Hello r/startups community!
I’m currently exploring the decision-making process that founders go through when selecting a development shop for their software projects. As someone involved in the software development industry, understanding your perspectives and criteria is invaluable to me and, I believe, to others in our community.
If you’re a founder who has faced this decision, I’d love to hear from you:
Expertise and Specialization: What specific skills or areas of expertise do you look for in a dev shop? Does specialization in a particular field or technology stack influence your decision?
Portfolio and Past Work: How much does a dev shop’s previous work and the success of their past projects weigh into your decision?
Cost vs. Quality: How do you balance the cost of development with the quality of the output? What’s your strategy for finding the best value?
Communication and Collaboration: How important is the ease of communication and the ability to collaborate with the dev shop? Do you prefer local teams, or are you comfortable working with remote shops?
Recommendations and Referrals: Do personal recommendations or referrals play a significant role in your choice?
Support and Maintenance: How do you evaluate a dev shop’s capability for ongoing support and maintenance post-development?
Any Red Flags: Are there specific red flags or deal-breakers you look out for?
Your insights would not only help me but also provide valuable information for other founders and development shops in this subreddit. Feel free to share your experiences, thoughts, and any advice you have on this topic.
Thanks in advance for your contributions!
From the PoV of someone who runs an offshore dev shop- people tend to overlook communication. I’d say 90% of the technical challenges/results can be sorted out by this. Also another thing is that the person who you’re talking to from the dev shop understands your vision and can communicate it well so the devs under their management bring it to life. These are the qualities that make it or break it in my opinion. Dev talent can be found anywhere otherwise.