Features and Benefits of a Dedicated Software Development Team Model

A model involving a dedicated software development team (Dedicated Team Model or, briefly, DTM) is a business model of financial collaboration that is frequently used in software development outsourcing. Taking into account the fact that many tech customer profiles are interested in using this model, we decided to talk about its advantages and disadvantages, as well as highlight features that you need to know before deciding to cooperate on this model.

What Is a “Dedicated Team”?

Along with Time & Material (T&M) and Fixed Price (FP), the Dedicated Team is a model of collaboration between the customer and the service provider. By signing the agreement on the work on the “Dedicated Team” model, the client receives at his disposal a team of specialists who are selected according to the requirements of the project. A dedicated team usually includes front-end and back-end developers, QA testers, UX/UI designers, DevOps and project manager.

The dedicated team is fully focused on the project, while the client controls the workflow and gets the opportunity to switch attention to high-level tasks. Responsibility for attracting new specialists and administrative support of the team is borne by the software development company. The performance of the team and KPI of each specialist is regularly monitored, and if necessary, adjustments are made to the workflow.

When Should You Consider Using Dedicated Software Development Team?

The “Dedicated Team” model is recommended in the following cases:

You are focused on long-term cooperation with a service provider.Your project requirements change frequently.You assume that in the process of work you may need to increase the team.You do not have the time/desire/resources to train/hire your own team.You want to reduce the cost of software development.

Ready to hire dedicated team? Relevant Software can provide you with experts of any seniority.

FAQ About Dedicated Software Development Team Model

Is the DTM model popular?

I work at Relevant software development company and can say that a lot of our customers prefer a dedicated team model. I would say that most of our relationships are based on this model as we are mostly working with large ongoing projects.

Which customers prefer this model?

Traditionally, a dedicated team is preferred by customers from the United States and Europe.

Our experience shows that clients choose DTM when they need to increase the size of the team within the company, but there is no time and desire to hire and train new specialists.

Compared to other models, DTM is more personality-centered, I would say. By hiring a dedicated team, most customers do not just look for additional resources for software development, they seek to get specialists motivated and interested in the project, who will be proactive and will do everything possible to make the final product perfect. The client communicates with specialists a lot, so the personality of the team members is very important.

Also, I should note that DTM is most often used on long-term projects. For example, we at Relevant Software have a team that has been working on the same client project for 2 years. This confirms that “Dedicated software development team” — really means “dedication” — dedication to the project and personal interest in solving problems.

3 main advantages of this model

If choosing only three, I would say:

dedication of the team (our specialists treat the project they are working on as their own)transparency of the processability to control the progress of work and quickly build up the team.

What are the main success factors of DTM?

The success of any dedicated team depends on how well the service provider controls the resources, the quality of the infrastructure and the environment provided. At Relevant Software, we have developed a well-structured approach to the organization of dedicated teams, taking into account the wishes of the client.

Does organizing the right team takes a lot of time?

It depends. Some clients trust the selection of team members to project managers and rely on their choices. Others take part in all interviews, personally check the resumes of all possible candidates. On average, the entire process takes 1–4 weeks to form a ready-to-go team.

If you need a team of 10 people, we usually recommend first involving 2–3 engineers and gradually increasing the size of the team as the project develops. This solution is much more efficient than using 10 people from the very beginning.

What does the payment process look like?

Services of a dedicated team are paid monthly. Pricing is quite simple: the amount depends on the team roster, its size, and skills.

When discussing the model with the client, we warn about one important nuance: if it happens that the team does not have tasks to do, the client still pays for this time.

But in practice, situations, where the development team have no tasks, happen very rarely.

To Sum Up

The key benefits of the dedicated software development team:

The team is fully involved in the requirements and goals of the project.Adjustment of working hours in accordance with the client’s time zone.Ability to interview all professionals.Full control over the project processes.Detailed reports and ongoing collaboration.Rapid growth and a quick change of resources if needed.

Looking for offshore developers? Relevant Software can provide you with experts of any seniority.

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