Starship built their city on rock and roll, the people of Birmingham built their city on innovation. From it's industrial roots right through to it's thriving tech scene today - businesses across all sectors are starting to embrace digital transformation as a way to keep them ahead of the competition. Part of this, is utilising software to improve their day to day operations, boost efficiency and improve engagement with employees and clients alike. Whilst some companies find that off-the-shelf software solutions are sufficient to do this, others, with more nuanced and complex requirements look to bespoke software that can be built to their exact specification - no compromises needed.
If you're in the manufacturing and engineering industry for example, you can reap the benefits of custom automation tools that improve your end to end production processes. Maybe you're in retail or ecommerce? In that case, you can use a bespoke software platform to keep you customers returning through providing top notch user experiences. What about if you're in the financial sector? Custom software can provide your business with vigorous security and compliance measures that allow you to adhere to industry regulations. These are just a few examples of how bespoke software is transforming the way some businesses in Birmingham work, for the better. Let's take a closer look at how this can apply to you too!
The key differentiator between bespoke software and off-the-shelf software is that bespoke software is built from scratch to the desired specifications of your specific organisation and no elses. This means, it encompasses your existing processes and workflows and provides the features and functionality that you need to achieve the specific outcomes you want to see. Off-the-shelf software on the other hand, is a ready built solution that has generic features and functionality that has been designed to appeal to a large audience. All that being said, if you're wondering what the development process for custom software looks like - it will be as unique as your business!
However, as a general rule of thumb, you can expect some or all of the following steps:
The process begins with in depth research on the context and operations of your company. Often, this is done with the help of those employees who will actually be using the software to identify their pain points, seek out areas for improvement and determine what the software needs to achieve across all relevant parts of your business. The clearer your requirements are upfront, the more straightforward the project will be - detail here prevents needless costly changes down the line.
The next step for the development team is to understand what you're currently working with. The existing infrastructure, business processes and workflows along with the context of your business will allow the developers to formulate a plan of how to get from A (your current environment) to B (your desired environment). If necessary, prototyping can be brought in at this stage so the plan can be revised and tweaked as you go.
This is where your new software is actually built. Using agile methodologies is good practice and development is typically broken into phases so you can continuously review progress, give feedback and make adjustments along the way rather than just at the end - very useful if you are not yet 100% sure of what exactly you need or how the software needs to work.
Next is the testing phase which you should very much be involved in. Each of the components of your software should be tested independently and together to ensure it works as it should - including any integrations, bugs should be removed and tweaks made as necessary. Your software should also be tested under different real world scenarios to ensure it is able to perform as required in differing circumstances which is where you will likely be most heavily involved.
Once the software has been proven to work as it is required to, it can then be deployed. Depending on the size of the project, you might choose to take a phased approach whereby the software is rolled out to different group of users in different phases rather than all at once. Another risk mitigation strategy for you to consider is to have a roll back plan in place should there be issues with the deployment which means you can move straight back to your previous set up.
Training can happen before or after launch and may include workshops, documentation or guided walkthroughs. The aim is to make sure your team feels confident using the system and knows how to raise questions or feedback.
After launch, your software can be monitored, refined and evolved as you see fit. You’re free to add features, change workflows or adapt the system as your business grows and changes. Perhaps he best news is, you are not dependent on a third party vendor to decide what, when and how maintenance or enhancements happen!
Arguably, any piece of software should be designed in a way that is user friendly regardless of whether your software is used internally, externally or both. If your users find it difficult to navigate, your adoption rates and ROI will suffer. A well designed bespoke system should always prioritise:
By combining a deep understanding of how your business operates with intuitive design, bespoke software not only meets the functional needs of your users but dare we say - makes people actually want to use it.
One of the most appealing aspects of bespoke software is that it can be built to change, grow and adapt with your business. Big intake of new employees? No problem. Need to add a new workflow? Great. Need to tweak a business process? It's all good. You own the software after all so the possibilities really are endless.
Custom solutions can be built to specifically accommodate your future ambitions. For example, if you know at some point you're going to need to integrate your new software with your existing bespoke finance system for reconciliation purposes, the software can be designed in a way that will allow it to do so. Conversely, if like many, your future is unknown, that's ok too because your bespoke software can be changed, adapted or enhanced if and when the need arises - no forethought necessary.
Bespoke software solutions have a place in pretty much every industry that use digital technologies. This could be as simple as a website, a finance system, a field based workforce that use their phones for job tasks and everything in between. Here, we will take a look at some examples of how bespoke software is revolutionising different sectors.
If you're in the manufacturing & engineering sectors, your business probably relies on precision and efficiency - if it doesn't, chances are you'll be struggling to remain competitive. Bespoke production management systems can be developed that allow you to track and consolidate your inventory in real time, automate scheduling, track production progress from end-to-end and perform quality control - all from one system. Needless to say, this can save your business a heck of a lot of time, cost and resources.
If you're part of Birmingham’s retail sector, you'll be well aware it's growing both online and in store. This has created a need for effective inventory and order management software as a way to provide a great customer experience and stand out in a crowded marketplace. A bespoke ecommerce system can integrate with all of your sales channels, automate your order processing and allow you to provide a fantastic customer experience through the use of behaviour and preference analytics. A distinct advantage that could well stop your customers flocking to one of your many competitors!
As a key UK transport hub, Birmingham businesses need efficient logistics management. If this is your forte, you could benefit from a bespoke software solution that can help you to calculate the most efficient delivery routes for your drivers, track vehicle maintenance and automate scheduling based on resource availability and the location of your resources. Particularly useful for these big cities where traffic and congestion can be nightmarish.
Do you find yourself in Finance or FinTech? Bespoke software is the answer to secure and efficient systems for managing transactions, compliance and client data. Custom financial software can automate your risk assessments, ensure adherence to industry regulations and provide all manner of vigorous data security mechanisms to keep your company safe from data breaches, reputational damages and hefty fines.
Choosing the right development company to create your software is crucial to ensuring you end up with a superior product. But with so many companies offering software development services in the Midlands, who and how do you choose? Here are some suggestions on how to weed out the sales talk from the substance:
Thorough business analysis - Any software development company that is worth their salt will be precise, detailed and even punitive in their approach to understanding your businesses requirements. The context of your business, it's processes, goals and user needs should all be thoroughly unpicked and understood to the point of exasperation. Good developers will work closely with your business to map out your current environment as well as your requirements before even thinking about writing a line of code.
Agile development methods - Whilst using agile principles is not a deciding factor in whether a development company is worth using (some projects are simply not suitable for agile), it can give you an indication of how they work and how much flexibility they may be able to offer to you. Agile development breaks projects into smaller, manageable phases, allowing each component to be tested, refined and improved throughout the process. This approach means continuous value is delivered to you and makes it easier to accommodate changes or scope adjustments without the challenges of overhauling a fully built product. If you're not 100% certain on what you want from your new software, this is particularly important.
Stringent security practices - Needless to say, any good development team will ensure they use modern, robust and industry standard (at a minimum) security practices. Whilst software developers don't generally provide security testing, audits or products, they should be able to understand where there are potential vulnerabilities and highlight any security risks that you can then discuss with a specialist security team.
A user friendly approach - High quality bespoke software is not just created to be functional and nor should you expect it to be. A solid development team will always ensure your software is also intuitive and sharp, ensuring your employees and customers alike can easily navigate and use it.
If you're looking for local development services to help you with your software requirements whether that be a bespoke job management software system, website development, a custom mobile app or on-going development support, we can help. Cool Code Company are based in Nottingham and work with businesses all across the Midlands. Our highly experienced developers use the latest technologies to create tailored solutions that fit to your business processes like a glove! We're more than happy to work remotely, come and work with you on-site or a combination of the two. Come and have a chat with our friendly team today to see how we can help you stay ahead of the competition and transform your business operations.
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