If you’ve decided to build a custom piece of software, you might be feeling a bit nervous about the process. After all, it can be a high risk high reward situation. Done right, custom software can unlock tremendous business potential. Done poorly and it can vacuum up resources without producing the results you need.
The first step to ensuring your process goes smoothly is understanding the key steps in the software development process.
What is custom software development?
While most organizations use off-the-shelf software for everything from internal communication to managing their finances, others opt for custom options. Here, either an internal team or an external partner will build a piece of software to meet your specific requirements.
The process usually doesn’t end with development, however, as ongoing support is usually necessary. But the ways in which custom software development and that ongoing support can be structured are nearly endless. That said, the basic process can be broken down into three stages.
What are the main stages in the process of custom software development?
Depending on the partner you can break this process down into five or even six stages, but to convey the basics there are four you really need to know.
Discovery and Planning
In this stage, you will work closely with your chosen development partner or internal team to understand your requirements. Traditionally, these requirements would be set during this stage. However, with the increasing popularity of Agile development, this has changed. As a result, requirements may be ranked and may evolve throughout the development process.
Here it’s useful to work with an experienced partner because they can use that experience to help you understand your own requirements. For example, you may think that a particular feature is vital, but the cost to add it may not be worth the value it brings.
Alongside this discovery process is the planning element. Here, you will lay out a basic timeline and align all your relevant stakeholders around what’s to be done. Again, Agile and non-Agile software development teams will differ at this stage. Agile teams will plan, but leave some flexibility to adapt as the project progresses.
Analysis and Design
The analysis stage is all about reviewing the requirements you’ve developed. Here you want to determine whether they’re realistic and ensure they will meet your actual needs. Once this is complete and all the stakeholders are aligned around what needs to happen, the design element can begin.
With design, you build a simple wireframe of the ultimate software to function as a kind of Minimum Viable Product (MVP). This MVP enables you to quickly test ideas around functionality, user interface, and aesthetics before the actual product has to be built.
Development and Implementation
You may not have expected the actual software development to come in stage 3, but all of that pre-planning is vital to ensuring the process functions smoothly. By this point all the initial questions around the programming language, structure, tech stacks, etc. should be resolved.
However, if you’re working with Agile software developers, your role is still important during this stage. Development will be broken down into stages with regular testing and feedback from you. This ensures what’s being built and your requirements remain aligned and are allowed to evolve if necessary.
Testing and Quality Assurance
Many software developers will test throughout the development process to identify and address issues early. But even in such cases, a final testing phase is needed to ensure everything works together as a single piece of software. This is also when quality assurance experts will go through the software to make sure it fits all the applicable standards and requirements.
What are the benefits of using custom software development?
Unsurprisingly, the primary benefit you can expect from custom software development is control. By building a custom solution you can choose exactly what capabilities, APIs, security features, etc. you want. Importantly, you can also choose what you don’t want included, meaning you won’t be paying for anything you don’t need.
But it’s also important to consider long-term flexibility. There are many ways you can update and improve custom software over time. So when your needs evolve, your software can evolve with them. Consider the cost of changing out a piece of software that’s deeply integrated into your business, this is an important consideration.
Also consider the competitive advantage presented by using tools none of your competitors have. Custom software development enables you to build out unique functionality that can move the needle for your business.
Ultimately, if your needs aren’t met by any off-the-shelf software solutions available, custom development is the way to go. With a wide range of experienced providers across the globe, you may be surprised at how easy finding the right custom software development company for your needs is.
Dilyan Dimitrov
Short Author Bio: Tech writer and aficionado with a passion for writing about the latest developments in software and business. With years of experience covering a wide range of topics, from cutting-edge gadgets and software to industry trends and innovations, Dilyan brings a deep understanding to his work at Dreamix. Whether he’s breaking down complex concepts for a general audience or diving into the latest tech trends, he strives to deliver accurate content and thought-provoking insights.