Unlock global tech talent for your projects! Dive deep into programming outsourcing, ensuring quality software development with savings and expertise.
The term “programming outsourcing” refers to the practice of outsourcing programming work to an external company that specializes in development and has access to the resources necessary to complete the work. Some companies are hesitant to work with an outsourced programming partner for their projects. However, outsourcing programming is extremely beneficial for both companies and their customers.
Some of the top reasons why companies consider outsourcing programming and their software development needs include:
Better cost efficiency
The costs are typically quite considerable when a company chooses to hire a software development team in-house rather than outsource it. They not only have to deal with salaries, but also pay for expensive benefits such as insurance, vacation, hardware, software and other costs.
Some business owners, unfortunately, believe that outsourcing is more expensive than hiring in-house. However, the truth is that outsourcing development allows companies to hire more employees for less money.
Access to niche talent
Unless a company has a huge budget and no time constraints, it is still likely that they will not be able to find and hire talent in niche industries or experts in their respective fields. Thanks to the global talent shortage and the Great Layoff, hiring the right employee is a pretty difficult task in itself. When niche skills also come into play, companies are left without the resources to get the job done.
Programming outsourcing helps connect companies with the skills and talent needed to complete a project without the stress and money that comes with hiring in-house. These experts are already solidified in your development teams, so they know what to do and how to do it, and don't require long-term hires. This means companies only have to pay for services as long as they need them, rather than making long-term commitments to permanent employees.
Work with experts
It is simply not viable for companies to expect that they will or can already hire the best experts in their fields internally. They can try, but they can't compete with an organization that spends most of its resources on talent acquisition.
The ability to hire new employees as needed is one of the many benefits of an outsourcing network for businesses. Outsourced programming providers find the best candidates for the position and take on the hiring for companies.
Outsourced software engineers are already used by companies around the world, regardless of whether or not their primary focus is technology. They're useful for everything from marketing campaigns that require stunning visuals on a website to more specialized projects like programming car entertainment systems.
When companies choose software outsourcing, they must then choose the type of programming outsourcing provider they want to work with, whether nearshore, onshore or offshore. Even though it's difficult to hire full-time employees remotely, outsourcing programming allows companies to bring some of the best software outsourcing developments from the other side of the planet with a (relative) snap of a finger.
Companies that hire offshore or nearshore suppliers gain access not only to experts in their field, but also to experts from other countries and lifestyles, bringing fresh eyes and new perspectives to each project. Companies that choose to hire an onshore supplier benefit from working in their own time zone. Each version comes with its own advantages and disadvantages.
Easy scalability
While companies, project managers, and development teams do their best to properly research, plan, and set expectations for projects, sometimes the unexpected occurs. This means extended deadlines or needing additional help on a project.
Outsourcing scheduling gives companies the flexibility and freedom to choose the size of their outsourced team in the most on-demand way possible. When projects have tight deadlines, the company requests more participation in the project so that the programming outsourcing provider increases its outsourcing team. After the project is complete, the company can then choose to reduce staff or retain additional resources.
On the other hand, companies also typically have the freedom to reduce their outsourced teams as needed. If the company experiences a lapse in business or simply comes out on the other side of a busy season, it will have the ability to contact the outsourcing programming provider to remove people from the outsourcing team to reduce scale. This prevents companies from paying salaries to non-essential employees when business is slower, without having to lay off a permanent internal employee.
This almost “on-demand” aspect of outsourced computer programming and software development is typically a big draw for business decision makers. It's a flexible option that helps meet business needs without breaking the bank or causing major disruptions to the workplace. After all, nothing causes more panic than having team members laid off when business slows down.
Good software development or programming outsourcing companies create a customized strategy for each business that they would not normally be able to develop on their own, even with a large in-house team. They take into account each company's size, budget, and available technology, as well as the overall project objective of building an appropriately sized outsourcing team.
Cons of Outsourced Programming Services
While choosing to outsource a company's programming needs is a great solution for a number of reasons, as with any choice, the practice also comes with its own set of disadvantages. While most of the cons of outsourcing programming are typically avoidable, it's important for every company considering an outsourcing provider to understand exactly what they're signing up for, as well as what they should do on their own to create a good long-term business. relationship, ensuring mutual success.
The following are some examples of common pitfalls in the practice of working with a programming outsourcing service provider and how companies should strive to proactively avoid them with a successful outsourcing strategy:
Communication problems
One of the main problems companies face when working with a programming outsourcing provider is communication. For nearshore or offshore outsourcing companies, sometimes the issue is English proficiency levels.
Companies in the United States, for example, may work with a company in Argentina, Chile or India. Although the outsourced teams hired may speak efficient English, sometimes things still get lost in translation. To avoid this, project managers and in-house software developers must speak as concisely as possible and ensure that everyone involved in a project is on the same page before development even begins.
Another aspect of communication that is sometimes an issue for these types of programming outsourcing relationships is timing. Offshore and nearshore suppliers may exist in a different time zone than the contracting company. For example, a dedicated team in India may work overnight while the company in the United States sleeps. Before hiring a supplier, companies must first decide if they are ok with this and then work out a solution for regular team communication to avoid passing like ships in the night.
Some companies choose to work onshore with a dedicated team for this reason, although this sometimes means higher prices. Fortunately, there are many project management tools and programs available to help facilitate communication between development teams, no matter where they are located in the world. Daily text communication, weekly phone calls, and video calls as needed are great ways to stay in touch with a programming outsourcing company and ensure everyone understands the project requirements.
Motivation in the workplace
Most of the time, outsourcing programming is useful in addition to increasing the number of employees in-house rather than replacing existing in-house staff. Some employees, however, end up feeling threatened by outsourcing programming or an outsourced development team. They see their company choosing to hire strangers from different countries instead of investing in internal teams and end up feeling discouraged because of this.
This creates some discourse or animosity between employees and their management, thus reducing production and generally bringing down office morale. To avoid this, top management must communicate to their teams exactly what role outsourcing currently plays in their company and how it affects existing internal team members.
By including internal employees in the plan with clear, concise, and realistic expectations about what this new outsourced computer programming relationship is and how it will work, management helps calm any frustrations bubbling beneath the surface for their teams. Transparency is the key to a strong workplace and programming outsourcing relationship.
Quality control
In the early days of programming outsourcing practices, rumors spread about a “bait and switch trick” conducted by these outsourcing programming companies. They believed that development companies would present their best talent to these hiring companies and in effect hand over their projects to less experienced and cheaper developers, thus lowering the quality of the code provided.
Professional and reliable programming outsourcing providers do not engage in such practice and equip their clients with the best talent available to work on their projects. The idea that such companies cheat and scam their customers is outdated and quite offensive. However, to ensure this does not occur, hiring companies should take the time to examine and review an outsourcing vendor's past work and even talk to their previous clients to understand what they are signing up for.
How to choose the best outsourcing programming partner
There is no magic bullet for exactly how to hire the best outsourcing provider. It all depends on the unique needs of the company and project, budgets, deadlines, and overall talent availability. The following tips help companies succeed when choosing to outsource programming:
- Take time to check each outsourcing programming company’s past work experience, case studies, and portfolio of work.
- Check social media and Google reviews to see the provider's ratings.
- Know the tools and technologies that the outsourced company uses and whether they are compatible with the contracting company's projects.
- Decide whether you want to outsource programming onshore, nearshore or offshore and look for an outsourcing company within the specified range.
- Ask about the years of experience of each member of the outsourcing company and the years of experience of the company as a whole.
- Find out how the supplier prefers to communicate and whether it matches your company's style and preferences.
- Find out the software development methodology the vendor uses or prefers.
- Check the outsourcing company's number of experts by dedicated team and niche skill offerings.
Companies around the world that are hiring programming outsourcing
Many of the world's leading companies work with outsourced companies on their projects. Some examples of these companies include :
While the tech giant already has a huge in-house team, it also works with outsourcing providers to help carry out projects successfully. They work with companies that outsource programming and development work, email support for some of their products, phone support, and other business items.
Used globally by millions of people, WhatsApp has a history since its inception of using outsourcing providers from around the world. They originally outsourced to Russia when their team consisted of just 30 full-time employees.
Base camp
Basecamp is an amazing tool for project management, but the business experienced some setbacks early on. To have more time for internal workflows and customer support, they outsourced their work to help them focus on core tasks and building their business.
Working with BairesDev – Outsourcing of programming models
In addition to the different types or locations of programming outsourcing, hiring companies should also consider the various types of software development outsourcing models available based on their needs, timelines, and budget when looking for programming outsourcing companies. Most outsourcing companies offer the following:
- Team augmentation – This model places more responsibility for a project on the client when they choose to outsource programming. Staff augmentation means the company is not hiring a full team to work in one role, just increasing the talent needed to facilitate the success of its internal team.
- Project Based Model – This model means that most of the responsibility falls on the outsourcing provider. The hiring company presents a development project and hands it over to the outsourced development team for completion.
- Managed Team Model – This version places responsibility on both the client and the programming outsourcing provider. Teams work together toward a mutual project goal or long-term to outsource programming development.
The types of outsourcing programming projects to work with an outsourcing company
Companies choose to outsource programming for a variety of reasons and for a variety of different projects, including:
Technical installation projects
Sometimes companies acquire new technologies and simply don't have the time or talent to actually implement them. Programming outsourcing solutions have the ability to help install these products in companies, including software, hardware, networks, intranets, and so on. An outsourcing partner is an excellent resource for companies implementing complicated enterprise-wide systems or integrating existing products.
Cloud computing
Working in the cloud makes it easier for employees to access their materials and programs from virtually anywhere. Outsourcing companies help companies implement software-as-a-service (SaaS) products as needed within organizations. They also have the ability to create custom SaaS products for customers.
Web and mobile application development
Companies that aren't in the technology niche simply don't have the development knowledge needed to design, build, test, and maintain an app. Working with a programming outsourcing provider and development team helps IT and non-IT companies achieve their development goals without breaking the bank or hiring entire in-house teams with a skilled programming workforce.
Cyber security
A threatening and ever-evolving cyber landscape means cybersecurity is a priority for every company. Outsourcing providers help ensure companies remain protected from hackers, data breaches, malware, and other cybercrimes.
Maintenance and Support
Sometimes companies simply don't have the resources necessary to maintain and support products already in production. Programming outsourcing providers help bridge this gap to ensure long-term success for both end users and the company itself.
The importance of relationships in outsourcing programming services
In business, relationships are truly what make the difference. The success or otherwise of outsourcing contracts also depends on the quality of the relationship between the contracting company and the outsourcing provider. To this end, carrying out such ventures contributes to the overall prosperity of a company and its internal team.
Connection is key to success and fluidity between third-party vendors or development teams and their colleagues or internal managers. Involvement in a relationship is also not necessarily tied to a particular physical location, thanks to the Internet, meaning businesses can still have a successful working relationship with their service provider despite the distance. After all, having a good relationship with the supplier is more important than having greater physical proximity.
Building a trusting relationship among a team of strangers is difficult enough in itself. Adding new people in a different country, language and culture takes some work, but it's worth it in the long run. Contracting companies must facilitate communication, encourage collaboration, and prioritize understanding between their team and vendor to ensure that a healthy company culture thrives and that projects remain successful while outsourcing programming.