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Overview

* A software factory is a company specialized in developing solutions in an agile, fast, and more economical way.

* This type of business brings a series of advantages to your company, since you don’t need to hire a fixed technology team to develop just one project.

* Check all the details about what a software factory is and see whether it’s worth hiring one for your company.

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Software will dominate the world—and companies that don’t pay attention to this process tend to fall behind in an increasingly modern and connected reality.

What confirms this is the exponential growth of software factories and companies specialized in developing systems and apps around the globe.

But to become part of people’s daily lives through apps (and, of course, generate revenue), you need to consider a very important factor: user experience.

It’s not just about developing an app and calling it a day.

For the initiative to succeed, each application must pay attention to the platform it will be used on (phones, tablets, and notebooks) and, above all, be developed in an agile and efficient way.

It’s as if there’s no more room for “more of the same” apps: people want to download tools that make life better, more fun, or easier.

And agile software factories are keeping up with these changes closely.

Do you have questions about the app development process? Download our ebook—it’s free!

What is a software factory?

Basically, a software factory allows companies to request an app without necessarily losing focus on their business or building a new internal team just for that.

It works like this: for example, you run a travel agency and want to develop an app for customers.

The agency’s core business is not app development—it’s selling travel packages. So hiring a technology team to build just one project may not be ideal, because costs can be very high.

In that case, you can turn to an agile software factory, which—through agile methodologies—will structure your project and develop the application the way you want it.

Still, you can also create a software factory within your own company if you have the resources (and demand) to do so.

The team will work with agile methodology, building products or services that improve the company’s relationship with its target audience, while delivering high value‑added systems.

What does the development process look like?

Because software factories are in the technology area, most of them (if not all) use agile methodologies to develop solutions.

That means a development project needs to achieve the best possible result in a short execution window.

For everything to happen as planned and in line with this agile concept, the software development process is divided into a few stages.

The first is defining the business rules so the software can begin to be designed by the team.

Next, one of the most important steps is validating these requirements between the hiring company and the development company. That way, the project can begin as soon as possible.

Once development starts, the first goals to be completed are building business prototypes, coding, and development tests, in order to assess whether it’s already viable to deliver the project to the client or whether there are structural flaws.

At the end of the workflow, there’s acceptance testing of the app/system and any adjustments requested by the client after prototype delivery.

After that, the hired company’s technology team performs maintenance whenever needed, always focusing on continuous improvement of the newly created software’s usage.

By following this workflow, software factories can better explain each stage to the client while organizing internal demands for technical specifics across each part of the project.

Why hire a software factory?

The first reason a software factory is often the best choice for those who want to build products and services that improve users’ lives is that it will always have access to the best professionals possible.

Think about it this way: bringing together a great team with top specialists in development areas is not impossible—but it can be expensive.

Not everyone can afford that… but an outsourced company that provides the service likely already has an extremely qualified, productive team, mainly because they’ve been working together for a long time.

And because of that, you can trust the products that will be delivered.

A software factory’s solutions are quite varied—and it can even recommend what’s best for your specific case.

Since they do this every day, features from previous projects can be adapted for future products.

In addition, software development environments tend to be highly innovative, which increases product competitiveness.

In the end, the suggested solutions provide more realistic and assertive views of what is best in each individual project.

Finally, using a software factory to develop your next app brings more simplicity, speed, and intelligence to your business culture.

That’s probably the best path for your business to become successful—and for your customers to remain satisfied.

Other advantages of hiring a software factory

Another important advantage of hiring a software factory is having the guarantee that your project will be delivered on time and with the promised quality, since the entire effort is based on a contract.

Also, agility in development is another positive factor, since processes are already embedded in the factory’s routine. It uses its own scope definition methodology to avoid unforeseen issues that delay the project.

This is also related to how “easy” the company can develop solutions—mainly because it has already delivered dozens (perhaps hundreds or thousands) of applications—and therefore knows exactly what it’s doing and how to do it in a more productive way.

Finally, one of the main advantages is the cost your company will have at the end.

Compared to the investment you’d need to build a team from scratch, hiring a software factory significantly reduces these costs.

Trust a company specialized in software development

For your business to grow naturally—without headaches caused by errors that can appear in implemented software or apps—it’s important to invest your resources in a company specialized in this type of solution.

Here at X-Apps, we use the same technologies used by Silicon Valley companies like Facebook, Uber, Apple, and Amazon.

In addition, we have experienced professionals for different types of solutions and programming languages, bringing the newest technologies to your application.

And we can’t forget to mention Gartner, the world leader in technology research and consulting, which advises X-Apps when it comes to software factories and custom software.

Want to learn more about the software development process and how we can help you?

Request a quote from X-Apps now.

In addition to estimating the cost of your system or app, we can provide strategic consulting and evaluate which alternatives are most interesting for your company in terms of quality and cost‑benefit.

Learn more:

- What is Design Sprint: learn the methodology and how to apply it

- What is a Squad: learn its benefits and how to hire one

- Staff on Demand: learn what it is and the advantages for your company