IT Development Outsourcing: Expectations Vs. Reality – Lessons From The Experts
IT Development Outsourcing, i.e. the outsourcing of web, software, or mobile development services, is becoming more and more important. The reduction in costs or the availability of qualified specialists are among its greatest advantages. Companies of all sizes, ranging from small SMEs to technological giants, rely on outsourcing development services to complement their teams, either on a one-off or regular basis. In today’s article we are going to look at expectations and reality, because while it can be very helpful, it is not without risk. Find out what the biggest dangers of this practice are and how you can avoid them so that everything goes smoothly.
IT Development Outsourcing: Expectations Vs. Reality
IT Development Outsourcing brings with it some risks that are worth looking ahead to. This is the only way to foresee and avoid complications. Let’s take a look at some of the most common IT Development Outsourcing risks we’ve seen some customers and how we’ve resolved them. Be careful!
Lack of Trust In The Subcontractor
Expectation: When commissioning development services for companies, the team should ideally be integrated as part of the team. There should be fluid communication with common goals.
Reality: When the team works remotely, either in a different part of the city or even in another country, many companies fear a lack of commitment. Will it know how to respond well to what I need? Will it fit in the budget?
Solutions: To remedy this lack of trust, it is necessary to make a good pre-selection.
1. Make a list of development service companies with objective information:
- The company’s history, how many years it has been in the market.
- Number of projects carried out and their success stories, with information about the client, the project carried out, the challenges and the solutions.
- References in professional social networks are also a good indicator of the company’s reputation.
2. Clearly define what work you will outsource: what are the company’s KPIs, set the project milestones and define what knowledge and experience is required.
Questions About Confidentiality & Legal Implications
Expectation: All members of your team must guarantee the confidentiality of the project.
Reality: You have probably contractually agreed on confidentiality measures with your employees. But you have doubts about how to protect confidentiality and the legal implications when using Development Outsourcing.
Solutions:
- Signing of a confidentiality agreement (NDA) with the development company or service provider.
- Inclusion of the necessary clauses in the contract, which regulate aspects such as intellectual property rights, confidentiality, liability and data protection in detail. This is particularly necessary when working with companies in other countries.
Differences In Culture, Communication Or Time Zones
Expectation: The entire technical team involved in the project must have common goals and be able to communicate easily to complete the project successfully.
Reality: If the outsourced team is in another country, cultural or linguistic differences can arise that can make understanding difficult. In addition, if there is a large time difference, there may be coordination problems when driving the project forward together.
Solutions:
- Before deciding on an outside team, research the company culture to make sure you share the same values and work systems.
- Whenever possible, choose suppliers with a similar time zone as your company so that the internal and external teams match as much as possible during the work day.
Missing Prior Analysis
Expectation: On a large project, the prior work of a business analyst is essential to ensure that the functionality of the project is aligned with the business objectives. That is why it is important that he or she is integrated into the team throughout the process.
Reality: Sometimes the business analyst is left out after the project starts, but this can lead to delays and cost overruns if the product does not meet the company’s needs.
Solutions: The business analyst must be present at all stages of the project to ensure good communication with the entire team.
Companies That Outsource IT Development Services
Outsourcing IT development services is not limited to large companies, it can help all types of businesses. Let’s look at some examples.
Development Outsourcing for Startups
Startups can find a great ally for their development in IT Development Outsourcing. Especially in the initial phase, when you outsource development, you can benefit from the experience and knowledge of experienced developers. However, without directly bearing the salary, office expenses and other costs that a direct hiring would entail. WhatsApp was founded as a startup in 2009 and one of the first decisions was to outsource development of the original app to a Russian iOS developer, Igor Solomennikov, who later joined the company as CIO.
Development Outsourcing for SMEs
SMEs also find a great ally in the outsourcing of IT services. Software development, technological support for customers, cybersecurity. There are many services that can rely on outside support from the company. Some of the advantages for SMEs are the saving of staff as well as trained professionals that do not require training. Also, if you outsource some of your services, you can focus on growing your business and only have to oversee the outsourced work.
Development Outsourcing for Large Companies
Although large companies often have huge IT teams, they can also reap great benefits from outsourcing IT services. Bringing in new perspectives, external professionals helping to develop projects or overseeing the quality of new products are some of the main reasons why technology giants are turning to Development Outsourcing. For companies like Google, Alibaba, Pinterest, Salesforce and GitHub, for example, it is helpful if external developers are available to supplement internal development and carry out new projects.
Conclusion
As you can see, IT service outsourcing is more widespread in companies of all types than you might think. It is a very versatile tool for companies. For example, to enrich your projects, accelerate their development and reduce costs. While it does come with a number of risks, if you are willing and rely on an experienced digital partner, everything will work out. Contact Code Creators Inc. and find the professionals you need; just a click away.
