Did you know 88% of mobile time is spent on apps? From using social media for daily interactions to mobile cleaner apps for removing unwanted data from the phone, every smartphone user has a range of apps to interact, solve a problem, order their favorite, shop, while away the hours, and entertain themselves.
This surprising insight would have cultivated the thought of tapping into the mobile app landscape and making your business/brand noticeable to the potential audience. However, developing a mobile app can be a challenging task. You need a team who can offer their expertise and time solely to your project.
Who better to do the job than dedicated mobile app developers? Hiring a dedicated app development team equates to a streamlined process and developing a full-fledged app without compromising the timeline.
Planning to hire the best mobile app developers for your next project? Read this blog as we guide you through the aspects you need to consider for hiring an exceptional team.
Before we jump into the process of hiring a mobile app development team, let us understand what they are and what they do.
Dedicated Mobile App Developers: What Are They & What is their Job Role?
Dedicated mobile app developers refer to tech-savvy individuals who are hired on a contractual basis for a certain period to dedicatedly work on developing an app. Unlike freelance or in-house developers, dedicated developers involve their time, resources, and expertise exclusively for your project.
The job role of dedicated developers includes -
- Creating native or hybrid mobile apps using the latest programming languages and frameworks.
- Conduct thorough research on the project.
- Coding, testing, and launching the application.
- Integrating APIs and third-party softwares with the app.
- Identifying the potential errors to debug them.
- Developing and launching updates for seamless performance.
- Maintenance and support until the release of the project.
Now that you have an overview of dedicated mobile app developers and their job roles. Let us dive straight into the factors you must consider before hiring a dedicated team.
How to Hire the Mobile App Development Team?
1. Analyze Your Budget
Defining your budget should be the first step before even choosing the team. You need to figure out how much you are willing to invest in mobile app development. This will help you gauge your financial capacity and choose a team aligning with your budget.
Now you might be wondering where to start. Well, you can initiate the process by determining your existing funds. Ask yourself - what’s your financial situation, and can you invest in the project at the moment?
Next, you need to identify the project expenses. You can break down the expenditure into parts such as development, customization, marketing, operational, and team cost.
Don’t forget to study the current scenario of the market. Gather information on how much it costs to develop an Android, iOS, or hybrid mobile application. What are the design requirements, and how much does integrating a third-party API or software with the system cost?
Be sure to measure the ROI and revenue generation opportunities. Will mobile app development be fruitful for you in the near future? What is the market demand, and will it flourish in the coming years?
Lastly, set aside a contingency budget for unexpected expenses or last-minute requirements.
2. Choose an Experienced Team
Once you have outlined your budget, the following step is to hire a team of dedicated developers. The market is swamped with developers, which might seem appealing and confusing alike. Although, you can’t choose anyone or go overboard & burn a hole in your pocket. You need to examine the nitty-gritty to choose a team that fits your budget and goal.
To hire an experienced team of developers, define your project requirements, like which platform you need for your app - Android, iOS, or both, what technology stack will be used in it, what features you need, etc.
After that, research companies or freelancing teams suitable for your requirements. You can search online or seek references to find out the potential teams. Be sure to read clientele testimonials & reviews, and gather intel on the company, & its packages.
Finally, narrow them down by their experience, technical expertise, budget, and projects they have previously undertaken related to your industry.
3. Invest in Full Stack Developers
Instead of going for a native developer, we recommend you choose hybrid (cross-platform) developers. Hybrid developers are well-versed in the requirements and constraints of mobile app development. With a single codebase, they can develop an app that can work on Android, iOS, or both.
Additionally, developing a hybrid app is a cost-effective solution. Developing a native will limit your accessibility. Meaning you can be either on Android or iOS. On the other hand, a hybrid app will allow you to be on both platforms, broadening your market reach.
In fact, the life cycle of building hybrid apps is relatively quick, which can save a lot of time. Maintaining hybrid apps is fairly simple as it is built on a single codebase. Most importantly, hybrid frameworks such as Flutter, React Native, Ionic, etc., offer an array of tools and components to facilitate a consistent user experience across every device.
4. Interview the Developers
Conducting technical assessments of the developers is a fantastic way to understand their technical proficiency, industry knowledge, and communication skills. You can ask them questions related to their experience, industry trends, the latest technologies, programming languages, and frameworks such as Swift, Kotlin, React Native, Flutter, or Xamarin.
You can even ask them trick questions or coding-related queries to check their problem-solving and analytical skills. You can also inquire about their communication, project planning, and management style.
All these questions will help you pick the perfect team of dedicated developers.
5. NDA (Non-disclosure Agreement)
Once you have “found the perfect match,” the last and most important step you must take into account is NDA. NDA, also referred to as a non-disclosure agreement, is a legal agreement between the client and the company/freelancers. This agreement is typically signed for confidentiality purposes, which states that neither party will not disclose any information to the third party that may be concerning or valuable to either party.
You need to carefully read the agreement before signing and check out essential provisions like -
- Protecting Intellectual Property rights.
- Confidentiality against third parties, competitors, etc.
- Details of funds and investor.
- Prevention of idea theft.
- An official transfer of rights to source code and other relevant deliverables mentioned in the agreement.
Besides the above-stated clauses, you can also ask them to add other clauses and legal requirements that you deem important for the agreement between both parties.
When Do You Need a Dedicated App Development Team?
In today's rapidly evolving landscape of technology and digital solutions, businesses frequently encounter a crucial dilemma: whether to establish an in-house development team or engage a dedicated app development team. While each option has its advantages, the dedicated development team model boasts distinct benefits that render it an enticing choice for certain situations.
So, when is the ideal time to consider a dedicated app development team? Let us delve into some scenarios where this model proves exceptionally advantageous:
1. Complex or Large-scale Projects
Business owners aiming to develop a large-scale mobile app or have a complex idea can choose dedicated developers. A dedicated development team will actively leverage their expertise, experience, workforce, and time to create a next-gen and robust mobile app.
2. Customized Solution
Are you someone who needs a custom app according to their business needs? Then hiring a team of dedicated developers should be on your list. A dedicated team will closely work with you by understanding your concept and the overall scope of the work. Furthermore, they can also suggest improvements to enhance your initial idea and bring out something unique that can outshine your competitors.
3. Time-sensitive Projects
Dedicated developers are also an excellent pool of professionals for business owners who want to develop and launch mobile apps in a short duration. A dedicated team is majorly hired for its flexibility. Once you engage with them, they will entirely focus their efforts, time, and resources. Allowing them to expedite the process and ensure timely delivery.
4. Continuous Development & Support
Food, gaming, social media, blogging, communication, and numerous other apps need constant maintenance and support to deliver a consistent and seamless user experience. And if your app fits into any of these categories, outsourcing a dedicated mobile development team would be your best option.
A dedicated team can offer round-the-clock support for minor to major issues. They can even create new features and integrate third-party software according to your needs, user expectations, and evolving market.
5. Don’t Have an In-House Team
In case you lack resources or don’t have an in-house team at all, outsourcing dedicated developers can be the best way to fill in the gaps. From researching to launching and everything in between, dedicated developers bring forth a range of skills to exceed your expectations.
6. Cost-effectiveness
The biggest perk of hiring a dedicated team is cost-effectiveness. Unlike in-house developers, where you need to invest in recruiting, training, and equipping them while paying overhead costs, employing dedicated developers doesn’t need any of that. All you have to do is spend on their development, time, and resources invested cost.
Now that you are aware of the key tips to hire a mobile remote developer and understand when to seek their expertise, it's time to provide you with insights into the team structure and an overview of the associated costs for hiring dedicated developers.
What is the Team Structure for iOS and Android?
Usually, the structure of the team depends on the size, complexity, and overall scope of the project. However, a typical team structure would include -
Android / iOS Team -
- Project Manager
- Android / iOS Developer
- UI/UX Designer
- Backend Developer
- Quality Assurance (QA) Engineer
- DevOps Engineer
Other members -
- Technical Architect
- Database Administrator
- Security Engineer
How Much Does it Cost to Hire a Dedicated Team of Developers?
Generally, the cost to hire a dedicated team would directly correlate to the project’s requirements. For starters, define the type of app you need, the complexity, project duration, technical requirements, communication & collaboration tools, and the platform of the project.
The cost to hire an mobile app developer also relies on the location. Some regions or states may have higher charges compared to other ones. Hence, address every factor and choose the right team.
To give you an in-depth understanding of the cost, we have shown a table below highlighting countries and their hourly rates for developing an Android or iOS mobile application.
Please note - All the costs mentioned above are approximate and can vary according to the specific skill set, experience, and expertise.
So far, we have given you an overview of the team structure and cost of hiring a dedicated team of mobile app developers. Let’s now show you where you can access the pool of talents from.