Modern technology makes it easier to collaborate remotely, yet software development outsourcing is still a serious consideration for any business and shouldn’t be undertaken without understanding a few key components.
It doesn’t matter how much experience you or your team have or how many projects you’ve seen to completion, software development is — and always will be — challenging. With each new project comes an entirely new set of requirements and limitations, new deadlines, and new opportunities — the latter of which can introduce varying risks.
Success is incumbent upon the abilities of you and your staff, in addition to a diverse set of skills, talents, and responsibilities. Because of this, sometimes it’s more beneficial to outsource the work to a more experienced or capable team. During the planning and analyzing phase, for example, you might discover that your existing team is much too small. In this case, outsourcing to a larger, more capable team with more resources is the ideal choice.
Of course, software development outsourcing is not simply as easy as offloading work on another team at will. There are varying types of outsourcing opportunities, each with their own best practices. Furthermore, you’ll want to be sure to choose an appropriate partner who is just as dedicated to quality as your own team and can deliver something you’ll be happy to publish or release under your company’s name.
Luckily, modern technology has made it much easier to collaborate with remote teams, resulting in better, more efficient work all around. Not to mention, the current state of the IT outsourcing industry is booming as companies look for more talent, fewer costs, and delivery of better products to their end-users.
Why outsource software development projects?
Why does outsourcing software development work? What benefits can it offer?
- Cost savings
- Time savings
- Larger talent and experience pools
- Improved compliance
- Enhanced accuracy
- Improved hardware and technological access
- Enhanced risk mitigation
For starters, outsourcing nets you significant benefits in saving cost and time as well as offering flexibility. It reduces time dedicated to recruiting, hiring, training, and related activities within your own team. And since generally you’d outsource to larger, more capable teams, it implies that the project and work can be done in a fraction of the time it would take you normally, for lesser cost. In fact, 59 percent of companies say that they outsource for the cost benefits alone.
In turn, this nets you access to technology and hardware you don’t have within your own setup, larger talent, experience pools from the partners’ employee base, enhanced compliance, risk mitigation, and accuracy, thanks to more capable teams and systems.
Choosing a partner for software outsourcing
Ideally, you’d find the perfect partner after a series of meetings, and perhaps an in-person visit. One who will bring a vast trove of experience and knowledge to the table to help you see your project to fruition, faster and more effectively.
It’s important to establish a proper vetting process for finding new outsourcing partners, particularly when it comes to building products and services worthy of your company’s brand.
The first decision is choosing the ideal form of outsourcing for your company. There are three major types: offshore, inshore, and nearshore. Offshore outsourcing is when you ship the work to a far or remote country, inshore is when you involve a local team, and nearshore is when you outsource to a neighboring country or partner.
Next, you must always consider a potential partner’s portfolio and experience. How long have they been in business and how many successful projects have they been part of? Perficient Latin America, for instance, has been named as one of the top 100 outsourcing companies globally because of our commitment to providing nearshore software development.
Finally, compare and contrast what you can from your outsourcing partner to your own processes and strategies. Will a proper QA testing procedure be put in place? Are there elements missing that you think should be implemented, or even the opposite — policies and strategies that exist that you don’t normally honor but would work well with your project?
In the end, it’s all about synergy and reliability. You must choose a partner that best aligns with your company’s mission and goals, while also delivering the kind of high-quality, consistent products your brand is known for.
For more information, check out Perficient Latin America’s guide to choosing the right software outsourcing partner.
