After reading this post, you’ll have a better understanding on how to minimize offshore software development costs.
Establishing a tech enterprise involves several challenges, mainly because of the evolving software technology, rising costs, and tough competition. Hence, it is unsurprising that several corporations and startups are considering offshoring their software development requirements to meet their goals.
In a Deloitte Global Outsourcing 2020 Survey, 70% of participants claimed cost reduction as the main reason for outsourcing. Moreover, the revenue in the IT outsourcing segment is expected to reach $395bn in 2022 worldwide.
These stats indicate an increasing demand to hire offshore developers as tech companies try to lower costs while reaping as much benefit as possible from this collaboration. But while outsourcing offers a lower cost advantage, it’s also important to understand that these savings could cost organizations millions if not managed correctly.
In this post, we will discuss what offshore software development means and a few vital tips to help enterprises minimize offshore software development costs.
What Does Offshore Software Development Mean?
Offshore development implies handing over your software product development project to an external vendor in another country. The word ‘offshore’ explains that there’s a considerable distance, and, therefore, time-zone and location difference between the offshore developer and the client.
Most tech startups gain several benefits when they avail offshore software development outsourcing. That includes cost reduction and reduced marketing time.
The offshore development service is not just limited to creating a software product from scratch. The developers might also offer specific services like UI/UX design, backend processing, cloud computing, etc.
How Can You Reduce Offshore Software Development Costs?
If you’re looking for minimizing the offshore software development costs, there are a few ways you can rely on without compromising on the quality.
01. Select the right offshore service provider:
Several factors go into choosing a good offshore partner, such as work experience, communication infrastructure, client base, variance in time, location, etc. It is significant to hire offshore developers who work per the latest industry standards as that demonstrates their dedication to quality compliance.
Be sure to do your research and analyze every offshore software developer on your list carefully based on these aspects before hiring one.
02. Make a project development road map:
If your objective for outsourcing isn’t clear, it will be challenging to manage and execute an offshore software project. A project road map helps ensure that the project heads in the correct direction.
Documenting and testing the software project development methodologies and functionality helps the offshore service-providing professionals or developers know what exactly you expect from them and saves time by avoiding unnecessary meetings.
I’ve been using Cloudways since January 2016 for this blog. I happily recommend Cloudways to my readers because I am a proud customer.
Hence, ascertain that you brainstorm with the offshore developer to learn about any complexities of your software requirement. Provide as much detail as possible about the software scope you have in mind.
03. Review unrealistic and impractical project specifications:
Though you might have listed the resources you want and need for your software project, the list might likely include a few cumbersome items, which could add to the project development cost.
With their advanced skills and expertise, offshore developers can help identify and review unrealistic and impractical resources and technologies irrelevant to your business goals. Their identification of precise objectives, requirements, and errors sets the software development progress in the correct direction.
04. Save on training costs:
Every tech enterprise struggles to stay updated with the latest technological advancements while creating competitive and compelling software. Resultantly, they spend too much on getting the resources required to train their staff.
Purchasing costly automated tools to develop the software increases the staff training costs. However, when you hire offshore developers for software development, it eliminates the staff training element altogether. The offshore partner’s training sessions or videos are reusable, which helps you save on the additional cost and efforts.
05. Maintain effective communication:
To successfully execute a complex software project, it’s important to maintain effective communication at the strategic, project, and operational levels to ensure that the development process runs smoothly without affecting the business quality standards and objectives.
Enterprises that work in sync with their offshore developer and communicate effectively benefit more as that helps fill the space between software requirements and its actual performance. Effective communication helps you to scrutinize how the offshore partner is advancing with the project and give feedback accordingly.
06. Segregate software development operations:
Offshore software developers can lower costs by segregating the development operations. This practice helps in effective monitoring and reusing existing software templates more efficiently. It also helps to plan and identify goals during the project management process.
07. Monitor the development progress:
Project planning with your offshore partner is important for monitoring the progress of the software development and correcting any backlogs. Tracking the development progress regularly via status meetings can help identify and eliminate any barrier impeding the development process, which can easily lead to additional costs for the project later.
You can also seek the help of certain applications that have been created to manage such projects efficiently.
08. Keep quality assurance (QA) from the start:
Making a grant chart for monitoring quality based upon factors such as team velocity, time, burndowns, etc., can greatly enhance the project quality through proper evaluation of the ’cause and effect’ variations. You can even plan the grant chart with the offshore partner in advance to prevent future quality backlogs and software failure.
When quality assurance is in place, there will be optimized results that trigger customer satisfaction and enhance your brand’s reputation.
Final Words:
The difference in developmental charges and geography are the major reasons why several enterprises plan to hire offshore dedicated developer over their in-house programmer. Besides, the time spent on implementing new technologies and training in-house developers is lowered by recruiting and leveraging the expertise of offshore developers.
The enterprise might incur heavy costs when only the in-house developers are involved in the software development process. Segregating in-house and offshore developers’ development procedures is the best and most optimized approach for flexible operations and business productivity.
Offshoring your software development project does not have to be a complex procedure. When done correctly, it can be extremely beneficial for your employee morale and business goals. However, keep in mind that offshoring is mainly done to lower costs. So, if you discover yourself spending more money than needed, you may have to reevaluate the whole pipeline.
