Is Outsourcing Mobile App Development Services Beneficial?
Let’s face it, having an in-house dev team is ideal! Although considering the prohibitive costs of employing highly sought-after software engineers to maintain a competitive edge, it’s only natural to wonder whether outsourcing mobile app development services is more beneficial.
Outsourcing mobile app development services compared to hiring an in-house dev team is beneficial from a cost perspective. Collaborating with an outsourced app development company is advantageous as it’s scalable, faster to deploy, and you can access a larger pool of seasoned programmers.
While it is true that outsourcing your app’s development is far more time and cost-effective than hiring an in-house dev team, there are certain pitfalls that you must be aware of. So, if you want to make a prudent business decision – read on!
In-House Vs. Outsourced Apps Development
Before we delve into the benefits of potentially outsourcing your app development. To make an informed decision it’s essential to understand how that approach differs from hiring an in-house team.
So, here’s a brief overview of the pros and cons of in-house versus outsourced app development:
In-House App Development
Large companies like Amazon have in-house dev teams exclusively focused on crafting software for their employers.
In-house dev teams are more aligned with their employer’s company culture and provide instant tech support.
Although, it’s important to note that having an in-house dev team is a costly luxury that most businesses typically cannot afford.
Thus, if you are considering going this route, it’s vital to budget for the following:
- Hidden expenses like recruitment and onboarding costs.
- Competitive salaries and generous benefits to attract and retain highly sought-after programmers with scarce skills.
- The cost of upskilling an in-house team and investing in a wide range of expensive software tools.
Outsourced App Development
There are several reasons why most businesses prefer outsourcing their app development, most notably because it is far cheaper than paying all the overheads associated with an in-house dev team.
Partnering with an outsourced dev team provides scalability and the agility to quickly respond to rapidly changing market trends without hiring or retrenching additional programmers.
Although partnering with offshore instead of local app developers does have the following disadvantages:
- Significant time zone differences
- Language and cultural barriers
- Poor coding and security protocols
What Are The Advantages Of Outsourcing App Development?
Unlike bankrolling a high-maintenance, costly in-house dev team, outsourcing makes sense from a business perspective as it provides far greater value for money for the following reasons:
Access To A Larger Pool Of Talent
The mobile app development industry is fiercely competitive; therefore, they consistently need to expand their service offerings with ambitious projects.
App developers must vet and hire outstanding software engineers who have “battle-tested” expertise on a wide range of sophisticated and challenging app development projects to maintain a competitive edge.
Faster Time-To-Market
Outsourced app developers have established workflows and agile project management expertise to fast-track projects and develop apps with superior code quality.
Reputable programmers employ agile project management methodologies; with sprints or milestones to facilitate fast deployment. Therefore, should you need to deploy an app quickly, outsourcing the project is the way to go.
Superior Code Quality
Like any business, local app developers must maintain a skilled workforce and invest in cutting-edge programming tools to produce quality, bug-free products to stay in business.
Outsourcing Mobile App Development: Tips and Tricks
It's essential to be aware of the following critical considerations before you reach out to an app developer and "sign on the dotted line."
After all, developing an app is a significant investment, and mitigating any potential risks associated with an outsourcing agreement is essential.
Reputation and Experience
Partner with a local app development team with stellar credentials and a proven track record for delivering world-class apps that align with your requirements.
Communication And Collaboration Tools
A kick-off meeting with your outsourced dev team is the ideal platform to foster communication and clearly outline your objectives.
The added benefit of collaborating with a local outsourced app development team is the ability to meet with them in person, which is a far more efficient way to kick off a new project.
Comprehensive Project Management Process
Successful app development requires a well-established project management workflow process that documents every stage of the product development process.
So, ensure that your outsourced team is proficient in project management best practices and can provide reports documenting the team's progress, hours worked, and estimated deployment date.
Intellectual Property Rights
To safeguard your intellectual property, appoint an app development company willing to provide access to their code repositories and give you a clear view of your assets.
Data Privacy Compliance
Outsource your app’s development to a company that adheres to our Protection of Personal Information Act, with adequate security measures to protect your sensitive company, and customer data, code, and workflows.
Service Level Agreement (SLA)
Lastly, ensure that your service provider’s contract includes beneficial clauses that oblige your app developers to rigorously test and deploy your app in line with your budget and in a mutually agreed timeframe.
Conclusion
An in-house dev team focused on creating bespoke apps for your business may be ideal. However, in practice, it is not a budget-friendly option!
Thus, outsourcing mobile app development is beneficial as it’s cost-effective, scalable, faster to deploy, and you have access to a broader pool of outstanding talent.
#mobileapp #mobileappdevelopment #appdevelopment #mobileapplicationdevelopment
Pieter Lewis is the founder and CEO of Stitchcode, and has over two decades of app development experience for small, medium and large organizations across global markets.
Resources
https://www.gartner.com/en/documents/1404991
https://www.techtarget.com/searchsoftwarequality/definition/agile-software-development