Part 2: Freelance VS Corporate Developer

In the previous part, we went over the basics of hiring software developers and where to find them. In this one, we will weigh in on the eternal debate between the corporate and freelance software devs.

CONTENTS:

Key Differences

Freelancers

Software Development Firms

Who Owns Your Data

Key differences

If you know you have a great idea about the product, your wings will expand. But what lies ahead shouldn't be forgotten. You have to make a definitive decision before beginning the most challenging phase – product development: Who do you think can bring the best out of your idea?

Whether freelancers or development firms are the "better" option is not the right question in the case of each project. We find it often difficult to choose between a freelancer and a full-fledged company because the advantages and drawbacks of each choice are not known. That is why we are addressing the benefits and drawbacks of freelancers and software development companies today so that it's easier to make the right decision and recruit the people you really need for your project.

Freelancers:

Disadvantages

Loss of Contact

Freelancers normally work on multiple tasks concurrently so that they can become ghosts unexpectedly one day. You have to ensure that they are readily accessible.  It might be awesome when they are available, but if they aren't, be prepared with Plan B. A freelancer is very difficult to manage entirely.

Confidentiality Concerns

Although this problem is not very common, there are still businesses and industries where confidentiality issues mean that working with freelancers is hard. You can, of course, ask for freelancers to sign NDAs, but you will have to weigh risks. NDAs are a free-lance arrangement.

Product Quality Concerns

Not everybody runs their company to get customers back. The individual success of your business may not be their top priority.

Advantages

Low Fee Rates

Most freelancers charge lower rates than developers; but, even though skilled freelancer rates seem high, in general, a developing company can be expected to save 20 to 30 percent off its costs. For instance, for benefits like health care, you don't have to pay overhead expenses. Also, you avoid paying the workplace and office supplies expenses of a big corporation by employing an independent contractor.

Skilled in Needed Areas

As freelancers manage their own companies, their talents are typically strengthened, and gain strong experience in a particular field. That is why it can be useful to employ a freelancer for such assignments or to carry out similar projects. Freelancers usually provide portfolios and reviews on these opportunities to demonstrate their skills.

Flexibility:

Freelancers may do more by creating their own schedules. If you are able to do the job more efficiently, you can work both day and night.

Software Development Firms

Advantages

Good for Big Projects

A company for professional software development will provide a full cycle of services, such as professional consultancy, market analysis, and assessment of your business ideal. Before designing your product, you will also find out your monetization plan. These stages are particularly relevant if you are a young businessman trying to set up a start-up. You will have a talented team of programmers, developers, managers, QAs, and others with a software development business. Unlike freelancers, who are much more like everybody, each employee plays a specific role.

Latest Technologies

Software development firms continually adapt and expand and can offer up-to-date solutions to emerging software developments and modern programming languages.

Legality of Work

Software developers are legal entities that provide greater flexibility and lower risk. You may always verify a company's track record or simply request its financial record in an external database. And an agency is equally convenient to manage all the papers you have to start with. You don't have to prepare your own contracts. Read what you sign up for carefully.

Long-term Contracts

Firms prefer to establish trust relationships with individual customers and to execute initiatives for customers in the long term. For businesses, this is more productive than the sum of incoming programs.

Disadvantages

Very Pricey

The practical downside of recruiting a software development team over a freelancer is higher prices. Indeed, freelancers are cheaper; services of a business cost almost always more. Company prices rely heavily on the region, however. Indians are known for their low-cost services for growth. Western European and American companies are going to cost you a lot. There are several reasons as to why so many successful start-ups are committed to partnering with Eastern European companies. The IT industry in this area is developing rapidly, and you can employ professional and experienced programmers at fair rates. Finding a reputable developer with intermediate rates is much better than taking the cheapest bid. You get what you are paying for: a low ball deal means a discounted product. Ensure that you get the appropriate standard.

Who owns your data?

Data ownership, by default, belongs to the one who created it in most cases. The mechanism to understand can be very complex, but in some instances, the platform can be as critical as the creator of the data. A lot of software is developed as service programs. This means that you can build data in your personal lives or in your company using the tools, temples, and apps of a hosted application. Here it gets messy because you use the tools operated by a platform provider to own the method used to generate the data? Perhaps.

Congress took action with the Stored Communications Act or SCA to secure data ownership and intellectual rights stored in the cloud. There are several sections of the law, and it explicitly states in one section that consumer rights can not be guaranteed if there is data in the infrastructure of a cloud provider. This goes back to the point: the protection of the data can not be guaranteed only because you generated it. The SCA allows the government, even if it is held abroad, to seize data from American companies. This SCA segment leads Microsoft to the United States. The government is questioned whether the government is able to use the SCA to track and collect data stored outside the borders of the USA.

The Cloud Act came into force in March 2018. This aimed at establishing a statutory solution for SCAs and further specifying data ownership and Internet Service Providers' obligations. However, there is no surety if it really accomplished what it thought it would, which complicates matters. In fact, it stands for the clarification of the Lawful Use of Data Act in the Overseas countries, and it is an answer to the current US case in the Microsoft verse. In fact, the Cloud Act is an update to the SCA in order to explain Microsoft's and other ISPs' concerns in order to put them in line with international data protection legislation. Keep this in mind. The FBI is using an SCA-based warrant to gain access to data stored on a server in Ireland. 

In Part Three: Quality Control we will quickly outline the standards and expectations regarding quality control and what it means in software development and how it can influence your choice of custom software dev partner.

PART 3: QUALITY CONTROL IN CUSTOM SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT