How to Choose a Software Development Partner: Expert Tips

More and more companies are turning to external help when it comes to their software development projects. There is immense pressure to deliver in a competitive market that's ever-changing.

Finding the right talent and finding it fast enough to respond to changing business needs is a great challenge. And some companies find themselves lacking the resources to keep up the pace.

That’s where a software development partner comes in to take some of that pressure off your shoulders.

But how do you know who’s the best fit for your project? And how can you be sure that you’re not overspending on development?

We asked more than 500 founders and decision-makers from startups to small and medium businesses for their advice.

They shared hard-earned insights from their personal experience on what to look for in a software development partner. And what are some red flags to avoid.

Keep reading to find out how to choose the right software development partner step by step.

What is a software development partner?

A software development partner can be a third-party company that can provide skilled talent, or a self-managed team, to help complete your project on time and within budget.

You get the help and expertise you need to fill in talent and skill gaps in your internal team. All without having to go through an expensive and lengthy recruitment process.

A software development partner can also help with end-to-end development projects. You can also entrust your project to a self-sufficient team who will manage the process from start to finish.

They will work with you to understand your business requirements or shape your idea into a detailed plan of action. A software development partner can also make sound technical recommendations.

Their experience usually stretches out across many verticals and technologies. So they're well-equipped to provide insights on the cost, timeline, scalability, effort, and impact.

Why do companies seek a software development partner?

There are different reasons why companies might look for a software development partner. If:

• You are in a pinch with a tight deadline and struggling to find talent on short notice
• You are feeling the strain of an overworked team
• You have a complex project or feature, and lack the technical expertise in-house

Working with a software development partner can help address these challenges. And there are many benefits that come from a software development partnership.

Delegating specific tasks or projects can unburden your internal team. You can free up more time to focus on your core business while also keeping costs in check.

There are also no associated overhead costs, onboarding or training expenses. More often than not hiring external help can be more time and cost-effective than hiring full-time employees.

A software development partnership also gives you increased flexibility and access to a larger pool of talent. You can manage resources more effectively and respond quickly to changing needs.

You can be a startup looking to design, build, and launch your MVP.

Or an enterprise that wants to streamline processes, increase productivity, or launch new features.

In both cases, collaborating with a software development partner can be a strategic and reliable solution.

What other options do you have?

Working with a software development partner to execute projects works well for many companies. But there might be better approaches for some.

To make the right choice for your project, it's good to evaluate other options:

• Find a technical co-founder

You may be able to find a technical co-founder that will help you on your journey. Y-Combinator offers a “co-founder matching platform” where you can meet potential co-founders.

Keep in mind that experienced developers generally have a lot of options and are highly paid. Be prepared to:

1) Offer a lot of equity. 50%+ is the norm.

2) Find someone who is passionate about your vision and willing to work for less than they could get at a big company.

“Try to find a co-founder at a technical school or just out of university that’s ready to work on your idea.” - Matt Rubin, CEO of Arammu

Matt found a technical co-founder and long-term business partner by being active at a tech school close to where he lived. Eventually, one of the students really liked his idea and decided to apply at his company as a co-founder.

• Hire an independent contractor

Another option is to hire an independent contractor for a specific task or project. While this approach gives you more control, it can also be more expensive in the long run.

Keep in mind that you will need to manage their work closely to make sure they are meeting your expectations.

Look for experienced contractors. Otherwise, you will be paying high rates to train someone that might not be around for long.

• Hire an in-house team

You can also choose to hire full-time developers or build an in-house team. This option gives you more control over the work.

It can be expensive and time-consuming to find and train the right people. But you have the ability to build a long-term relationship with the team.

You also need to make sure they stay motivated and have enough opportunities for learning and growing.

How to prepare for a successful software development partnership

So you have evaluated all options and decided to work with a software development partner. What you can do beforehand to ensure a successful partnership?

Define the project scope

It's always better to enter a software development partnership well-prepared. Try and define the scope of your project as precisely as possible.

Miranda Madar says that you should have a really good idea about what you want to achieve, including timing and milestones.

Having a good understanding of your requirements and goals can also set the tone for a successful partnership.

“While a software developer will help you refine your vision for what you want a software platform to do, it can be really helpful to do as much of this work as possible for yourself before reaching out.” - Josh Snead, CEO of Rainwalk Pet Insurance

Josh also suggests: “Finding comparable real-world examples to what you’re looking for is ideal.”

Defining the project scope can help convey your vision better and ensure that both parties are on the same page.

“So many projects fail because the scope is unclear, making it difficult to convey project needs.” - James Angel, Co-Founder of DYL

James advises: “Prepare your project scope before contacting a software development firm. Get your coworkers’ input to fill up any blanks. Then it’s time to chat to possible software development partners.”

Disclose your budget upfront

“Be clear and outright with the budget, allow them to work within it, and avoid any surprises.” - Miles Galli

If a software development partner knows what you’re willing to spend, they can better tailor their proposal to fit your needs.

Disclosing your budget upfront provides clarity about what resources are available. It also opens up the chance for transparency and open discussion about expectations and priorities.

How to choose the right software development partner: 8 steps

1. Do your research

You can start by searching for software development companies on Google. B2B platforms for client ratings & reviews are also good places to look.

If they have a profile on Clutch, this is a good sign. You can go through their reviews to see what other clients say about working with the software development partner.

“I place a great deal of weight on reviews and recommendations from previous clients. If these are missing, it’s a red flag.” 🚩 - Josh Snead

Have a look at their company website to get a feeling of their culture and values. You should also be able to find case studies and more information about industries and technologies they work with.

“Direct industrial experience would be a green flag for your partnership.” - Hays Bailey, Director of Sheqsy

Hays explains: “For example, suppose they have corporate executives or development teams who are familiar with your firm, your services, and your clients. In that case, they will be better positioned to assist you in overcoming the obstacles you are currently facing.”

2. Consider the location

To narrow down your search, you should consider whether you want to work with someone locally or internationally.

Nowadays, it's even easier to collaborate with a remote team from a distance. You have the opportunity to access talent which might not be available in your area.

“As a founder, you really need to be open to finding the best talent in the world, wherever they may be.” - Miles Galli

Working with an off-shore team may require extra effort to coordinate. Make sure you choose a team that works within a similar time zone and has overlapping working hours.

“It’s easier when you have an on-shore engineer to manage the off-shore development.” - David Peterson, Chief Technology Officer

3. Ask about their process

Once you get on a call, you should ask the company to guide you through their process from the initial idea to the first release in as much detail as possible. Here are a few things to look out for:

• Iterations at the design stage

The earlier in the process you can gather feedback and iterate, the cheaper it will be. There is usually a “sign-off” phase, where you as the client and the developers both approve the mockups.

It's much cheaper to spot problems and fix them before you start building the product.

Miles Galli recommends providing the software development company with something basic. For example, starting sketches of what your product would look like.

This way they have a chance to improve and build upon it to give you something better for your users.

It’s usually a bad sign if they just go ahead and implement it without providing you with feedback and options. 🚩

• Agile & Iterations

Starting out with something functional and building on top of that each week is a good sign that the company is following modern methodologies.

Expect them to mention that you will have a demo every two weeks or so. In agile software development, this would usually be at the end of a cycle defined as a “sprint”.

If you only get to see progress at the end of the project, or months in - this is a huge red flag. 🚩

“Agile is the big word - and this makes everyone’s answer “yes”. If you’re hiring professionals — just make sure they have a process that makes sense. Make sure they have a good testing mechanism and good support to know that they can deploy something complicated in safety.” - Jesse Tayler, App Store Inventor, Founder of TruAnon and Book Author of “Beyond Agile”

• Quality & Testing

As a new startup, quality matters, especially when you’re up against entrenched brands.

“Find a partner who understands the importance of testing so you can strike the right balance between iterating quickly while maintaining a high-quality product in the market.” - Kim Callender, CEO of SoloTrvlr

While QA may seem more expensive in the short term, you need to make sure the company has a quality assurance process in place.

If the project is in a sector where even one bug can seriously damage your reputation (e.g., Healthcare or FinTech), investing in QA early on will save you money in the long term.

Keep in mind that the QA budget can vary between 10% - 30% of the total cost of the project.

The software development partner should mention a number of approaches to quality assurance - such as Unit Testing, Integration Testing, and End-to-End Testing.

Developers can write automated tests that run with each code change to ensure that new code doesn’t break existing functionality.

Automated testing can help improve the quality of software by catching errors early and reducing the need for manual testing.

“We don’t have a QA department, we believe in automated testing. In fact, I haven’t had a QA department in fifteen years.” - David Peterson

4. Evaluate quotes & proposals

The quote you receive will tell you a lot about the company. Here’s what to look out for:

• Small, organised, chunks of work & detailed quotes

If the final quote is vague, their lead engineer probably came up with a ballpark estimate and has not looked through your project in a lot of detail.

Many software development companies limit their effort at the quote stage since only a small percentage of projects move past it.

They might often hand in proposals with 20 pages of sales information and only a few pieces of key information about your project.

The more detail you have at the quote stage, the more invested the company is in your project.

You should also beware of big contracts that tie you for a long period of time. Make sure you carefully read through the proposal.

“After three months we noticed the technical solution was not what we wanted for a three-year contract. Avoid fixed and non-flexible companies.” - Felipe Gutierrez, Independent Professional

• Reasonable timeframes

For a minimum viable product (MVP), expect a timeframe of 3 - 6 months, with 6 being on the long side. If your project is longer than that, it should be trimmed down to fit within 3 months for the first launch. It's important that you test and gather critical feedback.

Also, adding more resources to a project may not help it move any faster. It largely depends on the scope and complexity.

Jesse Tayler put it this way: “In the real world we put two shovels to a construction project and it moves twice as fast. In software, you know it doesn’t work like that.”

• Reasonable pricing

A good software development company will offer reasonable rates that are in line with the scope of the project. Beware of companies that quote rock-bottom prices - chances are they’re cutting corners somewhere (which will cost more in the long run).

“When you’re interviewing potential software partners and you get one offer that greatly undercuts the competitors in both time and money, that’s a very big red flag for me.” - Kyle MacDonald, Director of Operations at Force by Mojio

While a very rough estimate, expect a 3-month MVP to range between $40K - $100K. Depending on your project, there may also be the possibility to do something clever and quick within a week or two, which may bring the cost well below that range.

💡 Tip: Don't compare quotes between partners based on price only. Especially if the quotes don’t have a detailed breakdown by features, and the companies are in different locations. Different companies may have different interpretations of your project.

Evaluate all criteria before making the final choice. Keep in mind that if the project fails, the new team would likely have to start from scratch.

“You get what you pay for - going for the cheapest quote possible is not always the best bet.” - Matt Rubin

5. Look at previous projects similar to yours

Ask about their experience or look at case studies of projects similar to yours. Especially if you’re working in a very specific niche (e.g., machine learning, experience with microcontrollers, experience with a specific ERP, etc).

This will help you understand if the partner has enough capacity for your project, if there is any risk of delays due to team size constraints, or a lack of resources for testing.

“Consider whether the software partner has built what you’re looking to build, and who the clients are. You should also consider the size of the team, as this can have a direct impact on how fast they will respond to things and how much attention you will be given.” - Michael Leon, Director of US media, Products & Strategy for Stats Perform

6. Assess technical expertise

The company should have case studies on their website to showcase their previous work so have a look at these to see what technologies they use and have expertise in.

If they have a technical blog, have one of your technical friends look at it and tell you their thoughts about the technical team.

“You need to learn some technical skills, so you can have a good idea of what it is you want to build. You don’t need to know how to code, but you definitely need to have an idea of the technologies and what they do.” - Miles Galli

7. Consider their communication style

You should discuss how and when important changes and updates will be communicated to you. What project management software will be used and if you will have access to it.

“Clear communication between all parties involved is one of the things that’s critical to any software development project. This includes the client, the development team, and any other stakeholders.” - Trevor Larson, CEO at Nectar

While you can’t expect to be communicating directly with their developers (this is usually a bad thing), you should expect to be one level away.

Passing through long chains of command usually means it’s going to be slower and more expensive. And there is a higher chance of miscommunication.

“Miscommunication nearly always causes project failure. When things go tough, you need a software development partner who keeps you updated without avoiding or ghosting you.” - Kavin Patel, Founder and CEO at Convrrt

Kavin believes that: “A project’s success depends on the ability to communicate the good, bad, and ugly.”

If you're working with an international company, make sure their whole team is fluent in English.

8. Integrate your external team

When you work with a software development partner, it’s important to fully integrate them within your organisation, processes, and internal team to get the best results.

“Successfully integrating your software development partner into your company’s process and structure will naturally improve business workflow.” - Vaibhav Kakkar, CEO at Digital Web Solutions

Vaibhav suggests appointing a person from your internal team who will oversee the project.

Miles Galli says that you should start with something small and trivial like a pilot project. This way the company will have time to sync with your internal team, tools, and processes.

If something doesn’t work well, you can communicate and adjust before starting the main project.

“At the beginning, we used to give them coding assignments without including them in scrum and sprint planning meetings - then shifted to giving them meaningful work and treating them like they’re part of the team.” - David Peterson

It takes time for any team to gel, so be patient and flexible as your external team members grow accustomed to your team dynamics.

Final Overview

So, there you have it. Our comprehensive step-by-step guide to choosing the right software development partner.

Make sure you go into this process with a good idea of what you want to achieve with this partnership. And make sure you set clear expectations early on so that everyone is on the same page from the start.

Do your research and ask lots of questions to find the right fit for your business. Someone who understands your project, can deliver within your schedule and budget, and is transparent.

We want to thank everyone who took part in this article and shared their valuable experience and tips with us.

If you have any tips of your own or a question, share them in the comments below.

Or if you'd prefer: Get in touch.