Introduction
Hiring developers offshore is a growing trend as more companies opt for offshore developers over in-house teams. Find out more in this article.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic and the digital transformation boom, hiring offshore developers has become a popular and preferred choice for many IT companies. The global offshore software development market is set to grow by 10% from 2022 to 2030. However, many IT company owners are often confused about whether to opt for in-house or offshore developers. If you are struggling with this concern, this article is for you.
Here, we will discuss in detail how effective is hiring offshore developers, exploring its benefits and ideal hiring circumstances.
Common Concerns with In-house Developers
Before we dive deep into hiring offshore developers, let’s first shed light on common concerns with in-house developers that have resulted in the rise of offshore developers. Some of those concerns are as follows:
1. Long Recruitment Process
Hiring in-house developers requires significant time in the whole recruitment process, from advertising and reviewing dozens of resumes to conducting interviews and finalizing the contract. This time-consuming approach is necessary to find the right talent that aligns with company needs. At the same time, this approach is also tedious and resource-hungry, especially for small businesses or startups that lack a dedicated human resource team.
2. Commitment Concern
Another concern with in-house developers is their long-term commitment. Developers often look for new opportunities and don’t hesitate to switch companies frequently. The average employee tenure in the IT sector is just around three years. Therefore, if an employer has to deal with employee turnover continuously, it can impact productivity, delay project timelines, and compromise the overall project quality.
3. Skill Gap
There is around 76% talent shortage in the technology industry, making it difficult for employers to find the right talent they are looking for. Even when they hire in-house IT professionals, they often lack expertise in all IT domains the employer desires. This means more time and resources are spent on training and upskilling the in-house team to bridge the skill gap.
4. Difficulty in Scaling the Team
When the business operations expand, and the workload and project requirements increase, scaling the in-house developers’ team is a big challenge. Finding and recruiting skilled developers quickly is challenging due to talent shortage. Besides that, scaling the team requires more infrastructure, office space, and equipment investment, resulting in additional costs.
5. Higher Labor Costs
The in-house developers’ team is associated with higher labor costs. A company with an in-house developers’ team must provide regular salaries and benefits such as sick/paid leaves, health insurance, office space, and other associated expenses. These financial obligations become challenging for small to mid-sized companies with limited capital.
Hiring Developers Offshore – The Solution
Offshore developers are software developers or development teams that provide software development services remotely, mainly from a different geographical region. Offshore developers can be individual freelancers or employees of an IT offshore agency.
Offshore developers are highly skilled professionals with expertise, experience, and up-to-date market knowledge of various technologies and frameworks. They may specialize in mobile app development, web development, data analytics, cybersecurity, cloud computing, or any other IT field. They can work as a one-time project-based resource or a continuous remote team member.
Benefits of Hiring Offshore Developers
There are numerous benefits to hiring offshore developers. Some of the key ones are as follows:
1. Lower Labor Costs
One of the significant benefits of hiring offshore developers is lower labor costs. They operate on project-based or contract arrangements, resulting in substantial cost savings. 27% of organizations outsource with the primary goal of reducing costs.
2. Bridging the Shortage of Skilled IT Workers
Software development is among the top professions in demand for the next 10 years, involving about 200k difficult-to-replace job openings every year. Moreover, the employment of software developers, testers, and analysts is likely to rise by 25% annually from 2021 to 2031. Therefore, it is difficult for small to mid-sized companies to grab top IT talent unless they pay outstanding salaries and an attractive work environment.
In contrast, offshore developers are an effective way to bridge the talent shortage gap. They provide startups and small to mid-sized companies access to highly skilled IT professionals willing to work remotely. Companies can easily find offshore developers with the right expertise or contact offshore agencies to supply the required developers. This way, they can access the top talent without the need to compete directly with larger companies.
3. Help Business Grow with Streamlined Scalability
Every business tends to expand its operations and services. Offshore developers are available on the go, which implies that companies can hire any number of developers at a time for the short or long term, depending on their needs. This makes it easy to scale the business and take on more projects hassle-free.
4. Agile Development
The productivity of in-house developers is associated with the onshore office’s working hours. So, if a company wants to accelerate development progress, it has to pay overtime or hire more developers. In contrast, offshore developers are globally available, implying that companies can hire offshore developers in different time zones. This allows them to extend the development coverage and ensure continuous project progress, resulting in agile development and faster time-to-market.
5. More Focus on Other Business Activities
With an in-house development team, the employer has to invest time and energy in managing and overseeing the development process and other necessary obligations. This divides the focus between development-related tasks and other business expansion initiatives.
Offshore developers offload the development tasks and free up time and resources, which can be redirected elsewhere. This way, companies can focus more on formulating business growth strategies, analyzing market trends, and becoming more competitive.
6. Access to the Latest Technologies and Tools
Companies cannot be aware of all the latest technologies and tools trending in the market. In-house developers also require resources and training to master these advancements. Besides that, the Gartner survey reflects talent shortage as the main barrier to adopting emerging technologies.
Instead of struggling with training programs for in-house developers or continuing with outdated IT tools, companies can find the right talent offshore. They can look for offshore developers skilled in the latest tech and use their services to deploy those tech advancements seamlessly. This way, companies that want to be up-to-date with the technology can easily find talent offshore.
When to Hire Offshore Developers
Since every company has different priorities and services, multiple scenarios can trigger the need to hire offshore developers. Some of the main ones include:
- Looking to lower the development cost
- Accelerate time to market
- Additional developers for a specific project
- Expertise in the latest technologies or tools
- Streamline operations and business growth
- Scaling the team or fluctuating demands
The rule of thumb is that hiring offshore developers becomes a viable solution whenever a company fails to set up an in-house developers’ team or fulfill the specific requirements and objectives.
Challenges and Best Practices
While offshore development offers numerous advantages, it also comes with its fair share of challenges:
1. Communication Barriers
Differences in time zones, languages, and cultural nuances can lead to communication challenges. Establish clear communication channels, use collaboration tools, and consider periodic face-to-face meetings to bridge these gaps.
2. Quality Control
Ensuring the quality of work from offshore developers is essential. Implement thorough testing and quality assurance processes and provide detailed project requirements and documentation.
3. Data Security
Protecting sensitive data is paramount. Implement robust security measures and contractual agreements to safeguard your intellectual property and confidential information.
4. Legal and Compliance Issues
Be aware of legal and compliance requirements when working with offshore developers, such as intellectual property rights and data protection regulations.
How to Hire Offshore Developers?
In today’s interconnected and digitized era, there are many ways to hire offshore developers. One popular method is to use professional platforms such as LinkedIn, Upwork, Fiverr, and similar others to search for specified skilled developers available for remote working.
However, the alternative and the recommended way to quickly find and hire offshore developers is through partnering with reputed offshore development agencies. Saroe, Inc. is one such ideal offshore development agency at your disposal.
With strong leadership in the IT industry, agile software development services, and a team of experienced and skilled developers, Saroe helps small to mid-sized companies fulfill their developers’ needs instantly and cost-effectively. The team uses advanced tools, technologies, and processes to help companies in any size or complexity of software development projects.
Companies like Saroe are a better choice than freelance developers, as they give one significant advantage, i.e., “accountability.” Freelance developers lack the structure and reliability that comes with a dedicated agency. Saroe ensures that your project is managed with utmost responsibility and commitment, giving you peace of mind throughout development. To sum up, Saroe Offshore Developers service is a one-stop place to get the top talent, access advanced technologies, and effectively fulfill your development needs.
