Staffing your team in today’s age can be a headache. Turnover can be high and recruiting is difficult. However, deadlines still have to be met and that lengthy backlog isn’t going anywhere. This leaves many of us exploring all possible options to get things done.
Could an outsourced dedicated team be the answer? A Dedicated Team is a hybrid development team that plugs directly into your team, and is able to work with minimal management overhead. They can deliver a solution from the initial idea, through design, development, and launch.
Staffing your team in today’s age can be a headache. Turnover can be high and recruiting is difficult. However, deadlines still have to be met and that lengthy backlog isn’t going anywhere. This leaves many of us exploring all possible options to get things done.
Could an outsourced dedicated team be the answer? A Dedicated Team is a hybrid development team that plugs directly into your team, and is able to work with minimal management overhead. They can deliver a solution from the initial idea, through design, development, and launch.
But is it the right fit for you? If you’re on the fence, today you’ll learn whether or not you should or shouldn’t bring in a dedicated team.
Summary
You should hire a dedicated team if you are having problems with scope, size, hiring, expertise, backlog, flexibility, or cost.
A dedicated team isn’t the best choice if your project needs 100% internal control, a super niche language, a short-term engagement, no pushback, and want to only utilize your process.
You Should Hire a Dedicated Team If…
You need help defining scope
Let’s face it: your management team has a lot on their plate as it is; they’re stretched thin trying to support their team. Do they have time to be narrowing down requirements and defining scope?
This is where the biggest benefits of a dedicated team come in handy. Since a dedicated team comes with its own leadership, they can use their expertise and experience to help you nail down the exact scope of the project.
You’re looking at an expansive project
Even ‘small’ projects can get out of hand very quickly. Soon everyone wants their feature included or their opinion heard, and the project has more bloat than your internal team can handle. Bringing in one person (whether a direct hire or staff augmentation) won’t be enough; you’re going to need to augment your team with a wide range of skills and focus areas.
If what you’re looking to develop is intense, challenging, or has a long timeline, a dedicated team is going to be your best bet. The team can address all your problem areas, while being more cost-effective long term compared to your other options.
Hiring keeps getting more and more expensive
It’s 2022; it’s never been more challenging to hire top tech talent. Referral fees, sponsored job postings, and job fairs all add to the expense. This doesn’t even include the costs once that person joins your team: benefits and salary and PTO, oh my!
When you outsource to a dedicated team, you’re putting all the pressure on the firm rather than yourself. The point of getting help is to alleviate your stress at work, not add to it. Let the dedicated team provider focus on hiring tech talent, and you can focus on getting more off your plate.
Your team is missing expertise
With the speed at which tech is evolving these days, it can feel impossible to have a team that has experience in all the tech you want to build in. Flutter’s an example: 2 or so years ago, it was an upcoming language with more minimal support. Now, it’s one of the most sought after languages for mobile development.
How can you keep up with the trends? By hiring a dedicated team to elevate your internal one.
A dedicated development team can customize said team with experts for the work at hand. Alleviate the headaches of steep learning curves with a dedicated team.
Your backlog is super backed up
This is a big one: how can you build new tech if your internal team is drowning in support requests? Even if they get free time here or there to put effort into new development, it’s going to take way too long to get something built.
There’s nothing wrong with getting help when you need it. Bring in a dedicated team to help get the new product developed, so that your internal team can focus on dwindling that backlog. Everyone will be less stressed because of it.
The talent pool is draining
There’s nothing worse than a leaky pool, especially if it’s a talent one. We mentioned it above, but it’s harder than ever to hire people these days. With remote work, you’re no longer competing with the other firms in your city; you’re fighting with every company across the globe for the best developers.
Stop spending your time searching for that perfect candidate. Dedicated teams already have a full lineup of highly effective developers and designers.
You need flexibility in your team
Ramping up and down can make or break a build’s timeline. Sometimes you need one or two people on a sprint or two, but the next you need all hands on deck. A dedicated team can ramp their size up or down depending on the task at hand.
Cost is a driving factor
Cost is always a driving factor, isn’t it? No matter what kind of project you’re on, keeping the budget as small as possible is a priority. When it comes to getting bang for your buck, dedicated teams are the way to go. Dedicated teams are usually 10% cheaper than a direct hire, as opposed to other options, such as staff augmentation, that are typically 25% more than bringing someone internally.
Collaboration is important
Fitting individual people into your team can cause more issues than it helps. Imagine a puzzle with 1000 one-color pieces, or a 20 piece puzzle of a flower: ones going to be easier and faster to complete. A dedicated team already works together, so it’s easier to plug them into your process as a singular unit rather than a handful of isolated strangers. By finding a team that already collaborates well, you save yourself time, money, and stress.
You Shouldn’t Hire a Dedicated Team If…
You want full control over your team
There’s nothing wrong with it, but you could be someone who likes to be involved: someone who likes to be involved in everything. If this is your management style, a dedicated team isn’t your best bet. Since they come with their own management, a dedicated team can work semi-autonomously from the rest of your internal team, meaning you won’t be in control of all the details.
You’re looking for a niche expertise
Looking for a very specific problem to solve or language to write in? A dedicated team may have someone that can help, but if it’s super obscure, you may need to find a specialist. Staff augmentation groups can help you find someone that fits the niche tech you’re working in.
The project is short-term
Have one issue you need solved? It probably doesn’t make sense to bring in a full team of managers, designers, and developers if you only need a thing or two fixed. A freelancer or staff augmentation would allow you to send someone in, get the job done, and move on to the next.
You’re not looking for heavy collaboration
It’s fantastic when you know and have defined exactly what you need and have a specific process you want to follow. A dedicated team that likes to collaborate and work autonomously could cause more harm than good. You’ll have to ramp up the dedicated team to work within your specific methodology. Now, a team that’s used to working in their own way with their own tools will face a learning curve trying to adapt.
Conclusion
A dedicated team is the best choice if you have a vaguely defined scope, have a large project, have trouble hiring people quick enough, are missing areas of expertise, have a bloated backlog, and want an option that’s better for your budget. Don’t go with a dedicated team if you want full control, help in a very niche area, or your project is short-term.
Do you think you made the right decision on whether or not to hire a dedicated team? I guess we’ll have to wait and see ?
