ingredient in software development and product delivery
Trust people that can put the money where their mouth is. Like Code & Pepper, who hire only the best 1.6% of talent in the Polish, saturated software development market. Polish specialists are considered among the best in the world. There are plenty of them, working for the biggest companies out there. Many flew out of Poland and now work as Principal Engineers for Silicon Valley giants. Those who stayed… actually do the same, just remotely. And yet, we decided to hire only a fraction of this talent pool.
Why? Because we believe that talent used to mean something else. The ability to write quality code, even the ability to advise the client, is not nearly enough today. Not anymore. That’s why we decided to create a definition of top-tier software developers. We have identified over 70 different attributes, related to technology and soft skills. Attributes, that define who a modern software developer talent actually is.
We want people that don’t compete with artificial intelligence. They embrace it and make it work for them. For you. We use AI to:
- speed-up code writing process
- code analysis and review
- testing and debugging
- provide high security standards
All our developers know how to do it. We accept only 1 of 60 applications. That’s how we stand out in 2024. We blend what’s best of both worlds, creating digital products made and enhanced with AI. The future is now. Let’s create it together.
