Why Flexibility Is Key To Ontime Delivery

Flexibility is key to a good, lean software development process, ensuring on-time delivery and the best product rollout.

You wouldn’t need flexibility under perfect conditions. If you had no deadline and unlimited funds, if you weren’t worried about your competition or technological changes during the development and rollout process, and if you had a perfect understanding of your customer’s needs, your project would be rigid and well-defined.

In the real world of development, there’s always something changing, our customer view is imperfect, and schedule and funding are critical issues. We’re always concerned about the wise use of limited project resources. With a good project manager and an agile development process, you ensure the best use of your resources.

At Troon Technologies, our first step in working with you is to determine the critical elements of your project, those most important to your success, and ensure our roll-out plan keeps the focus on those elements. That’s important because there is no rote process to software development. Your application hasn’t been built before. It’s not a matter of dragging and dropping the right mix of code blocks. Even as an application is built, something new may develop a new requirement, a new technology, a change in resources.

Establish a Good Timeline and Stick to It

At that point, an inability to adapt the development process of the application–even while keeping your eye on the focused development of critical elements–reduces your ability to create the best and most meaningful product. That lack of flexibility could lead to an entirely new timeline, delaying your project or even precipitating its cancellation.

With Troon’s agile project management, we invest in fully understanding your request and your goals. We question why your product is necessary, its place in the market, and the method. That commitment to understanding your product and needs ensures the best development plan is put in place and your application is well thought out. Take advantage of our technologic expertise and experience in bringing applications to market to guide you through the development process, ensuring an agile process that focuses on critical elements.

We match your application development and goals to a meaningful timeline. What elements of your application are critical for launch? Which components are necessary to create your minimum viable product and which should be tested and developed after the initial product? Make sure your resources are shifted to meet the most important need.

Spend your time up front, consulting with the project manager and meeting your deadlines, so the project manager can provide an accurate framework for development. This early communication and establishing critical processes is key to establishing expectations and developing accurate delivery estimates.

Get Your Best Product to Market

Flexibility at the end of the development process is just as important. There is no perfect software application. Product testing helps refine the product in the final development stages. Even then, customer insights and real-world experience with the product add a critical to-do list to your proof-of-concept application.

Manage your risk in developing your application. Use the right resources at the right time. Ensure your resources are best used so that you are prepared for success or the need for change.

• Plan for the best. You know you have a great idea. Let your development team guide you through the best implementation, responding to your objectives and any adjustments in a way that keeps your project on its timeline. Get a solid product to market quickly.
• Plan for the worst. Use an agile team and a lean development process to make sure all your resources aren’t used early in the development process. Make sure there’s room for adjustments based on testing and feedback.
• Plan for change. There are a number of reasons your process might change. The process itself may precipitate refinement of your idea. New technologies or competitors may appear. Testing your minimum viable product leads to adjustments and new ideas.

Prepare for those changes at the beginning of the process with the proper appropriation of resources and a development process that allows for adjustments. That agile or flexible response in development is your best bet for on-time delivery of your application and a successful result.