So, you decide to hire an offshore developer for your project. But how to protect yourself from making the wrong choice? Sure, when you hire an ODC for the first time, there are the issues that require your undivided attention and careful consideration. Choosing a vendor is a delicate process, so today, we will guide you along that road to circumvent wrong decisions and unreliable ODC vendors.
Hold on tight, we are starting!
Pieces of Advice on Choosing an Offshore Development Vendor
Decide on the Cooperation Model that Suits you
Your choice of the cooperation model defines the entire workflow of your project. So, choose the one wisely.
Fixed-price Outsourcing
Under this model, a client and an offshore developer agree on a certain sum to pay and schedule work delivery. The price for the work is fixed, which makes the model most suitable for predictable projects. Thus, if an Offshore Development Center postpones the delivery, that won’t affect the total, pre-agreed cost of work; no extra payments for additional working hours are provisioned unless they are initially agreed on, and the client included them in the price.
Source: Cleveroad
Hourly Outsourcing
The client pays de facto for the time the ODC team spent on the project, which gives both parties the necessary flexibility during work. The client can change requirements in the process, this way, influencing the final sum, yet one can’t initially forecast the number of hours required to develop and deliver the project.
Dedicated Team
The work with a dedicated offshore development team means that the client doesn’t participate in the staffing process. Instead, the ODC itself composes a team, selecting developers from the “bench,” an existing pool of temporary labor that needs to get the client’s approval.
Also, the client doesn’t communicate with the development team directly (indeed, the model is more “lenient” and flexible compared to the full control and synchronization in outsourcing). For that purpose, a designated ODC project manager handles all communication with the client.
Source: Lvivity
Focus on the Issues that Matter
Development Mindset
Does your senior management understand what objectives the ODC team seeks? Are you on the same page with ODC regarding your business goals and strategic roadmap? Finally and most importantly, do you have the project development agenda? Answering the last question, you should have a clear vision of where your business goes to communicate it to the vendor.
Hiring Process
Make sure your onboarding is built up in a way that would allow you to manage the operation of the ODC team effectively. Next, to business continuity. Does the ODC have preventive measures necessary to ensure uninterrupted operation? Any safeguards provisioned for cases like staff transition? What about the programs for staff motivation? Also, if you don’t want to “dig deep” into the recruiting process, then consider the criteria by which candidates are selected or develop your own.
Flexibility
Before entering into an agreement with the vendor, you should know your limits. Can you select a project manager of your project yourself, or is it a sole vendor’s responsibility? The same goes for the rest of the development team; can you change its members or assign the new ones on the fly or only after the project is done and the new one is upcoming? And if team enhancements are allowed, is the ODC ready for that? Indeed, can its workspace be adjusted to the increasing size of the team?
By the way, does your ODC partner allow co-branding if you decide to consider that option?
Communication and Feedback
When starting the operation, you should have a well-defined working process — at first, on paper. Don’t forget anything; even obvious tidbits, like the required command of English for developers or preferred communication tools, matter, not to mention the frequency of stand-ups and other regular calls and meetings.
Security and Quality Assurance
Finally, there are security measures that the ODC puts in place. If there aren’t any, then it’s not your vendor, not the one you should work with.
Specifically, how does the ODC protect critical data? What about server protection by IP (cybersecurity threats become more perceivable in the digital business)? How are the ODC premises themselves guarded? Are there surveillance cameras? Also, validate your vendor on the subject of security audits: how regularly those are performed, and does the vendor’s infrastructure comply with CMMI Level 5 and ISO 27001?
Afterword
ODC is your first companion when you decide to contract out the development of your project. To establish a sustainable process beneficial for both parties, you need to build friendly relations with the vendor right from the start. In this way, your collective work will last long, and the efficiency of operation will be utmost, with regular check-ins and on-the-fly process improvements.
Moreover, offshore development is a venture that delivers you a good value for money. Sales targets or operational goals, the right ODC vendor will ensure you have the quality process and top-notch project.
Contact Aetsoft, and we will help you overcome any hurdles standing in the way by providing you with the ready-to-operate Offshore Development Center.
