Outsourcing Software Development
Polish the skills of software outsourcing! Dig deep into this guide to ensure successful outcomes and high-quality collaborations.
Software outsourcing occurs when a company contracts with a third party to develop custom software solutions. It has many benefits, including reduced costs, enhanced productivity, advanced security, and alleviated risk.
As we move towards digitalized business forums, companies have a strategic advantage in accessing top-notch software developers through outsourcing. Nearly every other startup or established company uses outsourcing software development to develop efficient solutions and products.
Nevertheless, this is just the beginning. Let's take a broader view of outsourcing software development and what it can offer to enhance your business.
Let's start by delving into the world of Software Engineering
Software engineering is one of the most functionally essential activities in a digitalized world. It is an engineering branch that develops software solutions for multiple purposes. It efficiently uses principles and methodologies combined with industry best practices to execute secure, scalable, high-performing software.
While this description emphasizes software development to define software engineering, the truth is that the former emphasizes the engineering part. Software engineering is linked to the scientific knowledge it uses to develop efficient and secure software solutions.
Software Outsourcing as a Holistic Approach
The software development industry is ever-evolving, and its pace of advancement can be estimated. The emergence of the latest methodologies and new programming languages has made old methods and processes outdated. This is why utilizing outsourcing development as a holistic approach has become necessary for every business to run smoothly.
As a rapidly growing software outsourcing company, 10Pearls provides a wide range of high-standard outsourcing development services to push the software development industry forward. The services 10Pearls strives to provide ensure that enterprises across the globe fill any skill gaps in their team and prepare themselves for digital advancement in the ever-evolving industry.
"To successfully execute outsourcing development, it is important to identify the missing skills, then work for the products that need to be outsourced."
Today, software outsourcing development service providers are considered among the most reliable and valuable business partners because they can contribute to massive business growth. Specialized areas of development like blockchain, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are no longer an issue for large and small-scale business owners who do not have an internal development team.
Advantages of Software Outsourcing
There are many perks to software outsourcing, which involves:
Accessing Universal Skills
At 10Pearls, we partner with a highly selective group of top-notch tech-savvy talent. We review almost a million software applications yearly, choosing less than a percent of the most exceptional software developers.
Integrating Active Arrangement
Software Outsourcing enables enterprises to aim and achieve their goals and vision by utilizing the outsourcing skills they lack in their internal development team.
Quick realignment
Software developers can speed up the process using outsourcing expertise without compromising quality. By collaborating with skilled experts who understand their projects well, companies can quickly realign their strategies and launch their products on the market promptly.
Cost-effectiveness
Outsourcing allows companies to focus on their primary business functions and product-development process and further helps them invest their resources and sufficient time to resolve capacity issues. This, in turn, leads to increased cost-effectiveness.
Flexibility
Outsourcing is flexible enough that you can focus on the daily running of your business while paying for just the expertise and skills required for outsourcing development, releasing pressure on the company's internal team members.
Lower Risk
A software outsourcing organization ensures that all the possible risks are identified for seamless execution. A forward-thinking team will know all the potential debts and errors that could disrupt the procedure through frequent testing and quality assurance.
Responsibilities met, Milestones achieved!
A robust and skilled outsourcing team with a smooth workflow ensures that every execution is in place and seamlessly integrated. This further allows for the meeting of goals and needs for productive development.
At 10Pearls, we ensure that our clients have the technological and budget affirmation they need, so we implement feasibility studies as part of our outsourcing development process. We offer proof of concept, create prototypes, and perform quality assurance testing to reduce risks at the early stages of product development.
How does the Software Engineering Outsourcing function?
Software Engineering Outsourcing is a complicated attempt that comes with a set of challenges and entanglements.
Despite all the drawbacks, you can still excel in outsourcing development with the assistance of a tech expert and a perfectly planned process to envision you properly. The design of the process might vary from company to company and industry to industry. Still, we have identified and summarised five key steps that must be added to every process.
?Project Brief
The first step always comes forth, which is defining the intent and the scope of the project. This is where you mark what you want to develop, how much the scope of your budget is, what you are aiming to achieve, and the overall chronology. It is essential to get this brief done pre-planning and thinking of outsourcing to have a clear-cut idea for your project and conclude what type of outsourcing engagement suits your project.
Outsourcing Analysis
Now that you are backed up with your project brief, you can search for capable outsourcing companies with the best potential to take over your project successfully. For proper research, you must analyze appropriate companies with significant experience and industry expertise according to your project requirements. This is a thorough process that will have you shortlist outsourcing companies, thoroughly review their services and development structures, assessing their work ethic, quality, expertise, and reputation in the industry.
Initiate the project
You have selected a suitable outsourcing company that aligns with your project's needs and requirements, and it's high time to kickstart your project. Now, you must meet with the outsourcing company to discuss your business goals and strategize the path ahead. It's better to be engaged throughout the process with the partner team so that you can idealize what to expect to be the outcome.
Software Engineering
Once the plan is designed and devised, the outsourcing team should begin with the software engineering process solely. You probably know which engagement model suits your project; hence, various options can be extracted depending on your assigned model.
It entirely depends on your demands and expectations about which option you choose. You might prefer staff augmentation to fill the skill gaps in your team, outsource a section of the project that exceeds your team's expertise, or outsource the whole project to free up time and space for the company to focus on the overall business functioning and more crucial activities.
Wrapping up the project and beyond
The outsourcing team will adhere to the pre-planned schedule and deliver the project according to the timeline. Based on your reviews, this process typically requires multiple adjustments and changes. Software is often said to be ready towards the end of the project completion process, but the process still needs to be finished there. Depending on the nature of the project, the outsourcing company may check in to provide maintenance, frequent updates, and additional development.
The 3 Major Patterns of Software Outsourcing
Companies can choose from three major prevailing patterns of outsourcing, each with its benefits. The outsourcing pattern that best fits your projects will be based on your budget limit, the degree of complications associated with your project, the timespan, and the level of engagement throughout the project development.
The first and primary form of the outsourcing pattern is staff augmentation, which involves leveraging the expertise of outsourced professionals who partner with your internal team members to develop the software.
These augmented teams, with their wealth of experience, naturally communicate in person with the operational staff, and they usually work from your offices until the project's completion.
Next is the dedicated team, composed of outsourced experts who handle much of the responsibility for supervising the project. At 10Pearls, the delivery teams offer a proper management structure, allocating tasks appropriately and frequently monitoring workflow for seamless integration. This way, you will benefit from the most highly proficient developers who provide specific expert services.
Third on the list is the project-based pattern, which means the software development procedure is entirely under the supervision of the outsourcing team, from setting up work schedules to allocating specific functions and frequent quality assurance and testing.
Best Outsourcing Locations: Latin America
Once you have information about all the perks of software outsourcing and associated custom software solutions, you should know that outsourcing developers are spread across the globe, and sorting out the best-fit outsourcing developer can be complex. To simplify the process, you must look for the top-rated regions that provide software outsourcing and decide whether you want to go for nearshore or offshore outsourcing based on your demand criteria.
Numerous businesses today, especially those in the US and Canada, are moving forward with outsourcing their software development to Latin America. Latin America's increased incentives are distinct from those of other regions, including proper time management, an immense talent pool, reduced costs, close geographical proximity, and more.
With all being said, the best outsourcing locations in Latin America are defined below.
Argentina
Argentina is undoubtedly one of the few well-known countries for outsourcing software development. Some of the most skilled developers worldwide reside in Argentina, which provides everyone with their massive treasure of talent.
Colombia
Colombia is considered the most technology-driven country in Latin America. Medellin, one of the country's thriving cities, is known as "The Silicon Valley of Latin America" because it has various software development companies.
Brazil
One of the biggest countries in Latam, Brazil, is magnificent in many goods and services sectors, but it specializes in software development. Brazilian developers and designers' innovative and strategic expertise has led to sufficient growth in different businesses.
Mexico
Its enormous talent pool of fantastic software engineers and developers makes it distinct and among the top-notch outsourcing development countries in the world. Mexico can never go wrong with outsourcing development, and if you are located in the US, then Mexico is always the best option.
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How to carry out outsourcing of a software development project?
These steps contribute to effectively outsourcing software development to ensure a seamless workflow.
Assess your team's knowledge and expertise
Before outsourcing software development, you must know what expertise and skills are needed to carry out the development. Carefully assess your team's skills and knowledge and identify the skills they need to gain in their expertise. Once you know the required skills, start specifying the project and elaborating on its function and execution. You can then call the shortlisted outsourcing companies and decide who should be appointed as an outsourcing development partner.
10Pearls understands the importance of project specification and considers it in detail. Our seamless workflow originated from our effective design-thinking mindset, allowing every project to be delivered on time. Our five-step approach to software development is a secret for mastering quick execution without caring about quality and budget.
Double-check the quality of Outsourcing Companies
Before you decide to assign a company as your outsourcing partner, it is crucial to ensure that it meets the industry standard. Take the time to review their websites, case studies, and blogs. Checking their third-party review sites will provide a clearer picture of their market recognition.
You should also consider communicating with their clients who have had a partnering experience with them.
Execute the Project Management Process
Now that you have finally recruited your software outsourcing team, it's time to execute the project management tools to track progress. Many platforms, such as Basecamp, Trello, and Jira, specify tasks for developers according to their expertise. They also allow clients and developers to interact productively via messaging threads or calendars. Your partner outsourcing company should appoint an engineering manager and team leader to supervise and ensure all responsibilities are met and milestones are achieved.
Active communication is critical to successfully executing outsourcing software development. Communicating effectively can make progress meaningful and enable the project to be released promptly. Don't stress out if your search for an outsourcing company takes too long; remember that some outsourcing companies may find committing to a long-term partnership challenging. The effect of software outsourcing will make your business reach the top of the aisle, and the outcomes will make your research purposeful.
At 10Pearls, we serve expert software development teams with rare and high-quality tech talent. With our agile-induced approach and unmatchable expertise, we deliver quality to software enterprises of all types, from global enterprises to high-end organizations.
Myths associated with Outsourcing
Some outsourcing myths that need to be discredited:
Software Outsourcing is equal to Staff Augmentation
Even though most software development organizations offer IT Staffing as part of their services, these two are still distinct solutions. Put simply, IT Staff Augmentation transmits all the talent and expertise to your internal development team. Software Outsourcing eases off your workload to your third-party partner.
The only aim of Software Outsourcing is the reduction of costs
It is undeniably true that Software Outsourcing is cost-effective, but this is not the only characteristic that highlights its importance today. You will hear a lot that 'talent' is the most demanding tool in software development—and Outsourcing gives you access to some of the most highly skilled engineers across the globe.
Outsourcing is costly
This is the opposing end of the myth discussed previously, and it isn't true that Outsourcing is costly. Indeed, it saves all the extra costs associated with the whole recruitment process for in-house employees, which means you can be carefree regarding all the payment fuss for health insurance, office supplies, ongoing training, 401Ks, and everything else, as Outsourcing takes over this responsibility.
You can attain the exact perks from freelancers
Getting all the software development done by freelancers differs from a reputable outsourcing development company's services. Although freelancers' contributions can handle small-scale projects, companies that partner with reputable outsourcing companies for massive projects do it because Outsourcing offers a guaranteed talent pool of software engineers that work with you as a custom-built team that perfectly aligns with your project's requirements.
What Factors should you consider when Outsourcing Software Development?
Make the Right Partner Choice
Successful development will require the correct selection of a partner. You and your partner must be on the same page regarding all the deliverables, products being developed, deadlines, and so on. As discussed above, review the company's reputation carefully, involving their previous projects, talent pool, and appointment procedure.
Select the Outsourcing Pattern that suits your needs
As mentioned earlier, you need to decide between three crucial software outsourcing patterns. It is essential to briefly compare all the patterns and choose which suits your development purpose. Consider conducting an internal evaluation of your company's experience, strengths, and limitations. Software Outsourcing is tailored according to your project's demands, so in the end, the outcome will depend on your choices.
Establish clear expectations from the beginning
The goals and purpose of each project vary with its nature, but you must establish clear-cut expectations from day 1, as this has a significant impact on how your project grows. It's always a better idea to conduct a couple of extended assessments to identify the pace of the project and make any required changes before it's too late and too many resources and time are invested.
Prioritize Communication
Effective communication leads every software development project to craft its road to success, even when external development teams are handling the project. When all the texts and reviews get through, you can feel a sense of relief that your project will be successful. Hence, make sure to set standard communication passages for your project!
Emphasize on Scalability
It is generally said that the work associated with software development is never-ending, even after the product is launched in the market, and this is true. This is why the most reputable software outsourcing companies will design a maintenance plan to track your needs, ensuring that there is an innovative way to guarantee the scalability of your software even after the development process is completed.
Software Development Outsourcing Trends
Most software development companies fill their websites with blogs and trends expected for the current year at the end of each year and at the beginning of the following year. This practice is practiced in all areas of software engineering expertise, including software outsourcing development. Inevitably, in a field as influential as software outsourcing, the trends come and go frequently, even in a lapse of weeks.
Thus, it is not easy to predict which trend will take over the field next. Still, there are definite areas of software outsourcing that are always searching for new trends, especially those directed by a software outsourcing development company, which include:
?What IT Services Can Be Outsourced?
Outsourcing IT services is an entirely bespoke process. Why? Due to its complexity and scalability. It doesn't necessarily matter which tech solution the company chooses; each project will undoubtedly have its own set of demands that align with the company's purpose. As the project proceeds with maintenance, it will establish its high-end requirements.
Considering this, we can examine how different IT service types depend on the end-users' needs. At 10Pearls, we conduct outsourcing by hiring a dedicated and passionate team of skilled developers who evaluate, develop, implement, and provide client support. This further enables us to offer productive and fully custom-built solutions consistently and efficaciously.
Through our experience, we have figured out some of the most common IT Services, which are:
Custom Software Development
Developing custom software applications is the core expertise of all IT Outsourcing services. It is everywhere, whether it refers to personalizing a functioning platform, building unproblematic applications for small-scale enterprises, or constructing intricate solutions following the company's requirements; most businesses outsource software development to meet their expected criteria of creating an ideal high-technology solution.
QA Services & Software Testing
Quality Assurance and Software Testing either stand distinctively or as integrated services that result from an enhanced understanding of your business goals and applications. Outsourcing quality assurance gives your company a ground that helps you commit to high-quality industry standards, initiates productivity, and augments value in your software developmental cycle.
Cloud Computing
Today, in this digitally transformed landscape, it's essential to seamlessly integrate business operations using cloud computing services. By outsourcing cloud computing services, companies can naturally expand their business growth while easing off IT complexity, improving cost-effectiveness, and enhancing business agility.
Mobile & Web Development
Top-notch app and web development services produce highly professional websites, authentic user involvement, and meaningful brand experiences. Most potent companies understand the importance of having a gratifying digital presence, as it is not only necessary for an interactive relationship but also a great way to improve business processes and productivity.
IT Maintenance & Support
Keeping yourself updated with all the latest emerging policies, processes, and rules can be critical, especially in this increasingly globalized world. Partnering with proficient software developers and engineers smoothens the management process with accuracy, standardization, and feasibility.
Blockchain Consulting
Advancements in blockchain consulting have made it suitable for managing all business operations. Currently, blockchain's robust and certified network allows companies in each sector to optimize their business efficiency, unfolding new opportunities while guaranteeing the reliability of information via its inflexible set of registers.
Big Data & Analytics
Today, the data era has its strengths and limitations. It's always better to centrally focus on the strengths. Leveraging the unlimited resources of data available differentiates between successful and not-so-successful projects. The present and future of business operations are based on data-induced strategies.
IoT Solutions
The majority of companies today are increasingly using the Internet of Things to function their business effectively, attain a meaningful understanding of their clients' buying patterns, and add value to their business. Telemetrics, sensor networks, smart cities, industrial monitoring, and traffic analysis are all aspects of IoT innovation.
UX/UI Software Design
Every successful company should adopt a great User Experience Strategy backed by an established User Interface Design. Acquiring the best experience across all aspects allows the brand to attain competitive benefits, grow conversion, and reduce clients' fuss while enhancing encouragement and devotion.
MVP Development
MVP stands for Minimum Viable Product, which refers to the development model extracted from limited resources aiming to gratify the demands and needs of early consumers. Collaborating with a top-notch MVP Development team highly skilled in outsourcing software development will do wonders for your company as they will stick with you through the jumpy road to product development and transition your rough ideations to reality.