Software Delivery Metrics That Matter in IT

When you finally decide to invest in new software for your company, one of the most important decisions you'll face is choosing between a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) product and hiring a software development company to build custom software.

Custom software has many advantages. It is built precisely to your organization’s specifications without unnecessary features. You fully own the application, and it can easily scale to meet your future needs. However, there are also drawbacks, including the cost and time required for development.

Additionally, when entering into a contract with a software development company, you need to ensure that the finished project meets your expectations. These metrics include functionality, usability, and maintenance. But there are other metrics you may not have considered, such as responsiveness and scalability. Unlike many software developers, BairesDev is responsible for a wide range of metrics, including those described below.

Functionality

Simply put, the custom software you've invested so much time and money in must reliably perform the necessary functions. While user testing and design meetings should give you an idea of functionality before the project is complete, the final product's functionality should be evaluated against the initial goals set during the planning phase.

For example, if you agreed with the developer that the program would include the ability to create customizable reports, but the final application only allows users to create standard reports, then the final product does not provide the functionality you expected.

Speed and Ease of Use

The application must be fast enough for users to perform necessary functions without delay. This is especially important if one of the main reasons you hired a developer to build custom software is to address your company’s efficiency issues. The last thing you want is for the new application to slow things down even further.

Additionally, the user interface (UI) should be accessible and intuitive, meaning users should be able to navigate the application easily. Ideally, they should be able to use it with little to no training. Signs of a poor UI include awkwardly placed buttons, links that lead to unexpected places, and navigation difficulties.

Responsiveness

It's likely that you and other users will access the application from different devices, so it should look and work great on all of them. This means a website may look completely different on a laptop screen versus a smartphone. However, responsive design is not just about appearance. It's also about usability—for example, a field worker needs to easily input data, while an office employee using the same application needs to easily work with reports.

Scalability

You are paying a significant amount for software development, so you don't want it to become obsolete in a couple of years, forcing you to repeat the entire process. Instead, the application should be able to grow and expand with your business. The greater the software's scalability, the higher its value and cost savings over time.

For example, a business may need analytics from certain data sources. As the company grows, the number of sources may increase, and the software must be able to accommodate these additional data streams.

Testing

All of the above issues should be verified through testing, not only at project completion but throughout the entire process. Testing is crucial, especially if the software is customer-facing. By providing secure and easy-to-use applications or websites, you contribute to a positive customer experience (CX), which in turn enhances your reputation and customer loyalty.

On the other hand, if low-quality software is part of your service offerings, your reputation and sales can quickly decline.

Timeliness / Budget

By the time you decide to hire a custom software developer, the work likely needs to be done yesterday. This is one of the most important software delivery metrics because project delays or budget overruns can negatively impact your business. Before work begins, the developer should create a high-level project plan so you can see the completion date and key milestones.

It's also important that the project is completed within the budget agreed upon at the start. When looking for a custom software developer, look for one willing to provide a fixed price so there are no surprises when the invoice arrives.

Training and Documentation

Good developers involve employees in the development process, meaning by the time the project is complete, they may already be familiar with the application. However, not everyone who needs to use the application may have been involved from start to finish, so it's important that the software development team provides thorough training on the application being built for you.

Training can be conducted in person, via video conference, or as an online course. Developers should also provide detailed documentation that employees can refer to later.

Maintenance

Did you know that the cost of maintaining custom software can exceed the cost of development? This is because after development is complete, the software may need refinements, upgrades, or security updates. Although software developers strive to build the application or website you need, your business may change in ways that require additional or different features.

You may also need to update the application to ensure compatibility with other systems you use, such as a new operating system, or to enhance security against emerging cyber threats.

Done or Done Right?

Deciding to develop custom software is only the first step in the development process. You and your developer need to discuss requirements, plan the work, test the software, and finally use the resulting product. But just because a project is done doesn't mean it's done right. Be sure to refer to the software delivery metrics above and use them as a checklist to ensure you get everything you need from your new application.