Coordinating expertise in software development teams can be a tremendous challenge. The process has many unique facets and moving parts. There are dozens of programming languages and specialties. If you are short-handed as a result of a team member’s retirement, illness or a high work volume, things get even more challenging.

Many companies are left scrambling to coordinate expertise to avoid project delays and budget overruns. These can happen when a firm didn’t have the right talent at the right time. Yet many companies don’t realize this fact until it’s too late. Ultimately, it’s up to hiring managers and company leaders who can ensure a high degree of skill redundancy and versatility. Let’s examine a few of the common mistakes that can impede progress in your tech department.

Mistake #1: Failing to Ensure Redundancy in Workers’ Skill Sets

Skill redundancy is one of the most important factors to consider during the hiring process and when building a software development team. There are many programming languages, skill sets and specialties at play on any given tech team. Therefore, you need to ensure that you have at least one person who has the skills and training required to step in and help if a teammate finds she requires help. Ideally, you should have several individuals who possess a specific skill set.

To avoid problems, it’s useful to make a chart that indicates each and every team member’s skills. Then, hire new, versatile staff with the right skills and architect development teams in a way that ensures a high degree of skill redundancy.

Mistake #2: Ignoring Important Variables

While a chart indicating each team member’s skills and capabilities can be very useful to a hiring manager or a development team leader, it’s critical that you consider some variables that arise in practice. For example, let’s say John is the only person who can fill in for George. But John is also the only person with the skills required to perform his normal duties. He can’t perform his normal tasks and fill in for George simultaneously. So while your staffing situation may look good on paper, with a backup person who can step in to help when George is out sick, real-life variables mean that it’s impractical to use John as a fill-in.

It’s critical that hiring managers and team leaders work together to really understand how the staffing situation will play out in everyday practice, even if a staffing chart seems great in theory. This insight is critical for creating a solid software developer staffing plan and making good staffing and training decisions.

Mistake #3: Ignoring the Need to Cross-Train

You should never find yourself in a position where only one person has the keys to the kingdom. For every position, there should be at least one (and ideally two or more) others who know how to fulfill a particular role. This helps you avoid a situation where a lead developer suddenly quits, taking necessary logins, knowledge and skills with him. You could find that you’re unable to proceed because nobody else has the necessary insight or skills.

Hiring managers should give preference to candidates who have filled multiple roles within the agile development team structure. As a matter of practice, it’s also vital that team leaders set aside time to allow for cross-training.

Mistake #4: Underestimating the Importance of Ongoing Training

Companies often underestimate the benefits of providing staff with new tech training opportunities. Such opportunities not only attract staff who are eager to learn and grow, but also puts you in a much better position in terms of your IT staffing. You’ll have team members with greater versatility, adding more value to your company as a whole.

Of course, ongoing training has another major benefit outside of coordinating expertise in software development teams. The tech field is evolving and expanding rapidly, so by providing your staff with training opportunities, you’ll find it easier to remain on the leading edge of your industry. That’s true whether you have a tech company or a business in another sector.

Mistake #5: Failing to Leverage Temporary Staffing Services

Hiring managers often focus on permanent, long-term hires. In doing so, they fail to realize the critical role of temporary onsite staffing services. Temporary team members (or even entire development teams) can be very effective in filling gaps especially those that arise unexpectedly. It’s often impractical to hire a permanent developer, but a temporary hire can make a lot of sense. They have the right skills and are available precisely when and where you need them.

At iTech, we specialize in temporary onsite staffing services for software developers and IT staff. We also assist by providing consulting services, so we’ll work with your hiring managers to ensure that you have access to the right resources at the right time. We source our talent from across the globe, so you can rest easy knowing you’re getting the best person for the job not just the best local person. If you need help with tech and IT staffing services, contact the team at iTech today.

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The hard reality is that cross-training, continuing education and investing in the top tech certifications can go a long way toward preventing this type of scenario. And it’s one that could arise on a more frequent basis.

The tech industry is growing at a tremendous rate, so demand for software development and IT skills is only going to rise. In fact, New Horizons indicated that in 2015, IT spending topped $3.517 trillion dollars worldwide. U.S.-based spending in the application software training market sector has grown dramatically too, rising from $5.2 billion in 2011, to $6.2 billion in 2016. Those numbers don’t include spending on in-person training courses, either.

It’s clear that the demand for technology-related services is rising. This underscores the importance of preventing work slowdowns or stoppages, while also keeping your enterprise highly competitive. Continued education and skill growth are more important than ever before.

Why is Ongoing Training Important in the Tech Industry?

The top companies, including iTech, are early adopters who upgrade their hardware every two years (if not sooner), to remain on the industry’s cutting edge. This two-year timeframe is based upon the theory known as Moore’s Law, and while new revelations have led many to conclude that Moore’s Law is no longer valid, it’s still good practice to update your hardware on a bi-annual basis. Software should be updated as new versions become available.

But software and hardware account for just two pieces of the equation. Talent is another major ingredient in the recipe for success. Your staff’s training, skills and knowledge have a massive impact on productivity levels and thus, your bottom line.

Since technology evolves at such a rapid pace, it’s impractical to expect your tech skills, strategies and techniques to remain valid and effective for any prolonged period of time. New coding languages, hardware, software, technology, and development strategies are constantly emerging.

Highly-trained tech experts who possess a wide range of skills deliver numerous perks and advantages, such as:

• Reduced costs associated with recruiting, hiring and new employee training/orientation;
• Improved productivity from an ability to fill gaps that arise from sick days and vacation days;
• Decreased reliance upon third-parties, such as outsourcing service providers and temp agencies; and
• Improved workflow due to each individual’s broader knowledge base and skill set.

Ongoing training also allows you to remain on the cutting edge of technology, which, in turn, improves productivity, profit margin and your bottom line. Investing in regular training allows companies to gain a competitive advantage, while increasing the value and versatility of your staffers.

One of the most effective strategies, particularly for large companies, involves calling in a trainer to work with your talent in-house. This saves on travel-related spending and the overall cost of training, since companies tend to get a better value when they hire a trainer to work with a large group (versus sending employees to an off-site training program on an individual basis.)

Versatility and Broadening Skill Sets Through Cross-Training

Companies can see a major financial and workflow benefit from investing in cross-training for employees. When a staff member can fulfill multiple roles, that frees up resources for other tasks on an as-needed basis. This makes it far easier to maintain a consistent level of productivity, despite holidays, sick days or temporary but unexpected increases in workload.

The tech industry has no shortage of programming languages and tech niches. Meanwhile, new hardware and software releases occur on a continual rolling basis. This makes it impractical to cross-train staff to perform all aspects of another staffer’s job. But company leaders and supervisors can identify some of the most commonly used skills—skills that will serve as the basis of your training initiative.

Investing in IT and Tech Certifications

Microsoft (MS) and Cisco certifications are generally viewed as elements of an entry-level skill set. Still, companies can benefit from investing in them, because MS and Cisco training can provide insights that allow for improved on-the-job performance.

What’s more, the most successful ventures tend to be those that invest in cross-training for their staff, as this allows for greater flexibility and productivity. So while you may not have one person who can fulfill all of the tasks associated with a specific position, it can be extremely useful to divide the workload amongst multiple individuals. That workload often involves a blend of entry-level skills and more specialized, high-level skills.

Implementing Other Software Project Staffing Strategies

Even with continuing education and cross-trained staff, you may encounter a project that demands resources and skills that you just don’t possess. When this happens, some businesses look immediately at outsourcing. But outsourcing comes with its own unique challenges, challenges that have prompted companies to search for an alternative staffing solution. Enter insourcing. Insourcing (iTech’s specialty) involves the dispatch of a qualified, pre-vetted and well-established team that’s embedded in your company’s staff. Once the project is completed, the team departs, returning to iTech.

This strategy lets clients oversee the project in-house, without the time, cost and hassles associated with recruiting, hiring and training new talent. Contact iTech today to learn more about the benefits of insourcing for your next IT or development project.

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