An Effective Mobile App Development Team: Structure, Roles, Skills

No matter what kind of app you’re building, it’s crucial to have a reliable mobile app development team of skilled experts who will have your back throughout the whole process, especially if your product has a greater purpose than simply generating revenue.

So, if you aspire to build an app that makes an impact (on your business, your focus industry, or even the world), it’s perfectly natural to have an enormously long list of requirements. After all, you’re not launching a mobile app every day, and your product deserves a team skilled enough to develop it and passionate enough to make it succeed.

The question here is, how do you find a mobile development team like this? This article will help you figure it out.

Finding the Right Team: Where to Begin

Before you even start looking for prospective candidates to enhance your team, there are some questions you need to go through. For example, what kind of app do you expect to get? Which goals will this product help you achieve? What is the scale of the project, and what budget can you allocate to it? And how do you envision the perfect team for mobile app development?

Answering these questions will help you define a clear set of requirements. Afterward, you can look into staff hiring models matching your answers. Here are the three most common options to consider:

Assembling an In-house Mobile Development Team

While this option is probably the most effective one in the long run, it’s also the most expensive one since, in addition to the salaries, you would have to cover various administrative expenses, taxes, social benefits, and so on. 

Moreover, hiring a whole mobile app development team requires a lot of time and effort. Therefore, this approach is best suited for large-scale projects that have sufficient funding, aren’t urgent, and have a manageable workload to retain the talents after the launch.

Outsourcing to Freelancers

Delegating tasks to individual freelancers can be perfect if you already have a mobile app development team but need a few extra specialists to cover short-term assignments. One of the most significant benefits of using Upwork or Toptal is the opportunity to pick experts that fit your budget since freelancers worldwide have drastically different hourly rates.

Choosing Staff Augmentation

The happy medium between the first two options would be outsourcing to a software company offering staff augmentation services. This way, you get access to an established skilled team for a reasonable rate without having to cover the expenses that come with an in-house team.

Depending on the client’s requirements, Beetroot usually offers two outsourcing models:

• The Flex Team model allows you to access the needed specialists immediately and quickly fix urgent errors, solve specific tasks, and thus reduce time-to-market.
• The Dedicated Team model is the closest option to having an in-house team since here you can hand-pick the specialists to reinforce your team and be sure your project is their top priority.

Effective Mobile App Development Team Size and Structure

The size of the development team directly depends on the scale and complexity of the app, as well as the deadline for its implementation and the human resources your in-house team already has.

Here is a typical mobile app development team structure if you’re building the product from scratch or conducting a significant app transformation.

• 1 project manager (or account manager) to act as an intermediary between you and the development team, as well as to facilitate timely and efficient delivery
• 1 product owner to oversee the entire app development process, from the research phase to the app’s life cycle stages that come after the launch
• 1 business analyst to transform your business requirements into an applicable mobile app development strategy
• 1 UI/UX designer to create intuitive, inclusive, and engaging UI/UX solutions based on the real needs of the target users
• 1 iOS developer and 1 Android developer to build native solutions for both operating systems
• 1 backend developer to take care of the server side of the product, including databases, backend logic, and app architecture
• 1 quality assurance engineer to detect and report on any bugs the app might have and make sure that by the time of the release, the product is flawless

Naturally, once your outsourcing partner knows your exact requirements for the project, together, you can adjust the team’s composition. For instance, you can skip the business analyst if your in-house team already has a clearly defined development strategy. Or, if you’re targeting a mobile app market overpowered by Android users, you can do without an iOS mobile app development team for now.

App Development Stages vs. Team Roles

Now that we’ve established the critical specialists for a mobile app development team, let’s look at how involved each is in the development process.

The above table demonstrates a conventional distribution of mobile app development team roles, and Beetroot is ready to provide you with all the specialists mentioned above. However, working on a mobile app often requires a symbiosis between the client’s in-house and outsourced teams.

If your company already has business analysts, product managers, or other specialists, we can fuse our teams and smooth the onboarding and cooperation processes. That’s what our approach is all about: we aspire to ensure our clients feel they are not simply signing a deal with a contractor but rather reinforcing their team with specialists who are 100% on board.

Making Impact Together: How to Ensure Team’s Efficiency in the Long Run

A mobile app is not limited to its UI/UX design or features. If you are reading this article, your idea probably has a purpose based on the underlying values of your company. So, it’s only logical for you to look for a mobile app development team sharing similar values to ensure the most efficient cooperation possible. 

How can you confirm that your company and the outsourced team match perfectly? Here is a cheat sheet that to help you do it.

Ensure a Sustainable Team Mindset

The result doesn’t depend solely on the team’s skills — many factors influence the work process. 

At Beetroot, we hire outstanding specialists and create a work environment where they can thrive. Social benefits, flexible working hours, care about our team’s mental health, and focus on personal responsibility are integral parts of Beetroot’s strategy. Such an approach helps us nurture a sustainable team mindset, leading to our specialists creating innovative products that matter.

Pay Attention to Internal Branding

Based on our experience, companies with solid internal branding manage to nurture a strong sense of belonging and, as a result, build high-performing and dedicated teams.

We at Beetroot believe that brand identity and a sense of purpose are interconnected. So, for example, our mascot, “Beety,” the main hero of our custom-made emojis, might seem like a cute detail. But in reality, we put a lot of thought into creating it, and now it’s our fundamental tool for sustaining a strong sense of community driven by the same values and missions.

Look for a Team With Strong Culture

While this criterion might seem optional, looking for teams who pursue similar goals can also up the efficiency of cooperation. At Beetroot, the company’s internal values are a powerful driver for the teams.

We aspire to make tech education more accessible, advocate for gender equality, reduce our carbon footprint — and so do our employees. That’s why some of the most significant products our team has built are connected to GreenTech, Healthcare, eLearning, and other impactful sectors.

Let’s Build a Great Mobile Development Team Together!

All the above requirements for the development team (like being qualified, having relevant experience, sharing the same values, and simply getting you) are completely valid. You shouldn’t settle for anything less if you want to build a truly great mobile app. And if you’re currently looking for a mobile app development team, Beetroot is ready to have your back as tech experts, consulting partners, and human beings.

Let’s get in touch! Explore how Beetroot can reinforce your team for sustainable growth.