As seen on Forbes.com
Many small companies lack the resources for an in-house tech development team and often rely on independent contractors or external firms to meet their technology needs. Even companies with internal tech teams can face periods of heavy workloads or require specialized skills that their developers don’t have.
Selecting the right external contractor(s) can be challenging; it’s crucial to evaluate not only the value outsourced developers bring but also how their involvement will affect the internal team. In this article, 20 members of the Forbes Technology Council highlight key factors that tech leaders should consider when hiring and managing outsourced developers to ensure successful partnerships.
DORA Metrics
“Assuming the outsourced developers can operate independently, I recommend using the four DevOps Research and Assessment, or DORA, metrics: 1. lead time for changes, 2. deployment frequency, 3. change failure rate, and 4. time to restore service. If the outsourced developers don’t have this level of control, I’d measure number 1 slightly differently: time from code commit to tested and available for your team to release. I’d also continue to measure numbers 3 and 4.” – Dave Todaro
