7 Ways IT Staff Augmentation Can Improve Your Project Management

Let’s explore seven ways IT staff augmentation can improve your project management. Project management is a critical part of any organization’s success. It requires careful planning, accurate forecasting, proper budgeting, and a variety of other skills and techniques. Unfortunately, most organizations lack the resources or personnel to properly manage projects.

This is where IT staff augmentation comes in. IT staff augmentation can help improve project management by providing valuable expertise. While also freeing up internal resources, and improving communication. It can also help to ensure deadlines are met, projects are managed efficiently, and teams are better equipped to handle challenges. By utilizing 👉 IT staff augmentation 👈, organizations can gain access to a wide range of professionals. These IT professionals have specialized skills and knowledge. This ensures that projects are managed more effectively and efficiently.

What is project management in software development?

Project management in software development is the process of planning, organizing, and managing resources to achieve specific goals. It involves the coordination of people, processes, and technology to ensure that projects are completed on time and within budget.

So, project management requires strong organizational skills. It also requires well a good understanding of IT processes. Both of these aspects are important elements in any successful software development project. Because it helps ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page. Plus that all tasks are completed efficiently.

What exactly does a project manager do?

An effective project manager is responsible for overseeing the entire project from start to finish. They must define objectives, set milestones, manage resources, monitor progress, and ensure quality control throughout the entire process.

They need to plan, prepare, deliver, and complete a project in order to accomplish their objectives. The project manager has total control over all aspects of the whole project and handles all aspects of it.

What makes great IT project managers?

Some must-have skills that every good project manager needs include:

• solid communication skills
• interpersonal skills
• understanding of project management methodologies
• analytical and problem-solving skills

Plus in the IT sector, they need to have an understanding of technology development. And the software development process.

What are some common problems project managers face?

There are a few struggles that project managers face when trying to manage their projects. Some of these include changes in project scope, poor communication, and budget limitations. Let’s explore these options in more detail.

Project scope changes

A common challenge with project management is the scope of the project changes from the initial vision. Any changes to the plan can involve some juggling on the part of a project manager.

There are a few ways to avoid or minimize scope creep:

First of all, you want to be constantly engaging with your customer, especially during the planning phase. You need to be proactive. As a project manager, you need to try to foresee any circumstances that may occur and throw a curveball into the project. During the planning phase, it’s important to work out all the details and get all the expectations on the table. This way you can avoid surprises.

Secondly, try to avoid adding impromptu changes especially if you are in the execution phase of the software development process. Impromptu changes can delay your entire project plus add additional expenses.

Ineffective communication process

Communication is a vital aspect of any relationship. But we all communicate differently, and there can be flaws. There are a few ways to avoid communication issues:

1. First of all, tailor your communication to your customer or stakeholder.
2. Whenever possible have virtual chats with your client and with your team.
3. Review your communication plan with your client as often as possible to make sure that everything works. There is always room to improve communication.

A great project manager will stay on top of the communication process to make sure that things run smoothly. They will want to avoid misunderstandings that can cost them money.

Financial limitations

Spending more money on a project than your initial budget is another common issue. There are a variety of reasons why you may overspend on software development such as:

• project scope changes
• need additional technical talent
• need for additional development tools

It’s important for project managers to assess and manage any risks associated with project development. Also, try to leave some wiggle room in the budget for ‘surprises’. Budget and calculate the costs that are predictable and constant for software development.

How IT staff augmentation can help you with project management?

Here are some ways that IT staff augmentation services can help you with project management.

Fill the skill gap in your dedicated teams

Often times your in-house software developers are not enough to complete a project successfully. Or you need additional expertise to fill a skill gap. Staff augmentation can help you do so. Staff augmentation can provide you with tech talent on a temporary basis. So for example:

You need a front-end developer to join your team to create an interactive design for your web application. You need them for 6 months on a full-time basis. With staff augmentation this is possible.

Another example of 👉 filling the employee slot 👈 on your dedicated team is:

You need a developer for 9 months or 12 months or perhaps more. But let’s say the augmented developer needs to leave your project for whatever reason. You do not have to replace him or her, using in-house recruitment. We fill that slot ASAP so that you are not inconvenienced. We make a smooth transition between the exit of one developer and the entrance of someone new. This way you constantly have someone to fill that slot, but you are not burdened with having to do that internally.

Easier estimation of project costs

Staff augmentation services can help you better estimate the cost of your projects. With staff augmentation, you have a better idea of how much hiring a developer will cost you. You know the daily rate that you need to pay. And you have an idea of how much it will cost to give the developer access to various software tools that you use in your company. These tools can be programmer tools or more organizational/communicational tools.

With augmented developers, you do not have to worry about unexpected costs such as vacation time or sick leave. Also, you are not paying for health insurance, taxes, etc.

Here, at Swyply we cover the basics such as vacation time, sick leave, health insurance, and taxes. But we also cover costs associated with e-learning, professional development, or workshops. We also provide our developers with 👉 employee perks 👈 such as gym memberships, laptops, etc.

Keeping all this in mind, you are able to plan a budget for your project, that is more accurate. You know for how long you need to pay to keep augmented developers and when that cost will fall off. You also, do not have to worry about the extra things that we have mentioned above. It provides your project managers with more predictability, thus minimizing any financial limitations.

A pre-vetted software developer that can push your project forward

Hiring software engineers from a staff aug company can push your project forward. Here at Swyply, we run our developers through a recruitment process before we rent them out to other businesses. This way we ensure that the developer joining your team members is top-notch. Plus they are ready to hit the ground running and do not need hand-holding to work on your project.

Our software developers typically have a minimum of 3 years of experience, so have they the technical expertise to help with your project. You are not hiring someone who may have lied on their CV. Or someone whose skills just are not the right fit. You get someone who is ready to work and knows how to get the job done.

Increased flexibility if your project changes

Your project manager will also have more flexibility in terms of the developers he or she adds if something changes. They can add developers faster than with traditional recruitment if something randomly changes in the development process.

For example, your customer requests a new feature that requires a different tech stack, then what you currently have available on your team. IT staff augmentation can help you 👉 find a developer with that tech stack 👈, to make the development of that feature possible.

You do not have to rely on your in-house recruitment process to find a developer ASAP. We know that traditional recruitment is time-consuming and may take 3 to 6 weeks. In many scenarios, you just do not have time to wait that long. Because a wait this long would delay your entire project and cost you a lot of money.

So being able to hire a developer through staff augmentation at the drop of a hat, can ensure your project’s success.

Augmented software developers can act as a consultant

Adding software developers via staff augmentation services can be the reason a client works with you. Sometimes having a developer that can also act as a consultant, is a big reason why a client wants to work with you.

If you hire a senior developer they can explain some of the technical aspects of a project better than a project manager who may not be tech-savvy. Plus they can suggest various options and solutions for your client, that you may not have previously thought of.

Also, you may hire a software developer who specializes in a niche skill for example Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, etc. This may also be a huge attraction for clients, as these types of technologies are becoming more and more popular.

Gain a fresh perspective with augmented staff

When you add augmented staff to your team, your project manager gains a fresh perspective. A software developer that comes in and has a glance at your project, may come up with solutions that are better than your existing ones.

They will offer you technical solutions that can improve your project. It may be improved in terms of finishing certain tasks faster. Or creating more streamlined options to ensure that your project is of higher quality and does not have unnecessary code or third-party integrations.

An augmented programmer can be that shooting star, who shows you a new direction, a better solution, etc. for your project. They may even offer a different way to organize the project, to increase productivity and efficiency.

Fast scalability of your business

Do you need software developers to join your team urgently? Staff augmentation can help with that by providing you with new employees in as little as one week.

You can add programmers quickly, while also having the option to switch coders and remove them as your project needs change. Plus in a situation where you do not need as many developers anymore, you can also remove augmented staff, while still keeping your in-house software developers to deal with everyday tasks.

You are able to scale up or down your business. Plus you can expand or collapse your team as you see fit and as your project requires.

Asynchronous working hours can offer 24hr work on projects

If you use the 👉 staff augmentation model to hire offshore developers 👈 your project manager can have someone working on your project 24 hours.

For example, your tech company is based in the United States and you are hiring additional developers from Europe. The time that you are sleeping, European developers can continue working on your project. Putting you a few hours ahead on various tasks. Or even completing tasks.

But it is important to mention, that here at Swyply, even with offshoring, we still make sure that a couple of our working hours overlap with your working hours. We want to give your team and our developers time to collaborate. So, it’s not that they will be completely separate from your team.

Complete your project on time with more working hands

Your project managers gain team members to help complete their projects on time. Or even ahead of time. IT staff augmentation can help you make that sprint to the finish, with more working hands.

In many circumstances, your in-house team just cannot handle the enormous workload. There are not enough hands to handle the tasks. This is where augmented team members can help by taking on additional development tasks.

Another situation in which your project management team may need more software engineers, to help complete a project is if they do not have the right specialists to do so. Sometimes a specific skill set is needed to finish a project, with staff augmentation this is possible.

Being able to complete projects on time, increases your revenue and helps you maintain a good reputation. Plus if you complete something ahead of time, you have even more money in your pocket. So do not just rely on in-house coders, but take advantage of augmented programmers.

TL;DR: Wrapping up how IT staff augmentation services can help with project management

An effective project manager has great communication skills, problem-solving skills, and an analytical mind. They are able to organize the entire development process to ensure that the right tools, specific skills, and more as used when needed. To achieve better project management, you can use staff augmentation services to hire developers for your team. And gain a bunch of benefits

Some ways that IT staff augmentation can help with project management include:

• Fill the skill gap in your dedicated teams
• Easier estimation of project costs
• A pre-vetted software developer that can push your project forward
• Increased flexibility if your project changes
• Augmented software developers can act as a consultant
• Gain a fresh perspective with augmented staff
• Fast scalability of your business
• Asynchronous working hours can offer 24hr work on projects
• Complete your project on time with more working hands

If you are interested in improving project management in your company, 👉 drop us a line 👈, and let’s chat about why IT staff augmentation is the best option for you.