3 reasons to introduce software developers early in your digital journey

Twilio’s recently released State of Customer Engagement Report 2021 echoed the significant uptake in organisations digitalising their communication channels during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• 87% report digital communications are critical to their survival during the pandemic
• 95% expect to increase or maintain their organisation’s investment in customer engagement after the pandemic
• 96% report that NOT digitalising customer engagement would have negatively impacted their business

Meanwhile, the report also identified that only 45% of organisations engage developers at the start of a digital transformation project.

That less than half of the organisations surveyed said they didn’t engage developers at the start of their project, highlights that organisations haven’t considered the benefits of introducing developers early on– or they’re not aware of them.

Twilio, CEO, Jeff Lawson recently conducted an interview with McKinsey and Company reiterating the advantages of introducing software developers into customer meetings as early as possible. His newly released book, “Ask your Developer” concentrates on bridging the gap between ‘business people’ and software developers. With a background as a developer, Lawson finds himself in a unique position as CEO, being able to speak the languages of both the technical and commercial departments.

This importance of bringing developers into digital projects early on was also discussed in an interview with Head of Developer Relations at Twilio, Marcos Placona, where he explained, “Organisations that bring them (developers) in from the onset to understand objectives can unleash their power and therefore the power of the code they write.”

Although the report outlined some outstanding statistics involving the implementation of digital communication engagement, in the mist of COVID-19, it’s also intriguing as to why organisations don’t consider engaging developers when they first embark of their digital journey.

In light of this observation outlined by the Twilio Report, here’s 3 reasons why we think you should consider introducing developers early on in your digital project:

#1: A developer’s understanding the software and its abilities.

In the preliminary period before you begin a digital journey, there is usually a ‘big issue’ that has directed you towards implementing a digital solution. You may have some idea of how a digital solution can solve this and how you want the software to function to solve this problem, understandably to fit into your business model.

Consulting a developer early on in your digital transformation, means they’re aware of the aims of the project and understand what the solution needs to achieve from the get-go.

However, engaging them halfway through the process may mean they’re playing catch up from the beginning, running the risk of them not being fully behind the objectives you need the solution to achieve.

Offering a developer the chance to get involved in the planning stages of your project means they can offer insights into the capabilities of the software and what it can achieve, in lign with you objectives. This might mean using the software to solve your problem in a different way than you first considered and might mean it can solve your problems in a more efficient way.

A saying you can often hear us saying at Zing is, “The answer is always yes, but we can save you time and money by choosing this way.” We say this because we want you to build the best solution possible to fit your business needs, the most time and money efficient way possible. Our job is to build on technology’s promise of a great experience.

#2: A developer’s perspective

Whilst there’s no arguing that you know your business best, an alternative and external perspective can sometimes shine a light on areas you might not have considered, in a digital sense, which may take you down a different route that initially anticipated.

Software developers work with software programs all day, every day – they’re the technological experts. They know the applications and how they work on their own and in conjunction with other programmes. They’ll be able to develop a solution that offers long-term capabilities and has the potential to be developed over time as your business changes.

They’re clued up on how technology is changing. They can offer you the best advice in creating a solution infrastructure that’s sustainable, which will not only transform your business now, but continuously in the future.

#3: A developer’s creativity

Allowing software developers to be a part of the planning stages of your digital project offers the opportunity for them unleash their creativity to the code they write. This has the potential to lead to a solution that not only enhances your business processes but can enable you to become more competitive in your market.

A solution that’s built to benefit you and your customers effectively, comes from developers that are fully behind the objectives of the solution. Their ability to see the full picture of what you need to solution to achieve is an important aspect of how effective it’ll be for your business.