Business owners of companies of all sizes are always looking for better ways to accomplish their goals while improving productivity and lowering costs. Thankfully, technology has allowed companies to work with teams and hired individuals from all over the globe and allow professionals to perform their job duties whenever, wherever.
This can be especially beneficial when it comes to website and software development projects for businesses that may not have the resources, time, or budget to build a team in-house. Working with an offshore software development company, such as BairesDev, can relieve the stress of trying to hire developers to work in the office while making the software development process a much more streamlined, cost-effective, and expedited process.
What is Offshore Software Development?
Offshore software development is the process of outsourcing projects or tasks to a third-party development company or individual developers. The development company is typically based in a foreign country, thus the term “offshore.” The services provided by an offshoring company may include mobile application development, enterprise software projects, website development, maintenance and security, and so on.
Additionally, there are different versions of offshore development depending on the proximity of the third-party company. Nearshore outsourcing is very close to offshoring but the software development company is in the same timezone as the organization hiring them (or sometimes in the neighboring country). Onshore software development outsourcing is a term used when partnering companies are located within the same country.
The Benefits of Software Development Offshoring
As the constant demand for IT professionals and IT industry resources continues to grow at an exponential rate, partnering with a third-party offshoring company can offer organizations of all kinds a wide variety of benefits during a development project, including:
- Reduced Costs – When an organization is looking for a way to complete a development project, the virtual team members of an offshore software development company can help keep costs low while offering high-quality services. Compared to hiring in-house employees, offshoring teams reduce overall costs by not needing equipment, office facilities, insurance, and so on. Due to the cost of living, offshoring companies may charge a lower hourly rate than an in-house or onshoring team would. This gives organizations access to the same skillsets and quality levels as their own in-house team for a reduced cost.
- Innovative and High-Quality Skills – According to Saigon Technology, Offshore software development companies provide businesses with highly qualified professionals in a wide array of technological skillsets. Depending on the project requirements, these companies give businesses access to a wide variety of skills, technology niches, and knowledge of the newest and most effective technologies. To build this same level of know-how and quality with an in-house or even onshoring team would be an incredibly expensive and time-consuming process.
- Scalability – A business may require a full team of expert developers, testers, and designers to accomplish a project one month, and then only a few team members the following month if there is a business lull. Software development offshoring gives companies the flexibility to scale on-demand depending on their needs at any given moment.
- Timing – Working with an offshoring team in a different country and time zone can sound a bit daunting at first but it is actually rather beneficial for companies. While it is always desirable to have a few hours of overlapping time with the offshoring company to be able to quickly resolve urgent issues, the offshoring company’s time zone allows tasks to get done outside of working hours that may have otherwise been put off until the following business day. When an in-house team is collaborating with an offshore team, a 24-hour software development cycle can also shorten the overall development process. For example, if a project needs midnight updates or implementations in the business’s time zone, the offshoring company can easily take care of it during their normal working hours thus alleviating extra work for in-house team members.
- Focus on Business – If software development is not the “bread and butter” of a company, it can be an enormous project to undertake for in-house development teams (and cost for the business as a whole). By finding the right offshoring partner, companies can focus on their core operations and needs rather than scrambling to figure out a way to get a software project completed with the team members at-hand or the hiring of extra experts. Offshore software companies give organizations the bandwidth required to take care of their software needs while focusing on daily tasks.
- Risk Mitigation – Risk management in the software development process is typically an underestimated aspect by most companies outside of the world of information technology. When choosing to outsource parts of a project or the entirety of a company’s IT needs, the parties agree on what needs to get accomplished as well as how the impact and risk management is shared between the two. This helps relieve the risk assumed by the hiring company.
Choosing an Outsourcing Provider
An offshore software development company can reduce costs, shorten timelines, offer an array of skillsets and knowledge, and many other benefits when organizations take the time to find the right company to fit their needs. Every organization should do proper background research, read reviews and ratings, and thoroughly interview the company to make the best strategic decision possible to set every party involved up for success.
With the increase in demand for software development all over the world and an ongoing shortage of available skilled professionals, many companies partner with offshore outsourcing providers to successfully accomplish their software development goals.
Nina Smith 
Nicola Holder