How to assemble the dream team for your startup

Building the right team with the right people can make a difference in the rapidly evolving startup landscape. Today, we'll delve into assembling a team to successfully balance time to market, cost considerations, and quality, focusing on factors that influence all three areas.

Time to market

Even a month's delay can significantly undermine success in today's fast-paced environment. Several factors can affect the timeline.

Requirements

If your startup isn't your full-time commitment and the requirements remain unclear, bringing in a Business Analyst or a Product/Project Manager can significantly accelerate the development process. Their expertise will minimize waiting times for new tasks and reduce unnecessary rework.

Stakeholder Expectations

A Project Manager becomes invaluable when multiple cofounders are involved. PM can harmonize expectations, establish a change process, and shield the development team from being overwhelmed by cofounders with divergent and urgent demands.

Cross-functional Team

Engaging such a team can bridge potential skill gaps. For instance, there might be times when you have tasks specific to frontend or backend development. A cross-functional team can address these without locking one another out

This approach also mitigates risks associated with illnesses, layoffs, and other unforeseen events.

Collaborating with a third-party software vendor who can offer seamless, free onboarding for a new developer in case of any replacements would also be beneficial.

Testing

Having a dedicated tester ensures timely identification of bugs. When issues are spotted promptly, developers can address them while the task context is fresh, leading to quicker resolutions.

Communication & Conflict Resolution

The larger your development team, the more essential it becomes to have an experienced manager on board. Such a professional can facilitate smooth communication and preemptively address conflicts, sparing you the headache.

Business Domain Knowledge

If you decide not to hire a Project Manager, you must assemble a team of engineers familiar with your business domain who can understand what stays behind your words correctly. Alternatively, collaborating with a software vendor with such expertise can be equally beneficial.

Budgeting

While getting to market quickly is crucial, the project budget remains paramount. If funds are depleted halfway through, any speed advantage becomes moot.

Time-related factors like delays, inefficiencies, and rework invariably inflate the budget. But there are other aspects to weigh in:

Time is Money

Whether fully committed to your startup or juggling it with a 9-5 job, time is a constraint. Every hour spent costs you and impacts relationships, health, and that elusive work-life balance.

Employing a project manager to refine requirements and a Quality Assurance engineer to test the software may strain the budget. Still, it saves crucial time, allowing you to concentrate on other vital aspects or earning money in your current job. The only dilemma is determining what you can afford and your life priorities accordingly.

Specialized Roles

They can be a key if you aim to cut direct salary expenses. For instance, three years of pure front-end experience isn't the same as three years of full-stack experience divided between front and back. Hence, to gain expertise in both areas, you should budget for a developer with five or six years of experience instead. Specialization helps developers to be aware of the latest technologies in their field, ensuring quality, consistency, and adherence to standards.?

Processes

Unfortunately, hiring profound developers isn't sufficient. Without well-defined processes, they won't reach peak efficiency. This is even more pivotal than the team structure itself. It underscores the importance of people management from your side or considering hiring at least a part-time PM. Many software vendors provide such an opportunity.

Project Lifespan

If your strategy involves launching a project, testing hypotheses, seeking investments, and pausing development for a few months, assembling a permanent team may be impractical. Your options narrow down to hiring contractors or partnering with a vendor.

Collaboration with a vendor has its benefits: while contractors might not be available after a certain period, a reputable vendor can forecast this and plan accordingly. They also bring their expertise to the table, ensuring that the onboarding is cost-effective even if they hire new developers for the second phase.

If you're looking for a vendor who can navigate you through this process, just contact us.

Quality and User Experience

I worked in production automation, where the emphasis on quality was distinct from funny web apps like avatar creation.

A single bug could destroy 6 miles of cable or blow up a gas turbine. However, even outside such high-stakes environments, user experience is vital; no one likes bugs.

Dedicated QA

Some assert that QAs aren't essential, while others can't grasp how the former group does it. If we're developing an API, perhaps developers indeed can execute unit tests and cover integration tests for the entire structure. Conversely, automation might not make sense if a fast-evolving mobile application exists across multiple environments. Testing with developers might be costlier since QAs typically have lower salaries and, being specialized, can identify and reproduce bugs more efficiently. Implementing feature toggles can be a game-changer in both scenarios. This strategy enables controlled, phased rollouts, allowing for iterative deployment while minimizing the damaging effects of bugs.

Acceptance testing

Some of our clients, especially with small engineering teams of two or three devs, test every feature themselves. While this can be cost-effective, it's a substantial responsibility. If a developer delivered a feature a month ago, and you're only now verifying it, it demands their time and mental energy to recall the specifics.

In conclusion

Building an efficient startup team goes beyond just hiring. It's about understanding the intricate balance between speed, cost, and quality. Every decision, from the team structure to the processes in place, plays a pivotal role in the project's outcome.?

If you're ever unsure about which direction to take, lean on our expertise. We can guide you to the most fitting solution tailored to your needs. With our seasoned team by your side, we'll help transform your vision into reality. Ready to embark on this journey with us?

Just reach out.

Author Oleksii Skurikhin