Do You Really Need Software Consulting? A Comprehensive Guide
Software Consulting - Top Questions from Google
What is software consultancy?
Software consulting is the method of guiding clients on the implementation of software programs to digitise or to make business processes more efficient.
These experts have extensive technical and functional knowledge on software programs and technology, though their focus is primarily on recommending software solutions needed by the client to improve their business’ performance.
What do IT consulting companies do?
An IT consulting company gives guidance and assistance to organisations on how they can use technology to better their business operations and performance.
An IT consulting company works with small businesses, large corporations, and government agencies.
A good consultant should be an expert in the relevant industry of their clients.
An IT consulting firm’s associate may conduct extensive research in the client’s industry first or have prior industry experience.
As a result, the consultant can take on the role to empower their clients to make the best decisions.
One of the powerful methods IT consultants use to assess options for their clients is something called Gap Analysis.
In gap analysis, IT consultants look at the present and the prospective future of their client’s businesses after they finish collaborating with them.
With Gap Analysis, Business Analysis and User Experience Research, IT Consultants can advise on the best methods to get clients their desired transformation.
For example, let’s say you’re the owner of a freight management firm. You’re fed up with your current fulfilment platform, it’s old and doesn’t integrate with the likes of Amazon or UPS.
But the problem is, you don’t know what to buy, what to get, and all the processes required around migrating your current system and all your data.
With Gap Analysis, the IT consultant asks a series of questions such as - the ‘why you wish to make the switch?’ and plans the most efficient way to handle a software migration with minimal downtime and risk. These can be categorised into present and future states.
So in this case, the IT consultant may ask the client, “What software are you using at the moment?” (Which is the present state.)
And in the prospective future state, the consultant could ask the client, “Have you considered how customer data can give more insight on what freight deals to negotiate?” Or “What processes exist when a parcel goes missing?”
These enable an IT consultant to assess the wider picture of your business; sometimes referred to in software engineering as the Problem Domain.
An IT consultant or software development consultancy should never jump to a conclusion and tell their clients to buy an expensive SaaS product or dive straight into custom software development.
That would be just giving them the solution without taking into consideration what the constraints are in this area.
A consultant has to think about what the client parameters are, for example:
● What is the budget?
● What is the deadline?
● What existing technologies do you have in place?
What does a software consultant do?
A software consultant uses IT and software skills to review current software, your technological needs and help guide you through the design and accomplishment of new software solutions.
A software consultant can assist you whether you’re starting on a greenfield project or maintaining an existing solution.
A software development consultant can help you depending on your specific business needs.
If you want your software systems reviewed to ensure it is updated correctly so it can function at its best, they can take on the role of a risk manager to assess this, too.
They review the security features of your software system to make sure your business is protected from external software threats like hacking and spyware.
Though, for a more in-depth review of software security, you’d need an information security consultant or officer.
In order to mitigate future technical debt, consultants can give clients a better understanding of how long an entire IT project may take, which in turn can act to encourage developers to make the right technical decisions, as they have more time available.
Though, the best mitigation of technical debt lies with making good technical architecture decisions, for this, you may need a technical architect.
A great consultant is there to coach and advise you throughout your technological decisions, which help you overcome the anxieties associated with your business’ digital future.
Remember: Our goal is to ensure you receive the digital transformation you deserve by providing the best resources, people, and infrastructure to suit your exact needs.
What is the difference between a software consultant and a software developer?
Software consultants and software developers both help companies in digital transformation.
But the two have different roles in an IT project.
A software consultant works in an strategic advisory role on technological choice and the risks associated with its implementation, almost like a ‘software advisor’ while a software developer actively works on implementing the solution itself.
Some software consultants may have coding expertise, but it’s generally expected that they remain in an advisory role and do not have engineering capabilities.
A software consultant’s main goals are to propose software programs, advise on software functionality and its security. They also guide clients throughout the creation of new web applications and examine the efficiency of modern software usage.
On the other hand, a software developer normally works to assist companies in building software systems.
They frequently work with other stakeholders, to make sure the software they develop meets project requirements.
Their main goals are to develop new application features and resolve any bugs that crop up during and after implementation.
Also, they communicate with business stakeholders about project status and advise on technical implementation.
Another difference between software consultants and software developers is communication and the information they give to business stakeholders. Consultants tend to communicate directly with Heads of Product, CEOs and CTOs to provide strategic advice.
On the other hand developers communicate with SCRUM masters, engineering managers and other developers working on their project.
The bottom line is- A software developer works within a company doing things like building new features, researching new programming tools, communicating with other developers, or fixing a bug in production.
A software consultant advises on the best methods to tackle a business problem.
What makes a good software consultant?
A consultant needs to be experienced because they will be the ones to tell their clients how to successfully achieve their digital transformation.
Most consultants have already seen the organisations that implement the wrong tools and are able to help their current clients navigate and avoid the pitfalls associated.
Additionally, pragmatism is needed from your software consultant. You don’t need a software consultant who is too hung up on ideals; that you find yourself spending more time than necessary, to make decisions. You don’t want a software consultant that is overly analytical and it becomes a barrier in making great decisions for your organisation.
It’ll only cost your business more time or more money to further work with them.
Choose a digital agency that understands (like us!) how important it is to you when you invest in a new software product.
You need an IT consultancy to discuss your needs and understand your expectations to create the perfect strategy for choosing or developing the right software.
If you’re thinking, “Why should I hire a software consultant?” or “Do I even need a software consultant?”
Not every company needs a software consultant, some companies will do well with a great technical lead to help them understand whether they need to build something bespoke or go for an existing solution on-shelf.
Or, you might even just need a battle-tested and experienced developer, click here to learn more about how to hire one.
Why is technology consulting important?
Technology consulting is crucial to the success of any IT project.
For starters, technology consulting can allow you to discover new technologies and software that best suit your business needs.
Additionally, it can help you shed a new light on areas of improvement in your existing data ecosystem and suggest the right use of tech.
A distinguishable advantage of technical consulting is to avoid the issues associated with choosing the wrong tech. These may include being unable to integrate your older or third party systems with the newer proposed software solution.
Let’s say you’re an author that’s finished a new book. (And let’s say the new book you’ve written is about your business.)
You’re now looking for an editor to read over your manuscript and determine what your book needs, both suggesting and applying edits to your book.
The tech consultant is just like your editor.
Just like how an editor looks over your book to make sure everything is correct, a tech consultant looks over your business (like an editor) and solves a variety of your business problems with technology.
The tech consultant works with you on your project to improve the results delivered to your business.
In other words, it’s like having an expert for an outside take on your operations.
Because without an editor looking over your book, there may be many mistakes and errors- and readers may not take your writing seriously.
The same can happen without hiring a tech consultant.
If a consultant can’t take a strategic look to see how technology can help improve your business, it may be harder for you to connect with customers- and you may run a few problems.
This is why technology consulting is very important.
If you factor technical consulting into your budget, this can potentially enhance the success of your IT project.
And on top of that, it’ll save time so you can focus more on the advancement of your business, rather than completing extensive technical research yourself.
As the world turns, you’ll need to keep innovating in your business to stay ahead of the curve.
With technology consulting, your business can get the right guidance to become more productive, which can save you time and money in the long run.
How much does it cost to hire a software consultant in the UK?
According to Glassdoor, the average software consultant salary is £41,501. Though, given the range of variation in job titles associated with software consultants, we estimate a technical consultant to earn between £60,000 - £90,000 in the UK.
Since COVID, with the rise of more employers turning to a fully remote offering to staff members; this has made more skilled talent from around the UK demand wages in line with London’s salaries. As a result, businesses may pay more for IT labour.
On the other hand, if you are opting to hire a freelancer, this may work out more cost effective than hiring a consultant full-time.
Though, finding the right staff can be a trial and error experiment, that can work out costly over time.
Instead, you can consider commissioning an agency, like us at Cypher Digital, who’s likely to be a comparative price to a freelancer, without the guesswork of hiring the wrong person.
Summary
A software consultant has strong technical skills and works more with clients and less with software engineering.
A software consultant spends their time communicating and giving strategic advice.
Consultants can work independently for themselves, or they can become an employee of a consulting firm.
They are experts who offer their knowledge and expertise about software systems to clients and businesses which helps the business make the best decisions about their digital technology.
A software consultant advises on different types of software and the data they contain whereas a software developer may write code or find a bug in the software which they’ll fix or they’ll enhance the software for it to perform better.
Software consultants and software developers both help with software needs, but the two play different roles with software services.
A consultant assists companies with software processes, and a developer plays a part in technical design and the build of software systems.
At Cypher Digital, we’re software experts that stand behind our experience.
We’re practical software experts that advise their clients on the tools best, to help them meet their organisational goals.
Remember, not every company or IT project needs a dedicated software consultant. Some organisations will do great with a trusted technical lead (might be a CTO, seasoned developer or engineering manager) to help them understand whether they need to build something bespoke or go for an existing solution on-shelf, like a SaaS product.
That's why we’re here at Cypher Digital we equip you with the best people, tools, software and knowhow to deliver your digital transformation.
We’re pragmatic in our approach, we’ll never sell you anything you don’t need, and integrity is at the forefront of what we do.
Feel free to book a free software consulting call below or learn more about our services, here.