Everything You Need to Know About the 3 Types of Software Development Teams
Today, as tech-driven environments become more prevalent, a growing number of new technical positions, different types of software development team, as well as new hierarchies, are being introduced into business organizations.
Furthermore, businesses are revisiting their workforce strategies in response to the acceleration of digital transformation.
However, the roles and structures of technical IT groups differ between business organizations. The software team’s duties and tasks are the same as those of other types of IT teams.
Statistics show that a lack of confidence in the project’s success is the most common reason for project failure: “75% of respondents admit that their projects are either always or usually “doomed right from the start.”
But why do you believe this occurs, and what can you do to change it? To function properly, you must be familiar with all of the team’s members, their roles, and their responsibilities.
So, if you’re a business owner looking to build a team that creates successful products, here’s some information about the various types of software development teams, as well as the factors that influence team structure.
Types of Software Development Team
Companies preparing to launch a large project often feel it essential to find a qualified software development team. Whether their stack is insufficient to complete the complex task or lacks an in-house team, they should be prepared for this challenging task – candidate search.
To do it correctly, business owners must first learn IT terminology, industry best practices, and typical performance indicators. The first question to answer before the hiring process begins is, “What are the different types of team structures in software engineering?”
Generalists
A generalist structure, as the name implies, is one in which each team member has a broad understanding of a wide range of topics without delving too deeply into any of them. A generalist is a “Jack of all trades,” meaning they know little about everything. Because of their adaptability, they can work on various tasks and easily switch between themselves and their colleagues.
Generalists Team Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Capable of multitasking, learning new technologies, and adapting. | When compared to a specialist, it takes longer to complete a task. |
| Concentrate on communication and collaboration across silos. | Generalists who lack experience and theoretical knowledge may need help to make the best use of a particular technology. |
| They understand how the product functions as a whole and how to improve it if necessary. | In decision-making, rely on “executive presence.” |
It is also not uncommon for developers to write and run tests for their software or deliver turnkey solutions independently, from product design and interface to business logic and basic analytics. These professionals are essentially generalists.
If you need a simple, single-purpose product, look for a generalist team. In some cases, this team may consist of just one person.
Specialists
A specialist, as opposed to a generalist, is an expert in a specific field. Everyone in a specialist team structure has a different niche and is responsible for the tasks under their domain.
This structure is common in larger Agile teams with enough people to cover all knowledge areas. Programmers, database administrators, product developers, and Agile practitioners are examples of specialists.
Specialists Team Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Understand the project’s specifics. | Faces the risk of data siloing and miscommunication. |
| A specialized team can complete relatively complex projects more quickly. | Requires more time to fit together the components of the separate project. |
| Experts can be seen in each field. | There is a risk of data silos and miscommunication. |
Hybrid
A hybrid team structure is one of the significant types of software development team. It includes a mix of generalists and specialists. Each specialist on this team will focus on building the project’s complex components, while the generalists will connect these components and ensure the project makes sense as a whole.
It also implies that Agile teams can benefit from the broad knowledge provided by generalist and specialist approaches. A hybrid structure provides benefits such as improved teamwork, high-quality deliverables, and a greater sense of ownership.
Hybrid Team Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Potentially the most efficient composition. | Require precise responsibility distribution. |
| Provide an appropriate mix of specialization and cross-technology knowledge. | Putting together a perfect hybrid team could be costly and time-consuming. |
The obvious conclusion of this section is to choose a team type based on the stakeholders’ vision of the project and their needs. Because each project is unique, there are numerous parameters to consider. Both specialist and generalist teams have flaws that make them unsuitable in certain situations. The hybrid team combines the best of both worlds.
7 Factors that Impact Software Development Team Structure
Before forming a software development team, you should consider several important factors. All of this will influence the final structure of your software development team.
What is your software development team size? How much time it will take to complete the project? When these questions will be answered with a thorough understanding of your concept, business requirements, and expected time to market, you can choose your team structure. And without detailed information, no one can estimate the complexity of the project, development team size, budget, or development duration.
The following are the primary factors that may influence the structure of your team:
Product complexity
If you’re creating something more complex, you’ll need to account for a lot more resources.
A complex app may have multiple third-party integrations and necessitate a great deal of business logic and data manipulation.
A project management system, for example, or a mobile game, are both complex enough to necessitate the services of multiple specialists, ranging from front-end developers to security engineers.
Type of Software
The type of software you are developing can have a significant impact on how you structure your software development team.
This is due to the fact that each software program has its own unique technology and requires specific skill sets to function. Many of today’s technology professionals have specialized skill sets, so you’ll need to find the right people for the technology you’re working with.
Many Agile programs use a hybrid team approach to bring everything together, employing both specialists and generalists.
Size of Team
Your team’s size is highly variable, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution.
The Scrum methodology states that the ideal team size for product development is seven people or less.
When it comes to creating your MVP, you’ll need at least six specialists, plus software engineers and test engineers.
Agile methodologies require teams of no more than ten people in product development. At this point, you can also bring in performance engineers, test automation engineers, security engineers, and DevOps engineers.
Project Size
If your project is small, you will most likely need fewer team members to complete it. Smaller projects are more likely to employ generalist teams, in which each member has a broader skill set and can handle a variety of tasks.
To complete each task on a large project, you will usually need to hire more specialists.
Deadline
The team structure and size will be influenced by how quickly you need to turn around your product. Obviously, with fewer team members, the project may take longer to complete.
So, if you have an idea for a cutting-edge product that needs to be developed from the ground up and on a tight timeline, you may need to assemble a large team of senior engineers or a group of full-stack engineers who can cover all needs and deliver results quickly and efficiently.
Resources
The resources required for software development can range from office space to insider information.
Still, there are three essential components that every software project requires:
- Hardware and software tools: Before you begin development, you should plan out which hardware and software tools you will use to avoid running into problems.
Hardware serves as a foundation for the software tools that your team will inevitably use. Make sure your software development team structure takes into account what hardware and software each team member requires and when they require it.
- Reusable components: In order to better manage your budget, you should always look to reuse the assets you already have. Documentation, technology, and templates are all excellent candidates for reuse.
- Human resources: Human resources are at the heart of determining the best software development team structure. During the hiring process, evaluate applicants’ skill sets and specialties and assign them to the roles that best suit them.
Budget
The type of talent and team structure for your project may be limited by your budget at times. When evaluating your budget, you must be realistic about what you can afford and determine how to use your budget most efficiently.
Conclusion
Finding the best type and structure of software development team will benefit you more than you realise. It’s natural in business to focus on the numbers rather than the people behind the numbers.
However, in software development, the success of your company is ultimately determined by your team.
And, in order to ensure that you and your team are on the right track, you must understand the above different types of software development teams for business growth.
Considering the factors above with a carefully hired software development team of technical professionals, you can maximize productivity and accelerate your projects in the process.
FAQs
1. What is a software development team?
Software development teams work together to create a technical project or product. Everyone on the development team contributes to this and should be held accountable for their efforts.
2. What should I look for when building a software development team?
To form a successful software development team, consider the project size, available and required resources, team size, budget, and so on.
3. What are the different roles and responsibilities in a software development team?
Quality assurance/product tester, UI/UX designer, developer, business analyst, project manager, technical lead, product manager, and business unit manager are all common titles for a software development team.
