How to Avoid Custom Software Doom

Designing, creating, deploying and maintaining your own custom software solution is exciting for any business. With full control over everything from features and functionalities to user design, you can forge new experiences for users, capitalize on gaps in the market, and conquer unique business goals.

But creating your own software solution is also incredibly challenging. It takes commitment, time, energy, and resources. In other words, it requires significant investments that – if the project fails ­– could become very costly. To add to these considerations, the average failure rate of software projects is also very high:

75% of IT executives admit their software projects are “doomed from the start”.

The Black Swan Theory

In the software community, these projects are often called “Black Swans”. Popularized by Nassim Taleb, “Black Swan Theory” is a metaphor used to describe an unpredictable event that brings significant negative impacts, particularly ones that seem avoidable in hindsight.  

So how can you reap the rewards of creating your own software solution, ensuring it not only avoids becoming a Black Swan, but also thrives beyond launch?

Building on our experience of developing custom software solutions for a wide range of clients, we’ve identified four vital factors:

•   Picking the perfect software development partner
•   Investing time and energy in a solid pre-development plan
•   Using development and implementation methods with proven track records
•   Considering post launch as important as development

There are nuances to master within each of these four areas; from figuring out how to shortlist the best partner to understanding which development approaches would be most effective. That’s why we’ve put together a comprehensive guide to lead you from the very first stages of a project to continuous post-launch maintenance. We reveal some of the top mistakes to avoid, explore the most effective development methodologies, and much more.

Have you previously run a software project that didn’t go to plan? Share what you learned and join the conversation on our social media.

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Download the full guide below and set your next custom software solution on the road to success.