A RAD-ical Approach to AppDev Teams
Like many other previously inviolable principles in the world of federal information technology (IT), the conventional wisdom surrounding how application development projects can and should be managed is being upended.
Increased adoption of Agile processes and other innovations related to geographically distributed collaboration have rendered the lengthy, costly, and cumbersome efforts of years past obsolete. It is in this spirit that the Macro Solutions Rapid Application Development (RAD) offering was created.
RAD is predicated on the understanding that modern development teams do not need to be housed in the same location to be effective. The current state of collaboration tooling provides the “connectedness” teams need to be productive and efficient, regardless of their location.
Rapid Application Delivery: How federal IT leaders can quickly standup teams for application and development tasks
For many years, large corporations have reaped significant savings by outsourcing many of their software projects to partners who perform the work in domestic or international development centers. Due to lingering security and other concerns, federal agencies have been reluctant to adopt the same practices. However, the unprecedented events of the past year have spawned a mini revolution of sorts. Federal IT leaders have seized the moment and begun the process of rethinking the relationships with the companies they rely on to provide the applications and “products” they need.
Managers require flexible, responsive teams that satisfy requests for new software on time and on budget. And, with the introduction of a wide range of new collaboration tools on the market, a development team’s physical proximity to an agency’s headquarters is, increasingly, being viewed as unimportant. RAD is an offering that is tailor-made for this transformation.
Based out of our cleared facility in Slidell, Louisiana, the Macro RAD team has attracted a highly-talented development team from the New Orleans metropolitan area and surrounding region. Our efforts have been buoyed by the State of Louisiana Office of Economic Development which has adopted a hands-on approach to connecting prospective technology services providers with universities and other organizations that are graduating an ever-expanding pool of software engineers. The program has yielded strong results thus far, helping to create one of the nation’s fastest-growing tech hubs. This growth has provided previously unimaginable opportunities for those in the regional IT community who no longer face the prospect of leaving the area to pursue their chosen career path.
Affordable, remote delivery of services that boosts local communities
The jobs that are created are well-paying – a tremendous boon for a region that has historically lagged the rest of the country on key economic metrics. Still, the region’s lower than average cost of living means that the IT salaries of those in these development centers, are still well below other parts of the U.S. – particularly the expensive tech centers of the east and west coasts. This savings is reflected in our ability to drive down costs for our customers, affording them the ability to further stretch their budgets – a luxury that will become ever more important as larger external debt pressures begin to drive decision-making across the federal landscape. Each of these benefits, by themselves, would be exceptional, but in combination, make for a truly impactful offering that we are pleased to present.
A framework for RAD
We will soon be releasing a playbook that will provide agencies and partners with a framework for engaging the RAD team. Stay tuned!
In the meantime, learn more about how federal agencies can meet their missions by quickly assembling fully-functional, highly-skilled teams on short timelines with a cost-effective approach to application development.