How to put build a solid development team
When aiming to build a solid development team, it is essential to proceed step by step. Above all, it is crucial to find the right manager. That person must be familiar with both management procedures and all technical aspects.
The next step involves cross training, although care must be taken to ensure it is not used excessively. The exchanging of roles within the team is very important in that it allows the various professionals the opportunity to acquire experience outside the scope of their usual specific field of specialisation. As mentioned, moderation is required and it is important not to stifle the individual specialists’ best skills.
Another useful step in building a quality development team is to involve other members of staff during recruitment procedures. A good idea could be to make use of a network of staff already working for the firm in order to find resources who can make a difference as developers. In this way it is not necessary to bring people from outside onto the team, leading to distinct advantages for the entire workforce.
Continuous contact is also essential. Very often, companies have various branches located in different geographical areas. When it is not possible to reunite the various development teams face to face, it is advisable to organise regular meetings via Skype to favour the building of good relationships between the different professionals.
Also worthy of mention is transparency and the fact that development technicians should always be kept informed of company policy regarding negotiations, sales and client acquisition. Another aspect of great benefit when building a strong development team regards team members and colleagues in other sectors getting to know each other. The initiative of senior management is fundamental in developing this aspect and they might organise team building activities to establish positive relationships between the various teams which make up the company staff.
Additional tips
If we consider other measures which contribute to the construction of a good development team, we must recall the importance of limiting the size of groups to a maximum of between six and twelve people. Otherwise, the risk is that the quality of communications could suffer.
It is also important to then divide the group into smaller sub-teams. What criteria should be used in this phase? There are several guidelines to follow. One factor to take into consideration is the technological context, but also the type of service provided. If considered appropriate, the development team can also be divided into small groups focusing on specific projects or business sectors.
Once these aspects have been decided, the guidelines in the Agile Manifesto can be very useful, as they underline the relevance of the relationship between development team and clients, without considering analysts or project managers.
This is an approach which contradicts many commonly held theories; above all the image of the developer ‘isolated’ at his work station as he waits to receive technical instructions from other colleagues.
The Agile Manifesto model has clearly had repercussions on the working methods of the individual development team which, thanks to continuous contact with the client, no longer needs to write long reports and is able to make changes quickly, with a consequent reduction in bottlenecks and misunderstandings.
In order to put all this into action however, it is essential that every developer is familiar with the problem area he must work upon, so that innovative technological solutions can be proposed, which will be beneficial for the business of the client, who must be monitored while using the software.
Translated by Joanne Beckwith
