Hiring the team that will build your business system, app or website is a decision you live with for years. A good choice saves you months; a bad one leaves you with a half-finished project and no access to the work already done.
This guide sums up what to check before you sign with a software development company in the Dominican Republic, whether you are a local business or a company in the United States, Canada or Europe looking for a nearshore partner.
1. Start with the problem, not the technology
A good software company first asks how your business works: who sells, who collects, where time is lost, what you still do in spreadsheets or on paper. If the first conversation is about programming languages rather than your operation, that is a bad sign.
Before the first meeting, write down:
- what you want to achieve (sell online, control inventory, stop losing appointments…);
- who will use the system and from where (office, field, phone);
- which tools you use today and which ones it has to connect to.
With that, any serious proposal will be more precise.
2. Ask to see real work
A portfolio of nice screenshots is not enough. Ask for projects that are live: a website you can open, an app you can download, a system they can show you in a demo.
Also ask what exactly the company did. Designing a few screens is not the same as building and maintaining the whole application. In the Qoorbell case study, for example, we show the website, the web app and the iOS and Android apps we built for a client.
3. Ask how they work week to week
The most common cause of a failed project is not technical: the client sees nothing for months and, when they finally do, it is not what they expected. Ask:
- How often will I be able to try the progress?
- Who is my contact, and how do we talk (email, video calls, chat)?
- How are changes handled if we discover something new halfway through?
Ideally you can test something real every one or two weeks, and changes are discussed before they are made, not after.
4. Make sure the code and the accounts are yours
This point is often forgotten and causes the most trouble later. Before you sign, put in writing that:
- the source code belongs to your company and is handed over to you;
- the domain, hosting, Apple and Google Play accounts and databases are in your company's name;
- you hold the credentials or, at the very least, your own administrator account.
If you switch providers tomorrow, everything must keep working.
5. Check time zone, language and communication
For companies in North America, one of the advantages of a team in the Dominican Republic is the time zone: the country is on Atlantic Standard Time all year, the same clock as New York for part of the year and one hour ahead the rest, so you can meet live during your working day. Ask who will be on your calls, in which language, and how quickly they reply.
For local businesses, check that they understand how things work here: if your system issues invoices, it must handle fiscal receipts (NCF), ITBIS and the DGII's electronic invoicing (e-CF).
6. Ask what happens after launch
A system is not finished the day it goes live. Bugs need fixing, apps need updating when Apple or Google change their rules, data needs backing up and improvements keep coming. Ask whether they offer maintenance and support, how fast they respond and how problems are reported.
7. Get a written proposal with scope and dates
A serious proposal says what will be built, what is out of scope, in which stages it will be delivered and what you need to provide (information, access, approvals). If the proposal is one line or a chat message, ask for more detail before you decide.
Red flags
- They promise everything "ready in a week" without understanding your business.
- They cannot show you anything that is live.
- They refuse to put the code or the accounts in your name.
- Nobody is clearly responsible for your project.
- They take days to answer before you have even signed.
Questions for the first meeting
- Which projects like mine have you built, and can I see them?
- How and how often will I try the progress?
- Who will own the code, and in whose name will the accounts be?
- What happens if I need changes halfway through?
- What does support include after launch?
In short
Choose the team that understands your business, shows you real work, lets you test progress every week and leaves everything in your name. Technology matters, but those four things matter more.
At Ciguabit we build custom software, websites and apps, and we work as a nearshore team for companies in the United States and Europe. If you are comparing options, tell us what you need and we will send you a free quote within 24 business hours.
