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There’s an old saying among business leaders that also applies to software development teams: you need to work on your business, not in your business. The grind of daily work often leaves developers with little time to create more strategic and structural plans required to accomplish core business objectives. Without a focus on the foundation of your processes and practices, there is the risk of making all of that day-to-day work less effective than it could and should be.

Some dev teams have the flexibility to hire a specific person to focus on those structural, strategic issues. A small portion of them are able to stick to that division of labor, even in the face of immediate business needs, which is great. However, many teams benefit greatly from partnering with an outside software consultant to help them with the strategic analysis of the codebase, systems, and development practices. A consultant’s role is to help you find the best practices that make your processes and jobs more efficient and effective going forward.

Here are three ways a third-party code audit from an experienced software consultant can benefit your team in the long run.

Finding the right candidates to join your software delivery team is tough. Competition is fierce, and the last thing you want is to lose a good candidate due to a weak interview process. From the moment a candidate walks in the door through the completion of their technical assessment, you want to provide them the chance to show their best. Here are some ways to enhance your technical interview to find great candidates and build a better software delivery team.

Failure isn’t always a bad thing. In fact, Sean Brown, CEO of YCharts, wants to hire failures – they are, after all, risk-takers that aren’t afraid to try something new. On this week’s episode, Sean joins Pat for a wide-ranging conversation about the lessons Sean has learned in his 25+ years starting, selling, buying, and running various companies.

Sean talks to us about why he believes the KISS (keep it simple, stupid) philosophy works so well in business and shares his four-part playbook for developing successful companies. Listen in to find out how to best get to know your customers, how to attract top talent, and why you need full transparency at every level of your business.

Forbes Technology Council Is an Invitation-Only Community for World-Class CIOs, CTOs, and Technology Executives.

Chicago, IL, October 2, 2019 - Patrick Emmons, CEO and Founder of DragonSpears, a custom software development company, has been accepted into Forbes Technology Council, an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs, and technology executives.

Open communication and high performing teams don’t just appear out of nowhere. In order to have a team that gels, you need to put in the work to create a space in which all team members know the vision of your company, have clear expectations, and know how to course-correct when things go awry.

Eric Foster, a CIO with experience spanning multiple technology firms, sat down to speak with Pat and Shelli on his three-part framework for creating high performing teams. Eric also explains why it is so important that you spend time thinking about the culture you want and how to go about creating it. Listen in for tips and book recommendations so you have the tools you need to create an unstoppable team.