Software outsourcing
Developing a product is quite a challenging task that requires both knowledge and experience. It’s not surprising that the majority of companies choose to outsource a portion of their development workflow (i.e. mobile, web, or application development) to specialists rather than do everything internally.
Offshoring software development
The main reason why companies outsource software development is to reduce costs. The costs of outsourcing can be as much as 30-40% cheaper than hiring local developers. Also, the time required for developing a feature is shorter when you hire an offshore team. It takes about 2 weeks for them to create a feature that would take about 6 weeks if done in-house.
Offshoring software development also gives you access to more resources than what you have locally. It allows you to get things done faster while giving your team more flexibility with their work schedule.
In addition, if your business needs are changing rapidly, offshoring can be a great option because it allows you to adjust quickly without having too much impact on your budget or resources.
However, there are some disadvantages when outsourcing:
There isn’t always direct interaction between your company and the offshore team; therefore communication could be difficult sometimes.
You need to spend time researching new markets and finding quality developers who could fit your project requirements.
Working with offshore developers
There are many considerations to take into account when working with an offshore development team. The most important one is communication. Without good communication, the project will not be successful.
Another consideration is experience. Make sure that you choose a company that has a proven track record of delivering quality work and providing good customer service. You can also ask for references from previous clients so that you can learn more about the company’s capabilities and past performance.
A third consideration is cost. Offshore companies usually charge less than their onshore counterparts because they have lower costs of living in their countries of operation, but this doesn’t mean that you should always choose the lowest price because quality can vary greatly from one provider to another.
Communicating with offshore developers
Communication is the most important part of any relationship. It’s not just about sending emails, but also about building a relationship with your team.
To build a strong relationship with your offshore developer, you need to make sure that they understand what you want and how you expect them to do it.
When you first start working with an offshore team, they will likely be unfamiliar with your business and culture. This can lead to misunderstandings and miscommunications, which can impact the quality of work delivered. Here are some tips for communicating effectively and avoiding common problems:
- Set expectations clearly upfront
- Give detailed specifications with examples
- Don’t assume others know what you mean (or vice versa)
What security issues exist when using offshore developments
When outsourcing development to an offshore team, several security concerns need to be considered.
The first is that the internet is a public medium, and thus any information shared through it can be accessed by anyone who knows how to find it. While this may sound obvious, many companies fail to consider this when outsourcing development to an offshore team. They assume that their data will be safe because they are using secure cloud services like Dropbox, Box, or Google Drive. While these services do provide some security for your files, they don’t offer complete protection from prying eyes.
If you’re working with an offshore team, you should never send sensitive information over email or chat programs like Skype or Slack. This includes passwords, credit card information, and other personal information. If you must share sensitive data with your offshore team, make sure that they encrypt it before sending it over the internet.
A second concern when working with an offshore team is ensuring that they have proper access controls in place on their servers so only authorized users can access your private data. It’s important that you know what data they are storing on their servers and what security measures are being used to protect it from unauthorized access.
One of the biggest concerns for people who outsource development is also that their intellectual property will be stolen by the service provider. There are a few ways to reduce this risk:
Use an NDA (nondisclosure agreement). An NDA is a contract that states that all information exchanged between parties will remain confidential and not be used for any purpose other than as agreed upon. If you’re working with another company, they should already have one in place — but if they don’t, ask them to sign one before starting work together.
Limit access to your code repository. Only give third-party developers access to code when necessary; otherwise, restrict their access as much as possible using permissions settings in your version control system (VCS). This way, even if someone does gain access to your codebase, they won’t be able to do anything with it because they won’t have permission to make changes without getting approval first from someone with write access.
Is offshore software development right for your company?
Performing software development offshore can be a beneficial and cost-effective process, but many things must be done to ensure the quality of the product. This can be difficult for a manager or business owner who does not have the time to manage their programmers effectively. We offer quality offshore development services and have the experience to guide you through the whole process. Contact us today to get started.