IT Staff Augmentation: What Makes a Good Nearshore Software Development Partner?
There’s no need to point out all the benefits of an outsourcing partnership to help with an IT augmentation staff process. The right nearshore software outsourcing company can help free up your time and allow you to focus on the core pillars of your business. The emphasis is on the word “right,” because there are hundreds of potential vendors, but not all will suit your specific needs and goals.
Luckily, with a little bit of research, you can minimize the chance of any miscalculation and find the best nearshore outsourcing firm for your business. But first, let’s talk about the concept of Nearshore software development.
What Does Nearshore Software Development Mean?
As the word suggests, nearshore software development means outsourcing certain projects or tasks to a tech company in the same region or country. The term refers to whenever you assign a portion of your workload to a third-party team that operates in the same time zone as you.
Tech companies choose nearshore outsourcing for many different reasons. A key one of them is saving money. A nearshore company usually charges much less than an in-house software engineering team. Another reason is compliance, because some countries, particularly in Latin America, have favorable policies, such as tax regulations. Those allow software development companies to offer premium quality at an affordable price point.
Now that we know a little bit about nearshore software development and its benefits, let’s see how tech companies can find the right partner.
Tailored Expertise
You can get the experts you need from a reputable nearshore software business to cover your weaknesses and boost your current team. You may not have the assets or resources needed to do all the activities with your internal staff, and here’s how outsourcing companies can help.
Your nearshore outsourcing vendor must carefully study your business model and existing skills to see where you need more help. You should only pay for the skills and tools you need, so why spend money on hiring and training full-time employees who may only be valuable in certain phases of your operation?
Excellent Track Record
It’s great to find the right skill set, but there’s no better way to measure a company’s quality than to look at its track record with previous clients. Make sure to look for online reviews and testimonials, or even get in touch with some of those clients.
Negative reviews and comments are inevitable, but they may give you a deeper look into the nearshore vendor’s operation and help you discover possible red flags such as tax evasion, a lack of transparency, a lack of structure, poor customer support, and a lack of commitment.
Extensive Risk Coverage
Learn about the company’s business continuity and disaster recovery plan. A nearshore partner may have unique external risks (such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and political instability) depending on where they are located. If, in any case, they can’t offer any services, it is crucial to understand what happens to your projects.
Data security is another vital factor to consider. When hiring a third-party vendor, make sure they comply with regulations like HIPAA and GDPR to protect sensitive client information.
Effortless Communication
The execution of all kinds of IT tasks, particularly software development, depends on effective communication because there’s a lot of back and forth in every phase where you review the latest changes and share your feedback to correct the course before it’s too late.
Your ideal partner can introduce you to professionals who are equipped with the tools for effective communication. Applications for managing tasks, video chat, and other things are among these tools. You and your nearshore partner will always be on the same page if you have the necessary tools in your toolbox to enable optimal communication.
Consistent communication is key to evaluating progress and making sure you’re not in the dark about your partner’s operation. Any possible wrongdoing on their part may put you at liability too.
Scalability
Last but not least, it’s worth mentioning that many tech companies start working with a nearshore outsourcing firm and gain great benefits in the early stages. But, as their business expands, they may realize that they need more resources or expertise beyond what their current outsourcing partner is able to provide.
As the company grows, you naturally need to cover a lot of ground, so you need access to a larger pool of expertise for IT staff augmentation. You also need enough resources to improve your scalability and the right infrastructure that can integrate seamlessly into your current technology stack.
Bottom Line: You Need An IT Staff Augmentation strategy
With the growing competition in the tech market, you need an extra team of experts that can help you sustain growth, free up your time, and allow you to focus on the core pillars of your business.
A nearshore software development company can be the answer to your problems, but only if you can find one that checks off all the above boxes, saving you money and a lot of headaches down the road.
Nearsure holds over 15 years of experience and more than 20.000 software developers all across Latin America. As such, we’re ready to take some load off your shoulders. Better yet, we’re only a phone call away.
