The future of KOSOVO is in its hands!

Astrit Leti, Director of Operations, Kosovo, Tive Inc.

Kosovo's youthful workforce, with half of its population under the age of 35, presents a vibrant pool of talent eager for innovative job opportunities, especially in the ICT and digital sectors.

Ambitious young people interested in what the future of information technology holds is the best this country has to offer!

Every year, more than 350 students graduate from the colleges of information technology and computer engineering, and more than a thousand students graduate with honors from several universities and colleges throughout Kosovo.

This provides sufficient human resources to boost the outsourcing industry, which is in high demand. In addition, the education system is now much more focused on STEM, producing highly skilled and talented employees for the vibrant outsourcing market.

It has also been recognized by many internationally established and start-up companies, which are now present in Kosovo in various sectors, albeit mainly in ICT and SMM/digital marketing.

However, there are diverse services and operations now offered from Kosovo, such as call center & client support services, remote procurement services, engineering & architectural design, financial and payroll services, logistics and transportation support services, digital and social media management, as well as software engineering and IT services that are always in need of highly qualified engineers who can communicate in specific languages.

On the other hand, Kosovar companies, especially those in the ICT sector, are now performing well at the first and second levels of business outsourcing support services and are superb in software development services by offering end-to-end solutions for international companies. All of these services have proven to be a turning point for the region and Kosovo is now one of the best destinations that offers excellent technical & engineering services that are on-par with international standards and can easily adapt to specific customer requirements.

Kosovo welcomed companies like Tive Inc. from Boston

One of the best examples of how technology companies are doing an excellent job in Kosovo is TIVE Inc. of Boston, Massachusetts, USA, which has an office in Kosovo and runs an operation with 60+ employees.

Tive Inc. provides cloud-based software, sensors, and services to track shipments as they move through the supply chain. The company's hardware can record location as well as metrics such as temperature, humidity, vibration shock and light exposure, while its software allows shippers to create profiles, set custom alerts and use an API to pull data into existing systems of record.

All in all, Tive solution offers "in-transit visibility" and real-time information about goods in transit. There has never been a time with greater importance of knowing where your goods are and what condition they are in after one has purchased and ordered them.

Agile, standard and competitive pricing models

The main advantages of outsourcing to Kosovo are very straightforward as companies now work according to international standards and methodologies: Agile methods (Scrum, Kanban, Lean Dev.), PMP, ISO, and are certified and compliant with IT security and IP protection standards and protocols.

Moreover, the pricing models that Kosovo companies offer are very competitive and even better than compared to other outsourcing destinations and do not compromise the quality of services.

Let’s not also forget that outsourcing to Kosovo should not only be considered for operational costs reduction but is also a great opportunity to tap into a qualified, skilled and diverse workforce as Kosovo's education system emphasizes technical and business skills, and its workforce is diverse and multilingual, making it an attractive destination for outsourcing.

So, the soft skills and technical capabilities are there, and now is the right time to have a proper international introduction and use-case presentation of this ambitious and young business environment and promote it further on!

The outsourcing services sector in Kosovo is witnessing substantial growth, backed by compelling data. Export of ICT services surpassed 100 million euros in 2023, as reported by the Kosovo Agency of Statistics. Moreover, over 70% of Kosovo's ICT companies are expanding their reach globally, particularly targeting markets in the EU and the US, according to data from the Kosovo ICT Society.

Kosovo's youthful workforce, with half of its population under the age of 35, presents a vibrant pool of talent eager for innovative job opportunities, especially in the ICT and digital sectors. Furthermore, Kosovo's alignment with Western European and US time zones, being situated in the Central European Time (CET) zone, facilitates seamless collaboration between outsourcing partners, enhancing operational efficiency.

The country's favorable regulatory landscape, earning it the 57th spot out of 190 economies on the Ease of Doing Business Index, as per the World Bank's 2019 report, further adds to its appeal. Kosovo offers an easy setup for operations, supported by close bilateral cooperation with key players such as the USA, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, particularly within the ICT industry.

These factors collectively position Kosovo as an increasingly attractive destination for outsourcing services, offering a winning combination of talent, accessibility, and business-friendly policies for organizations seeking global collaboration and growth.

Win for the business, win for the community

Kosovo does seem to offer the perfect pre-conditions for international companies to outsource certain tasks or processes to third-party service providers and these companies and organizations can easily avoid the need to invest in very expensive infrastructure or hire additional staff to perform these tasks in-house.

As mentioned, Kosovar companies have significantly reduced capital expenditure and improved cost-effectiveness for these international organizations by rendering the same quality of services, so this is a win for the business and a win for the community on all aspects.