Farrington Development Blog
Avoid Conflicts and Delays in the Web Development Process
Have a well-written scope of work.
A scope of work, more commonly known as a statement of work, is the best way to ensure both you and your developer are on the same page.
The two of you should agree upon the project's expectations before hand. This includes the following:
- Project objectives
- Deliverables and milestones for the project
- Expected time frame for completion and payment schedule (if applicable)
When everyone knows and understands their roles, responsibilities and the objectives of a project, you minimize friction during the project and can focus on achieving success.
Set and communicate expectations.In order to avoid conflict, make sure that expectations are realistic. The only way to do this is by talking about them before beginning a project. If you feel that the client has unrealistic expectations, explain why and offer alternatives. Your clients will appreciate your honesty and it will help establish trust. It's also important to be clear about what each person's role is in the project. Make sure the client understands what they have to do and that you understand what their goals are for the project. This will keep both of you from being surprised during development and prevent unnecessary frustration later on when something isn't working properly because one party misunderstood something about the other's responsibilities during development.
Define objectives.You'll be better off if you begin the web development process with a clear idea of your objectives and expectations. Make sure that your objectives are quantifiable, achievable and relevant to your business. They should be realistic in terms of the resources (budget, people, technology) available to you, and they should be time-bound.
Stay within the budget.- Stay in budget. It's important to agree on a specific budget from the get-go and make sure that your web developer understands what is and isn't included in it. That way, you can avoid scope creep and save yourself some headaches later on.
- Be clear about what you want, and what you need to pay extra for
- Know all costs upfront
- Know the legalities.
Before you hire a designer or developer, make sure you understand the legal distinctions between an employee, freelancer and independent contractor—not only in terms of how they are paid but also how they are classified for tax purposes. In addition to following IRS guidelines, your decision should be based on a variety of factors, including whether the person is performing specialized tasks or working within a team; if there is an established timeframe for completion of tasks; whether the worker has their own tools; and so on. For example, if you are hiring someone to complete a specific project with no set end date (such as website design) it would most likely be considered an independent contract (or commission). If you require that the work be done during regular business hours at your office and provide computer equipment, then chances are it will be considered an employee position.
- Be very clear about who owns what.
If you've ever tried to buy a car or sell one online, you'll know that some people can be quite sneaky when it comes to owning something outright vs leasing it vs giving access to something for a limited time period such as renting out their house on Airbnb (https://www.airbnb.com/). The same applies when it comes to web design and development: You need to know exactly what rights you have once an agreement has been made with someone else—and everything needs to be outlined in writing beforehand so there can be no misunderstanding afterward
Stay on top of deadlines.Nothing can be more stressful than encountering an unexpected delay, especially if it is because a resource was not available or a deadline was missed. This can happen when you are involved in the web development process, particularly when you are embedded in a project that involves multiple teams and services. The best way to avoid this outcome is to set clear expectations of timeframes for both the client and your team
In order to stay on top of your deliverables, it's important for you to communicate with the client about how the project is going and what their expectations are for completion. If you do run into a problem and need help with something, don't hesitate to ask for assistance from another developer or call out the issue so that it can be resolved as soon as possible. It may seem overwhelming at first glance but taking these simple steps will help keep everyone happy throughout this process!
These things can help prevent conflict and delays in the web development processIn order to prevent conflicts and delays in web development, you need a few things.
You don't want to:
- Get stuck in a meeting rut;
- Overlook technical limitations or requirements;
- Be vague about content volume and organization;
- Fudge on the number of required design concepts; or,
- Miss those additional features that have become part of your project.
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