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Which factors make a project successful?
Is it working 24/7 till the project is delivered or hiring outsourced talent?
Let’s take a step back and think again.
Where does communicating with your developers stand on your list? I am sure it did not make the top two. For developers, effective communication is without a doubt the most important aspect contributing to the success of a project.
However, a lot of times communication between developers and other teams can be destructible (putting it mildly).
A project manager can give you a task thinking it would take a few minutes, but when in reality, the same task can add many hours or think of a complex idea that can be solved within a few minutes. Ideas interpretation differs between developers and other teams from another angle.
Following are some tips that can help improve communication between you and your development team;
1. Do Planning and Documentation
This is the most significant part of software development; before starting work on any project — a developer must know all requirements and all details should be properly formatted.
It would be great if you continue the discussion with the rest of the team while you prepare the document. This will help you understand the complexity and core requirement of the project that you put in the end system. Once you finalize all the requirements, you can add all those to a structured document.
2. Wireframes and Mockups
Wireframes help communicate UI/UX requirements more effectively, although designers are responsible for creating wireframes. But you can also use easy-to-use online tools available these days; Mockflow is a website you can check out to create wireframes.
After you create wireframes, a designer can help you convert those concepts into clean and formal mockups. Developers then use these mockups for coding out the user interface. It is salient to take this step seriously with the same care and attention because it can reduce the number of revisions by a great deal.
3. Get Logins and Access to the System
You must request login details from the admin to check the progress of the project on your own. This will help you stay updated without asking the development team.
Also, you can identify bugs or any issues you may find from the development stage. Why? So that you can get hold of them and correct them before the final development stage. Always remember that developing a project is a team effort; we all are humans at the end of the day, and helping each other can benefit both sides.
4. Be Present
It does not matter if you are handling multiple projects or are busy; you need to involve as much as possible. A developer can still have questions regarding the project during the development stages. It can be helpful if you have a continuous group chat. There are many great options, such as Hangouts, Slack, Skype, and Teams.
5. Frequent Review Meetings
Review meetings can be a great help — you can keep track of the progress made to date. Following are some of the benefits of review meetings;
- Can help in bug identification
- Identify the limitations of the team
- The team can brainstorm new ideas
6. Do the Test Yourself
Testing is also one of the most crucial factors in the development process. The QA (quality assessment) team tests the product as per the requirement, but performing a QA by yourself can help detect some last minutes changes, or you may find a bug.
How to Communicate Better with Your Team
The first thing to keep in mind is that communication is two-way!
If you work in an organization where a communication gap exists, no need to worry some solutions can help overcome these challenges. Check out the following;
Mutual Respect is the ‘Key’
When you interact with a developer, ensure you do it in a way that shows you value their work. Do not burden them with more tasks; let them complete the tasks already given, or give them enough time to complete all tasks without too much pressure.
This depends largely on you; you must keep work pressure under the tab as a project manager. Ask your team whether you are having issues or not. If you don’t respect their work enough, it will most likely cause disturbance later on.
Tell the ‘What’ and ‘Why’ Also
When telling to add a new feature, do not just tell the what make sure to tell the ‘why’ as well.
You must tell a developer what feature you want to add, mention why this feature is necessary and make users happy. This can be beneficial for two reasons– first, it makes technical staff more included, and second, if adding new features requires more time, it gives the team/ developers to propose a modification.
In the End
Planning and building a project is tough and consumes time, to say it in simple terms it is a complicated process. But the journey can be smooth if you learn how to communicate properly with your developer.
