Who do you need to create a mobile app? Of course, the first answer that comes to your mind is: “an app developer”. But it is only partly true.
In the past, when you had had a good app idea, you would have searched for a programmer to code it. However, as the mobile programming art develops, it becomes obvious that simply hiring one developer to create an app is not enough.
Today, programmers specialize in certain languages and if you want a multiplatform app, you will need at least a couple of Android and iOS developers just to write the code. What’s more, to ensure high quality of your product, UX/UI designers and QA testers will be important to make user experience smooth and pleasant. Not to mention analysts who will assure that your app has a chance in the competitive market and suit users’ needs.
Hence, a better answer to your initial question will be that you do not a developer, but a software house, with all its employees doing their best for your app to succeed.
So, who exactly works in a software house? Let’s take a closer look.
CLIENT SERVICE SPECIALIST
Your first contact with a software house will be through Client Service Specialists. It’s them who will guide you through the whole development process, from the first Skype meeting, to the successful delivery. Actually, their role is so important that in Ready4S we call them Client Success Specialists.
So what their specific task in mobile development is?
“My goal is to make your cooperation with Ready4S smooth and easy,” says Kasia, Client Success Specialist at Ready4S. “I am here to provide you with necessary information, answer all your questions and ensure you get an offer and an estimation suitable for your app idea.”
A Client Success Specialist is your link to all software departments. You can contact them with any question or request and they will find a good answer for you. They also coordinate the process of understanding your app idea, negotiating an estimation for your project and signing an NDA and cooperation agreement.
PROJECT TEAM:
After settling all your project requirements with a Client Success Specialist and signing both NDA and cooperation agreement, your app idea gets its own Project Team that will change it into a successful product. In a professional software house, you will surely find many different roles and positions, assuring that your project is in good hands at each step. Here are the most important of them.
PROJECT MANAGER
This guy (or girl, as we have many female employees, too) is a coordinator of the whole development project and the first person to contact at the production stage.
“Once your project is discussed and agreement signed, I take it over and lead your app development process to success. I am the person who takes care of completing each iteration within the set time and budget. You can ask me all technical questions, too,” explains Bartek, Project Manager at Ready4S.
Among Project Manager task’s you can find setting the schedules, assigning tasks to members of the Project Team and dealing with things like dependencies or resourcing. A PM is your direct coordinator for the project so of course, the better you understand each other, the better your app will be.
In Ready4S, we usually use Agile framework in management of our projects as it helps to adjust better to customer’s needs.
TEAM LEADER
Apart from a PM who is in charge of a specific project, you can also find another managing position in a software house, a Team Leader. He is responsible for a team of specialists from a certain area.
“To make your idea come true, we need several teams of developers, qualified in specific programming languages, testing or graphic design. I am responsible for the work of such a team, ensuring that your project does well in my specific area,” explains Dominik, our iOS Team Leader.
The role of Team Leader is extremely important for the quality of your app. That’s because he is an experienced specialist in his subject and can manage and support his employees in a more direct and to the point way than a PM, who has to manage the whole project and hence can’t have the same level of knowledge in each specific area.
ANALYST
The first step in the development process is a careful and detailed analysis of the market and target audience of your app. Here’s where analysts come in. They find benchmarks, on which we can base in our future work, check which solutions already exists and do well in the market and suggest proven approaches. Basing on their findings, it is possible to prepare a tailored strategy for your app.
Although some companies don’t pay specific attention to analysis and strategy, we don’t underestimate analysts’ role. Good specialists in this area can not only contribute to your app’s success, but also prevent you from additional costs and missed deadlines.
UX/UI DESIGNER
“Design is the way to users’ hearts,” tells one of the successful rules in the mobile industry. That’s why a good graphic designer is a must in a mobile app development project.
UX/UI designer’s role includes making the product look and feel perfect for users. They are responsible for creating wireframes of screens and storyboards as well as making them look appealing. In a nutshell, they have to ensure that the product logically flows from one step to the next and its design delight to end users.
SOFTWARE DEVELOPER
This is, actually, a broad category of different roles, not a single position. Developers vary in terms of platforms for which they program, languages in which they write code and experience they have.
In a usual project done by a software house, your project will get a whole team of developers who specialize in different areas and therefore ensure that your app is buttoned-up in every possible way. What’s more, as they work in a team, they control their coworkers possible mistakes and invent new solutions through brain storming.
QA TESTER
To guarantee that your app functions perfectly, Quality Assurance (QA) Testers checks it in each possible aspect, from functionality and performance to load scalability and security. Their role is to identify potential loopholes or weakness of the software and to report any bugs to the developers team.
There’s no doubt that QA Testers’ role is extremely important to your app performance. You have to remember that a lot of end users will simply abandon your app if they face any serious bugs, so make sure that you saved enough time for testing not only at the end but also at each stage of mobile development.
BUSINESS AND MARKETING ADVISER
Apart from developing your app from A to Z, best software houses also feel responsible for the projects’ business and marketing strategy, so that the app has the best chances to become successful in the competitive mobile market.
In Ready4S, we take this matter very seriously. From business strategy consultancy and information about most suitable monetization methods, to suggesting best technologies and promotion campaign, our business and marketing advisors are always there for you. Don’t hesitate to ask them any questions.
All specialists mentioned above play key roles in every software house company. Their experience and skills are vital in the mobile app development process and help your app achieve success.
Are you ready to put your software development project in the hands of Ready4S team? Fill in this form to get a free quote for your app idea.
