Selecting Technology for Long-Term Project Success

It strategy technology

it strategy technology

Selecting Technology for Long-Term Project Success

5 min read

This article results from a fascinating conversation with my colleague Vlad from our ITUniversum development team. The essence of our discussion is vital for every client and project leader, as it covers factors that impact the project timeline and budget.

Table of Contents

WHY DOES THE TECHNOLOGY CHOICE MATTER?

ASSESSING TECHNOLOGY AND ITS IMPACT
Technology Prevalence
Code Reliability And Predictability
Code Readability And Recognition
The Speed Of Development And Integration
Error Protection
Integrations And Updates Simplicity

CONCLUSION

Why does the technology choice matter?

It all started after a meeting with a client where we discussed the technological stack for a future project. The meeting was challenging; the client had come up with a preset solution and several misconceptions, having read various materials and analyzed opinions and outcomes. It seems straightforward: the client pays, and we do the work—a common practice, unfortunately. We always support the client's choice of technology stack if it is well-founded. However, if our views do not align, we sometimes have to leave the project.

Our approach is simple. We aim to engage with the project for a long time. We will maintain, modify, and scale it while keeping within the budget. Our chosen implementation tool will unify us with the client or lead to project failure.
Vlad pointed out that we used standard industry terms during the client meeting. However, it became apparent that the client and our team had different interpretations of those terms.

To some, the budget is crucial; to others, the pride and beauty of their work; and to others, still, the simplicity of proven solutions.

This led to our discussion of how critical the choice of a technological solution is for a project and how adequately all participants assess it.

We concluded that in terms of the client's money, the choice of technology for implementing the project affects:

Development cost
Support cost
MVP rollout cost
Investment seeking cost
The cost of money!

Development cost
Support cost
MVP rollout cost
Investment seeking cost
The cost of money!

It's a topic worth exploring, right? However, clients often believe that the technology or programming language only applies to the development team.

Therefore, Vlad and I decided it's essential to explain how to choose a tech stack for a project and its effects in simple language.

Assessing Technology And Its Impact

I asked Vlad to explain the technology choice as if he were explaining it to a friend over coffee. He will discuss how the development team perceives terminology, what they expect from decision-making, and what they offer to the client. This way, you can better understand the team and make informed decisions about technological solutions.

“

Let's take Angular as an example. It's one of the leading frameworks for developing web applications and uses TypeScript as its primary programming language. TypeScript's key feature is its ability to define data types, which is crucial in project development (you'll see for yourself).

“

Let's take Angular as an example. It's one of the leading frameworks for developing web applications and uses TypeScript as its primary programming language. TypeScript's key feature is its ability to define data types, which is crucial in project development (you'll see for yourself).

Technology Prevalence

Firstly, Angular is a prevalent framework with a vast community. This means I can always find plenty of support information and help when faced with a complex problem. We can quickly form a skilled development team experienced in Angular. Our QA engineers understand the framework well and know where to look for potential issues. All this saves the entire team's nerves and the client's money.

Code Reliability And Predictability

Next, the code written in TypeScript is reliable and predictable. For the client, this means:

1

Fewer technological dead ends at the MVP stage (saving time).
2

A wide choice of hardware providers (saving budget).
3

Less stringent requirements for servers and support team qualifications (easier to find a price/quality balance).

1

Fewer technological dead ends at the MVP stage (saving time).
2

A wide choice of hardware providers (saving budget).
3

Less stringent requirements for servers and support team qualifications (easier to find a price/quality balance).

For the development company, this means there's no need to assemble a team of geniuses to launch a project. During a demo, you won't have to struggle with hard-to-read error messages at a critical moment and embarrass yourself. The purpose of the demo is to lead to a development contract. That's all.

TypeScript's data type definitions help developers anticipate what data will be used in the application. This reduces the likelihood of errors and unexpected app behavior during development. For the end-user, this means a more reliable application that operates predictably and without surprises—i.e., lower risks of business process disruptions and financial losses.

Code Readability And Recognition

Furthermore, program code is like a book—if the chapters are mixed up and disconnected, it's tough to grasp the essence. However, understanding comes naturally if the plot is laid out sequentially and logically.

TypeScript's explicitly defined data types make the code more readable and understandable. This is particularly important when handing over a project for support or working with new developers. The client can be confident that no one will struggle with the "magic" written by someone else and will be sure that their project is easy to understand and modify in the future. This reduces the risks of delays in project stoppages and support costs.

At ITUniversum, we have extensive experience providing SOS assistance to projects in critical situations (developer leaves, infrastructure failures, etc.).

Our proven approach allows us to resolve a burning issue within 24 hours, keeping your business running and creating a foundation for its long-term, stable operation.

The Speed Of Development And Integration

What's easier to fit in a box: 18 square cubes of the same size or pieces of a wooden puzzle with parts of complex shapes? The answer is obvious. TypeScript's data type definitions suggest available methods for solving a task and the properties of objects. Developers don't need to refer to documentation or search for data structure information constantly; code is written faster. And developer hours are client costs.

Error Protection

A sore point is code errors. One might say, "Just write without errors!" But, firstly, many people speak and write with errors. And I confess, I do, too. And how many unsuccessful car models have entered the market and disappeared after a couple of years?

Any operation involving humans is not immune to errors.

There are also hidden errors that are not immediately found. There can also be errors in design, which later turn into errors in code (and business logic design is often on the client's side).

Static typing in TypeScript reduces the likelihood of errors because it identifies them during the code-writing stage. This reduces debugging and testing expenses (in time and money). The client can be confident that the product will have fewer errors and problems when making changes or adding new features (i.e., scaling without the risk of "breaking everything").

Integrations And Updates Simplicity

And then there's this. We found a critical error in the API in SSO (single sign-on service for all systems) of a major developer that prevented their clients from entirely using the system. How long did it take them to fix the problem? Six months. They were preparing and rolling out updates for six months. It took about three months to integrate a third-party component. One can only guess how many clients and revenue the service lost due to this problem. No one wants to be in their place.

Applications developed using TypeScript and explicitly defined data types integrate easily with other services and libraries. This makes scaling and adding new features more flexible and simple. Moreover, when updating the Angular framework or other dependencies, TypeScript provides better compatibility and security of changes.

In summary, developing in Angular brings the client several advantages compared to alternative solutions:

Increases the reliability and predictability of the project
Speeds up development and integration
Reduces the likelihood of errors
Facilitates support and updates

In summary, developing in Angular brings the client several advantages compared to alternative solutions:

Increases the reliability and predictability of the project,
Speeds up development and integration,
Reduces the likelihood of errors,
Facilitates support and updates.

This example shows that a more reliable, effective, and change-ready solution saves the client time and resources.

Conclusion

It may seem that developers are focused only on the nuances of their workflows, but all of this, one way or another, affects the client's budgets and project timelines.

Now, when your development team offers you a technical solution for the project, discuss the parameters we've discussed in this article. This will help you assess the proposed technical solution adequately and avoid a major headache.

ITUniversum offers comprehensive services, including expert team structuring, advanced technology stacks, and transparent budgeting, ensuring your project's success from start to finish. Contact us for a seamless development experience and reliable after-development support.

ITUniversum offers comprehensive services, including expert team structuring, advanced technology stacks, and transparent budgeting, ensuring your project's success from start to finish.
Contact us for a seamless development experience and reliable after-development support.

Segei Isakov | COO
Vlad Saponenka | Frontend Developer