Software Product Development: Make a Strategic Move

An enterprise requires software that streamlines all business operations. It helps the firm to look for ready-to-use software products and empowers the business. Hence, companies opt for a software product development company that can understand the firm's needs and offer bespoke software development services. Even for independent software vendors and software development companies, it is a tough decision to clarify and intrigue a software product addressing all functional and non-functional business aspects and meeting exclusive business challenges.

Definition of Software Product Development

These days, software products play a crucial role in our lives. It has become hard to imagine a life without a software product or application process. Withal, the software product development process is a complex process that needs to be constantly hewed. For the same, a company needs to follow a certain set of strategic steps to develop a software product meeting all clients' requirements.

Having said that, let's discuss what is software development?

Software development definition implies the formatting of a set of features customized to meet specific goals in a software product. The process of deploying such components is a continuous logical process that arches to build a software program resulting in the formation of an ideal and operational software product.

Type of Software Products

There are mainly 4 four basic types of software development for enterprises' needs.

• System Software Products

Software product engineering manages all the resources of a system that aids in simplifying application programming. It includes software such as database management systems (DBMS), translators, operating systems (OS), software utilities, and networking software.

• Programming Software Products

Programming software products are also commonly known as development tools. Such types of software are text editors, linkers, compilers, etc. Linkers are programs that benefit software developers in debudding, maintaining, and creating apps and programs.

• Application Software Products

Application software product development involves data management software, media players, office productivity suites, etc.

• Embedded Software Products

These software products help control machines or devices related to telecommunication networks, cars, industrial robots, and a lot more.

Importance and Benefits of Software Product Development

It is not among the software product development myths, that software products matter. Let us understand how it creates an impact in the business to acknowledge the importance and benefits. As enterprises develop, the business software systems play a vital role in the success of the enterprise/enterprises. They manage the business demand and growth by benefiting the company in the following ways:

Business Process

Every business has a particular software product development life cycle. The process of building a specific application is complex, no matter how powerful or efficient it is. Hence, the software product design should align with the company model and business procedures to get the utmost benefit from the software.

Exclusive Solution

If a software is benefiting one business, the same software might not be beneficial for other companies. Each company develops a customized software development strategy to ensure it performs exclusive procedures as per the needs.

Competitiveness

An enterprise software solves many of a businesses' issues. By reducing the number of problems, also results in enhancing the efficiency of the business flow. Hence, using a tailored software gives an added benefit over the competitors.

Adaptability

Business processes keep evolving; they never settle. So, it becomes essential to equip with new Ideas for Successful Product Development that holds the key to marketing achievement. It helps to integrate new processes and strategies to the existing technology and stays sound in shifting marketing trends.

Software Product Development Process plan

Software product development is quite critical and not a one-time development process, but it is a continuous evolution journey. It involves lots of technical and business aspects apart from various phases with different levels of enhancement.

In IT industry, the international companies are offer various outsourcing services through varied business models. Primarily, the ISVs choose between one of the two generic models:

Fixed Cost engagement:

Fixed cost engagement model requires fixed cost and timelines against eminently defined scope of software product development and agreed deliverables.

Time and Material/Team Hiring Engagements:

Under this model, ISVs can have a team of IT professionals with right skillset working dedicatedly on a product development process.

Before selecting an IT international company, clients clearly presents what type of product they are looking for and by when. On the basis of client’s requirements and deadline, IT offshore enterprises offer business models to choose the best suitable strategy for software product development that helps in meeting company goals. These models should be effective in:

• Addressing company’s challenges and satisfying the common aims.
• Focusing on functional as well as non-functional aspects of software development process.
• Giving space to software developers to come up with their creativity.
• Granting for value addition to make the system more reliable and user-friendly.
• Aiming final goals and market needs rather than individual objectives.

Software product development is quite critical and not one-time implementation, rather a continuous evolvement journey. It comprises a lot of technical and business aspects apart from various phases with different level of enhancement. As it has a long term room for improvement companies should select the most suitable one acknowledging about both the models.

Read More : Deciphering Software Development Engagement Models

Meeting Goals

When ISVs go to software development companies, they ask for a generic yet hi-tech software that facilities different businesses of a single industry to meet the enterprise goals. Team recruitment model helps to develop an effective multi-tenant software product through independence in efforts and skills. While in Fixed Cost, limited scopes and timeline restrict creativity of developers hence, there are chances to build a typical software that can satisfy the need of single business rather than an industry.

Non-functional Aspects

While moderating software product, it is equally important to consider the non-functional aspects as well. It encompasses different quality traits such as scalability, extensibility, maintainability, portability, reliability, etc. In team recruitment, continuous enhancement improves non-functional aspects on a regular basis. Withal, it is quite difficult in fixed cost as limited scopes for software enhancement and more focused on the part of core development.

Space for Creativity and Innovation

Innovations are possible in a mind that is free from boundaries. Fixed costing has strict timelines for development criteria and timing. Hence, developers need to complete their allotted tasks in given timeline that affects their creativity to apply new ideas. In team hiring, there is freedom to developers to invest time in research and development and evolve state-of-the-art software.

Scopes for Value Addition

Value addition is extra benefits from all the other defined scopes offered by enterprise software development firms. With fixed cost, it already contains the well-defined functionalities. Hence, there is no scope to work on other stuff that is out of the options. Nonetheless, team hiring model leverages scopes in offering value addition features that help to untangle and automate different business operations.

Targeting Ultimate Business Objectives

A software product must target familiar and typical needs of a particular industry. That helps to accomplish final goals of businesses. Primary focus on particular features and functions limits the use and reliability of software. Whereas, Fixed cost model moves ahead with pre-defined chances that are commonly applicable to few businesses. In team hiring, there are broader chances to have comprehensive development that addresses all market needs.

Agile Development Methodology

Agile development methodologies aid in evolving robust software product by creating collaboration between self-organizing and cross-functional teams. It permits for adaptive planning, futuristic development, faster delivery, regular enhancement, and mobile and rapid response to change. Not only that, it serves other technical and business purposes too. It is one the most evolutionary, continual, incremental and efficient approach for software product development having short adaptive cycle and a loop of feedback.

With over 25 years of experience working into software development industry, we have been part of many long-term products which are highly successful now. But, we have been facing one common query in all these years and astonishingly it is not about technology or development methods but the ‘Quote for product’.

After helping many start-ups to build successful products since a decade and half, we wanted to share why jumping to the product price is wrong in the initial stage and why fixed cost engagement model is not suitable approach when it comes to building a successful product.

Select appropriate engagement model and the right partner for your software product development services that assists in building state-of-the-art product at least investment. Contact Radixweb to develop a product that offers long-term business benefits.