The software development market is highly saturated. This means there are a lot of players in the IT domain from whom you can take custom software development services.
If you are working hard on any product idea for the last couple of months, by now, you must be knowing how difficult it is to find the right team.
It is pivotal for a company to be confident in the team so as to build new disruptive products and features that can make market penetrations easy. Not only does this require a length and breadth of technical knowledge, industry experience and soft skills count too.
Another thing that a lot of companies find themselves at crossroads is that of the development prices. Here, market saturation benefits you. Since the IT domain is one of the most burgeoning industries, even the third world countries offer you some good resources with the required skillsets.
Offshoring hiring thus provides you the benefit of enjoying the same set of services at cheaper rates while not compromising on the quality of the product. However, trusting a company sitting miles and miles away may be difficult. Here in this blog, we would be discussing some of the best practices to hire the right offshore development company and managing them to ensure the success of the project.
So, let’s start by analyzing if offshore hiring is the right choice for you?
Should you hire an offshore development company?
Offshore development is one of the most common practices as the development cost in many countries such as the USA and UK is very high. A lot of companies struggle to equip their needs in full-fledged software because of budget constraints.
This makes them turn to the resources that are available readily and have the resources that offer software development services at the right rate. Meanwhile, there is another option of hiring an in-house development team and get the product built; there are many reasons why it might not be a right fit for you.
As a startup, not only the right software development company or software development team can define the success of your project, there are other factors that are equally important to consider for the survival of the company in harsh business scenarios. While the economies shift and digital investments escalate, as a startup or a company that is in the discovery phase, you must not overlook the need to use your resources wisely.
Here are some essential factors that would help you in making your investment in software products more rewarding.
- Avoid conflict between the co-founders
One of the biggest factors found for the failure of 65% of startups is the internal conflict between the co-founders. According to a study done by Noam Wasserman, a professor at Harvard Business School, you must avoid it.
- Quicker product development
The faster the product enters the market, the better are your chances for success. Also, the quicker the product development happens,the lesser resources are invested in the development process, and the cost of development reduces significantly.
- Consider launching MVP
Minimum Viable Product or MVP allows you to validate your business model. It is a product with minimum capabilities that is sufficient for your market launch. It is a cost-effective way to not go overboard with your product and remain within the budget. It is also one of the best ways to raise investment from the market.
- Retaining high quality
Meanwhile, MVP is a basic product; it is essential for it to have the needed quality. Always go for the performance, userexperience, and cost-effectiveness of the product while undergoing development. It would increase the chances of success significantly.
- Working remotely
Meanwhile, in-house development sounds good; consider how you would manage a team. Especially when, due to the pandemic, the world is moving towards remote operations.
These were some factors that play an important role in ensuring the success of your software product in fewer resources. It might sound challenging but, if you ponder on it, you will find offshore development more beneficial for you.
Here are a few things that would give you more clarity about hiring offshore developers.
Why Hire Offshore Developers for your software product development?
Offshore development is not a new practice in the IT domain. According to a report by Deloitte, 72% of companies prefer outsourcing the development work rather than building an in-house development team. Here are a few reasons why:
- Cost-Effective Development Strategy:
SaaS development services, custom software development, mobile app development, etc., are not cheap services. A lot of businesses have failed because they run out of money in the middle of the development process. According to a report by Quartz, 46% of startups fail because of this reason.
Utilizing the available resources in a smart way is very important. Meanwhile, you might have the right budget for building the product; you might not be smartly allocating it to make the most out of it.
Also, consider having an in-house development team; you would have to spend your funds on the rent, insurance benefits, recreational activities, recruitment fees, etc. But offshore development or outsourcing does not require this type of investment. Rather you would just be required to manage the development team or hire a project manager to make it more easeful.
All the saved resources can be used in the development of the MVP product. Moreover, if you hire the offshore development company from the countries such as India, Latin America, Eastern Europe, the development cost can be reduced three times, considering the per hour cost of resources in Western Europe or America.
- Increased Productivity and Save Time
A team of offshore developers can not only reduce the development cost but also speed up the development process. Since time is one of the biggest influencing factors for the cost of development, always manage the time well.
As a startup, you would want your product to be out in front of the users and investors faster so as to raise some money for further product development. In the competitive setting, you cannot ignore that a business has to compete with thousands of other direct and indirect competitors, and each day, the number is increasing.
With a dedicated development team, you would not be able to get a hold on time as most of the time would be invested in product development. Crucial business operations such as infrastructure development, marketing and sales operations, supply chain development, training of the staff, etc., would not get the deserved time.
Outsourcing product development to a SaaS product development company would allow you to get hold of the talented resource that is already well-versed with the development process. You would not be required to constantly guide them.Rather, you would like just the reviewing the activities and providing the necessary feedback.
Finally, you would not have to spend time on project management routines or HR activities that are an unnecessary burden upon you. You can allocate your time and manage your business better. Also, if you are someone with no technical expertise or skillset, consider having an offshore development.
- Larger talent pool
IT outsourcing gives you an opportunity to hire the best resources from a wider developer pool. You would have very limited access to the resources. This would mean you would only be hiring the resources for in-house development from your city or nearby city. But consider how much talent you can find in the global market and that too at reduced cost and more benefits.
Technical skillsets, infrastructural capabilities, and soft skills are important to consider in a development team. It is not just about reducing the cost. Afterall, it is also about making a quality-driven product. Hiring from trustworthy companies in India and Eastern Europe would help you in meeting your needs better.
Challenges while hiring Offshore Development Companies
We have discussed the benefits of hiring an offshore SaaS development company, and now it is time to know what it would really mean to hire a team sitting miles and miles away. Considering that you would not personally know a development team, neither would you be willing to fly to a country just to interview the resources, you must make sure your decision of hiring a company was right.
During the development process, there would be some challenges that you must expect beforehand and also have the solution for it to make the investment profitable. We would be sharing some easy tips to manage offshore development in the next section. Make sure you check them out.
- Time Zone Difference
If the offshore development team is located in a different time zone, you will find some difficulty in managing the time to stay in contact with them. However, a lot of companies are now operational 24*7 and hiring a project manager would make the task easier for you.
Hiring an offshore development company that has the experience of working with global clientele would have the resources to manage this problem easily. Also, hire developers that have worked with a global clientele.
Companies that maintain transparency in the operations and keep you in the loop by daily and weekly reporting are worth considering for your project.
- Lack of Face to Face Communication
Trusting someone you don’t know personally is a bit difficult. There are chances that the communication barrier would arise. An in-house team is much easier to connect with than an offshore development team.
But, you can easily get past this challenge by communicating with the team more often. Take video conferences, provide regular feedback, and try to know the people that are working on your project.
- Too many offshore development services
There are many companies that have become IT hubs. This means you will find many companies that are either worth considering for your project or are completely not compatible. Look out for companies that have proven experience in developing projects that are a bit similar to yours. Checkout their portfolio, and before going for signing a contract with them, you must communicate with them about all the factors related to communication, cost, budget, time, and technology.
Managing Your Offshore Development Team
In actuality, there is no shortage of IT companies. There are so many technology providers that have proven skillsets to help you build your product. But it is like finding a needle in the haystack. Technology surely makes it easier for you to find these companies. But it would time some time and patience as you cannot blindly trust just any company.
Find the right platforms where you can get a reliable development team. Also, checkout out the final section, where we share with you some tips on hiring an offshore development team to make the process easier for you.
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Your offshore development team that is responsible for the development process would require some degree of management too. It would not be as exhaustive as managing an in-house development team, but you would have to do what is needed to be done.
- Discuss your development goals
Offshore software development teams work in combination with your existing team. It doesn’t have to be an in-house software development team. It can be a marketing or sales team, database managers, business analysts, or anyone. They are not just there for single-time services. You can utilize this collaboration over the years to come and keep on adding more value to your business.
This puts some responsibility on your workforce also. Keep them in confidence and allow them to share their view on the product. If you are adding some technology that would affect the working of an entire development, it is necessary that you connect the people that are decision-makers of that department to guide your development team. Sharing long-term and short-term goals with the development team would help you shape the product better and also divide it into phases that would be beneficial to the company.
Start considering a company as an extended part of your business. Look for collaboration rather than a company that is there temporarily. Brainstorm on these factors and accomplish them easily with the talented resources and their ability to use innovative solutions to meet your business goals.
- Avoid Micromanaging
A survey by Trinity Solutions indicated that 60% of the respondents consider changing jobs because of micromanagement. 36% of resources changed their job, and 71% of resources believe it can negatively impact performance.
Given that your offshore development team would be thousands of miles away, communication barriers and distance would make it difficult for you to not intrude in the working of the team. Monitoring their every move and out-ruling their decisions at all moments would make it difficult for the development team to offer their best. Try to find a balance and trusting the talent of the resources.
- Hire Technology Experts for your project
While the offshore development company would provide you the profiles of the available resources, you would have control over the project and the team. It is good to have a tech expert on your project. It would help you make better decisions, especially if you are not someone well-versed with technology. This would help you bridge the communication gap that arises because of the tech jargon and lack of knowledge.
Hiring an IT specialist would require you lookout for someone with sound knowledge of different types of Software products and modern technology. The project that you are currently working on can either become as you wanted or completely break because the development team would not have the required direction from you.
As an expert in software development, the specialist would ensure a higher success rate. A strong team leader is absolutely necessary to have the knowledge of technical nuances.
- Factors in the time difference
We have already discussed how the time difference would be challenging to get past with. But you can easily manage this challenge by utilizing the overlapping hours. As a company based in India, we always stay in communication with our UK-based clients in the mid-day as that is the time when the shifts start there. We follow a similar time zone management strategy for our other global clients.
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Factoring the time difference is one of the most important things. You can build a more efficient schedule by communicating with the team. Overlap meetings, scrum calls, weekly reporting through video conferencing, and daily communication through different channels would make it easy for both you and the team.
- Treat your offshore development team as a partner
The offshore software development company that you are considering working with is not a simple service provider. They are a part of your team, where you can collaborate for a long time. It is essential to look for a company that believes in long-term relationships.
Another important thing here is if you are considering them as a partner. It is important to develop some hierarchy in the system. This would make project management easy for you.
Similarly, when you are creating a development company as a partner, they would give their best in the project. They would know the association is going to benefit them in the longrun. They would start considering changing their schedule, provide you good offers on the maintenance of the project, and also dedicate more time to find solutions that are compatible with the business.
Acknowledgment of their efforts is also good as it would boost their confidence and they would be more productive and efficient on your project. Maintaining a long-term relationship is not just the responsibility of the offshore development team but also yours. Consider strengthening your relationship with them.
How to find a reliable offshore development team?
We have talked in-depth about the benefits of offshore software development, challenges, and easy tips to manage the offshore development team. Now it is time to make sure you are working with the right team. Hire dedicated resources from a reliable company through these important factors.
- Where to find the right resources
It is important to consider where you are starting out to find reliable resources. You can easily find quality resources on many platforms. There are many talent marketplaces where companies provide their information. Find these marketplaces easily through Google Search.
Another good way to find people with proven skillsets is by asking for recommendations. If you know someone that has undergone offshore development, connect with them to know about the company and their experience.
Social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, etc., are also a good way to connect with the right resources. Networking places such as hackathons, seminars, conferences are other places where you would find enthusiastic and knowledgeable resources.
- Proven track record
Affirming the company’s reputation by visiting their websites is a good start. Once you have spotted a company you are interested in sharing your project with, look them out on google and other reputable websites such as Clutch or GoodFirms.
Also, search them out on LinkedIn, checkout their activities, visit their website, and know if they are active in maintaining their reputation. Google, LinkedIn, and Facebook are also places where people leave a review and feedback about their experience with these companies. If you see a lot of redflags, it is time to consider another company.
- Ensure that you have the source code
There are cases very common in the IT domain where the development company denies them of source code or access to the code because of an internal conflict. So, make sure you don’t fall prey to this unprofessional behavior and are getting the most out of your association.
Own the accounts such as GitHub, TFS, Cloud, and other platforms so as to make sure you would always have access to the code.
- Evaluate the GitHub Account
GitHub is a good tool. It serves as a showroom where the development team collaborates on open-source projects and contributes. Quality of code is important to ensure the performance of the product. The code should be clean, readable, and well-structured. You can also consider the metrics like:
- Date of joining GitHub
- Total number of followers
- Number of contributors
- Relevancy of the keywords
- Check the Workflow
Find out how the company interacts with the clients to ensure transparency in the communication. Ask about the scalability of the team. Make sure you can add or remove the resource anytime from the team.
- Avoid Fixed Price Payment Model
A fixed price model includes a minimum of 25% additional cost to cover the risks. Time Material Model or dedicated team model are preferable engagement models by the companies that are not going for an extremely tight budget, especially when outsourcing the project.
- Project management and communication tools
Since offshore development puts you at the risk of difficulties in communication, lookout for a company that has invested its time and money in making the development process and management hassle-free; consider the company that relies on an omnichannel communication platform.
Also, utilizing modern project management tools such as Slack, Jira, Trello, Basecamp, and others would help you keep a better track of the project and make messaging easy and fast. You would be able to discuss, comment, and check the progress easily.
- Proactive Team
Proactiveness is a good soft skill. It would allow you to leverage the top trends in the industry as your development team would guide you on how you can utilize their services and improve the experience of the product. If your talented team of resources is actively doing their job well and is providing you the best results, you can concentrate your time and energy on other business-building activities.
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Wrapping Up
Working with an offshore development team has proven effective for many companies. It is a good way to reduce your development cost and takes some major responsibilities off your shoulder. You can develop an action plan to overcome these challenges easily and enjoy the collaboration.
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