Non-IT/software development companies often hire a programmer or development team in-house. In certain cases, this can be a good solution, as an in-house team can respond more quickly to emerging needs, has excellent knowledge of company processes, and is not occupied with other clients' work. However, this is typically a good solution only when a company has a very high demand for development work and many or large projects that constantly require development resources.
But in many cases, this is inefficient and brings more harm than good in the long run.
Main problems with having a development team in a non-software company:
• Infrastructure
A non-software company typically doesn't have the proper infrastructure for developers to perform their work professionally. Modern infrastructure requires constant investment, innovative solutions, and changes, so non-IT companies rarely want to invest in additional tools and development process improvements.
• Competencies and growth
Experienced developers who want to grow rarely choose a non-software company, as such companies usually don't offer adequate opportunities to continuously deepen knowledge, face ongoing development challenges, and grow together with colleagues.
A development team needs not only programmers, but also project managers, testers, and various other positions, so building such a team requires significant financial and human resources.
• Monotony
Companies that form in-house development teams typically develop one or a few business-critical solutions, which means developers face fewer and fewer challenges and opportunities to work on diverse projects that constantly encourage them to deepen their knowledge.
• Costs
In many cases, maintaining an in-house development team becomes significantly more expensive than ordering services from a software development company. An internal team means fixed costs, so the company must evaluate whether it will always have enough useful and necessary development work. When hiring a software development company, you only pay for specific work completed when it is needed.