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Muhammad Adnan
- March 22, 2024
Custom Software Development Time Estimation Wrong or Right
Have you ever gone through custom software development articles on the web? You may have encountered a variety of analogies. Many of us believe that it is similar to constructing a building, and some say it is like stitching a suit for an event. The truth is it is a very tough job to develop custom software particularly when you have to do it by the time estimation.
Back in 2011, Harvard Business Review found that out of 1,471 IT projects they looked at, one in six faced a big delay of 70% or more. You know things are still the same because most enterprise software development companies struggle to deliver the IT project within the deadline. Many reasons make companies delay their projects.
Is Custom Software Development Time Estimation Crucial?
The answer is super No, and Yes at the same time. Initially, you have to understand what makes delivery time challenging for clients.
- Reasons are different for every client, likewise many of the clients require faster time to market, and concrete dates for their customers, teams, and their stakeholders.
- You know allocation of budget is another crucial factor of the process. It will come up with plenty of issues if you start working on a project without estimating the time, and budget. It may come up with issues, like overcost.
- Your clients may want to launch the product as soon as possible to generate revenue for growth. However, delays will create problems, and expenses while having so many in-house employees.
Seemingly, time estimation is favorable for customers, but almost every company offering custom software development services follows this method:
- Right Preferences for different projects
- Use Resources following deadlines
- Most importantly customer loyalty
Suppose we start estimating custom enterprise software development time. It would become necessary to organize the entire process for everyone, and there is nothing wrong with it.
What's The Worst that Could Happen?
Clients requirements can change at any point in time and it creates hurdles at any stage of custom software development for startups or an enterprise. Suppose, your clients are not able to make you understand their needs then the development team will suffer. Therefore, the delays will become imminent. It could happen because of the unavailability of some resources, like developers, designers, and testers. So, all these factors make the cost estimation wrong. There is another possibility which is that your team could lack crucial skills.
You know many surveys have been conducted about bad estimation of custom software development. The survey results have come up with the shocking facts: time estimation for software development is among the top 3 reasons for company managers and developers to ensure the final product delivery. Moreover, one of the major issues may come across that is overrun of estimates:
Apart from all the issues, uncertainties, and errors you know how much time custom software development takes. All you need to do is hire a dedicated development team to develop enterprise software or for your someone’s startup. Moreover, endorse the factors on which the development time depends and also keep your flexibility in terms of expectations from the development team.
Let’s discuss the time estimation of custom software development and how a company elaborates on using development stages.
Stage1: Requirement Gathering and Analysis
You know initially, you software development team that you have selected will custom software development services to look into the gathered info. Moreover, All the information you wish you to gather is for software development. Either a project manager or a senior developer will talk to you to know what exactly you are looking for in the development of custom software.
This process involves conducting interviews with you and other key members of your company, researching the markets and target audiences for the software, and evaluating existing similar software tools, with a particular focus on those utilized by your direct competitors. Once the project manager has done with the interview he will ensure that you are ready to start the project. Suppose, everything is going up to date they will jump to the next step forward. In the end, the client approves the draft and it takes up to 4 weeks.
Stage2: Design Planning, Architecture Development, & Coding
This particular phase starts with the assigned tasks to each member of the development team. Stage two consists of priorities, the order of the tasks, and the allocation of resources. In short, everything is planned for the systematic development process. Likewise, post-planning architecture is one of them, and the set of advanced technologies used for custom software development. Moreover, the developer’s team, and others, need to align with the architecture development following the pre-selected functions, and operations of the software application.
After that coding comes first, and it is the longest part of developing custom software. Therefore, it is necessary to choose the best software development company that take part in the entire process. Regular inputs are delivered to ask the clients whether they are happy with it or not. It could become time time-consuming stage, because complexities may come across in developing custom software.
Stage3: Testing and Integration
The third stage may be full of surprises. When software has been built and is ready for implementation, a series of tests are performed to evaluate its performance and usability in the environment it has been developed. Software testing involves user acceptance testing, load testing, performance testing, and many other forms of tests to confirm that the developed software is ready for production. Another important part of this phase is the integration of the new software with the existing software systems already being used at the client’s place.
The third stage is the most crucial because it could come with a surprise element. Once the custom software development process comes to an end, a series of tests begins. It will describe its performance and effectiveness. Clients will witness whether the developed software is up to the mark or not. Here are the following factors involved in the testing phase:
- Users Acceptance Testing
- Performance Testing
- Load Testing
- Forms of Tests
All these tests guarantee the client that custom software is ready. In addition, integration of new software through existing software systems that have been used by the client. The integration process ensures without putting extra energy into the process. It makes the information flow, and business operations smooth, and sound. In the end, the surprise element comes up with the bugs and errors that are yet to be identified. This phase could take time because developers can take more time to make the developed software error-free.
However, well-known companies are still offering custom software development services knowing this phase can take more than 6 weeks.
How to Add Value to Time Estimation To Develop Custom Software?
There is no need to sit tight about the expectation for custom software development time estimation, develop an understanding. You can easily influence the entire process via the following factors for overall development time:
Size Of Software
You know many things depend on the project whether it is a few feature applications or custom software for an enterprise that needs multiple screens. Complexities may come across that may need further features.
Usability of Software
You may look forward to adding an admin portal to the custom software. It could integrate user applications. Moreover, you may look forward to running your software on multiple locations. With the rise in demand to expand the software leads developers to take more time.
Compatibility of Software Matters
It is the need of the hour to develop software compatible not only for desktop devices but also for mobile devices with different ranges of screens, and operating systems.
The architecture of Custom Software
Following the advancement in technologies and expertise for meeting the operational needs of custom software development companies, it may take time to outsource developers and other experts. A few weeks would be enough for the hiring process. Moreover, be ready for the surprise and uncontrollable situation that impacts the development time.
- Need to hire additional development team members during unexpected unavailability.
- Changes in business requirements from client stakeholders.
- Delay in migrating from old software, retaining certain features.
- Custom software company to estimate based on team speed, allowing for delays.
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