Evaluate what you need Software to do before you Outsource the Work for it

Nothing is more frustrating for a software programmer than a buyer that doesn’t know what they want. They may think they do but then when the programmer delivers it the buyer isn’t happy with it. They want a ton of revisions that can be both time consuming and costly to the programmer. In fact, some of them will refuse to do it and that can leave the buyer with a program that doesn’t meet their needs. 

In order to prevent such a fiasco from taking place for you, evaluate what you need from the software. Make a list of those things and provide it to those programmers interested in the work. That way if they can’t commit to meeting those specifics then they can remove themselves from being a good candidate for that particular project. A quality programmer will know when they are getting involved in something over their head and let you know.

Let the programmer know what you expect to be able to do with the software. You need to be very specific too. Don’t just say you need it to help you with your business. Let them know what type of business you are in. Let them know what specific tasks you want to be able to accomplish with that software.

You need to have a basic understanding of both input and output. That way you can speak the language of the programmer. Otherwise what will take place is they can tell you what they would like to do. You may agree because you don’t know any different and while they may devise something spectacular it just may not be a good match for what you really need. 

No matter how good the program is though it has to be simple enough to navigate. You don’t want to spend a great deal of time figuring it out. You also don’t want your employees to have to struggle with it. You should expect to invest some time for learning though to start out. Yet the flow of what is to take place should be logical and simple enough to understand.

You need to be realistic in your expectations though as well. That is because what you may have envisioned just isn’t possible yet with modern technology. It is fine to push the limits but you need to know when you have gone too far. If multiple programmers are telling you that it can’t be done you need to listen to what they are able to offer you and find a good middle ground you would be willing to accept.

Make sure you are straightforward about when you need the software to be completed as well. If it is going to be soon then you need to find the right person to do it immediately. It is unfair as well as unrealistic to expect any quality programmer to drop everything else and work around the clock on your project. You also aren’t allowing time for bugs to be worked out or unexpected situations. 

As a result you may end up with your software completed on time but be disappointed with the quality of it. You may not understand how long it is going to take to complete the work you need either. Ask a handful of programmers so you can get a good estimate of how long it should take. Then add some grace time onto that and you should be well covered. While you do need to keep the programmer on track, you don’t want to be backing them into a corner to get the work completed for you due to a lack of planning on your end. 

In some instances you may need more than one programmer to get the job done. You may need to rely on various people to take care of specific areas. If that is going to be the case you need to make sure everyone is on schedule. It could be that a programmer can’t do his part until the person before them has done there’s. You must stay on top of such situations though so they flow like they need to.

PPPPP

Word Count 704