Best Practices for Working with a Software Development Team

The phrase “Best Practices” is thrown around alot. To be honest, each situation is different and dynamic. I apply many skills from my toolbox depending on what’s happening at that time.

Having said that, here are some practices that draw from the principles that work for me. You can try them if you’ve ever been ghosted by someone you’ve hired to build software to grow your business.

If you’ve ever worked with a software development team that went radio silent halfway through your project, you know the frustration. You send messages. You get vague replies like “We’re almost done.” Weeks pass, and somehow nothing moves.

You start wondering:

“Do they even know what we’re building anymore?”

It’s a story I hear often from business owners who’ve had bad experiences with offshore or freelance teams. The problem isn’t always bad developers. It’s bad collaboration.

Here’s how to fix that before it costs you another six months and six figures.

  1. Communicate Like You’re on the Same Team (Because You Are)

    misalignment is always the problem

    Most projects fall apart not because of poor coding, but because of poor communication.

    • Have weekly video check-ins where developers demo what’s working, not just talk about it.
    • Keep a single communication channel (Discord, Slack, Teams, or email). Don’t scatter info across texts, spreadsheets, and PDFs.
    • Be clear about who can make decisions. Developers don’t need 10 people chiming in - they need one empowered contact.

    If your dev partner isn’t proactive about regular communication, it’s a red flag.

  2. Demand Visibility Into Progress

    trust is earned

    You shouldn’t have to guess whether your project is moving forward.

    Ask your team to show:

    • A todo list or kanban board (Trello, Jira, Linear) where you can see tasks move from To Do -> In Progress -> Done, you want to see the flow of work.
    • Working demos at the end of every week or sprint.
    • Short written updates explaining what changed and what’s next. Something you can spend time understanding what’s being built.

    Transparency doesn’t just reduce anxiety - it helps you make better business decisions faster.

  3. Break the Work Into Small, Testable Pieces

    short feedback loops mitigate risk

    Big plans sound impressive. “We’ll deliver the entire system in 90 days!”

    That’s how projects die.

    Instead, insist on incremental delivery:

    • Get a working prototype in weeks, not months.
    • Test features as soon as they’re built.
    • Adjust based on what you learn, before the next phase.

    When you work in smaller iterations, mistakes cost less and lessons happen faster.

  4. Encourage Questions (and Ask Them Too)

    create a learning environment

    If your developers aren’t asking why, they’re coding based on their assumptions from their past experiences (which probably doesn’t include how your run your business).

    Good software teams will push back, challenge assumptions, and help you refine your ideas. That’s not resistance - that’s alignment.

    Ask them questions back, too:

    • “How will this scale as we grow?”
    • “What assumptions are you making about our users? our customers?”
    • “What’s the risk if we do it this way? What are my tradeoffs?”

    These questions keep everyone thinking critically, not just executing blindly.

  5. Document as You Go

    build systems

    Documentation isn’t paperwork - it’s insurance.

    Everyone moves on eventually. Having clear documentation means your next team (or internal team) can pick up where they left off.

    At a minimum, make sure you have:

    • System overview diagrams
    • API and integration documentation
    • Deployment steps
    • Access credentials and account ownership info

    Pro Tip: Get a Github account and add them as collaborators to your Github Organization. That way you own the code and place for the documentation.

  6. Choose Partners, Not Vendors

    build relationships

    If you treat your development team like a black box that spits out features, that’s what you’ll get - transactional output.

    But if you build a relationship based on shared goals, you’ll get a true partner who thinks strategically about your business.

    Look for teams that:

    • Ask about your operations, not just your codebase. If they ask to come and see, that’s the best.
    • Care about results and outcomes, not billable hours.
    • Communicate in plain language.

The Bottom Line

Working with a software development team doesn’t have to feel like gambling. With clear communication, visibility, and partnership, you can turn your next project into an asset that actually grows your business.

And if you’ve been burned before, remember: you can rebuild trust by demanding transparency and collaboration from day one.

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