Best IT Outsourcing Strategies in Western Europe
Have you ever wondered what Western Europe’s best IT outsourcing strategies are? Undoubtedly, Western Europe is one of the most engaging regions in the world when it comes to launching a business.
As you work towards your goals, you may encounter challenges in accessing the tech talent you need. One solution to consider is outsourcing and collaborating with experts outside of your organization. This can provide access to specialized knowledge and skills that can help you overcome obstacles and achieve your objectives.
We have selected the best outsourcing strategies to help you establish long-term partnerships and deliver high-quality products to your customers.
Why IT Outsourcing?
If you want to ramp up your business fast, having the right people behind your back is essential. If you have too many projects to realize but need more in-house tech talent, modifying your software development strategy might be a good idea.
For instance, outsourcing can make your organization more flexible, add more expertise, and give you a fresh outside perspective.
Thus, before starting a new complex project, you must decide whether to outsource it. Once you decide, you are ready to proceed to the next step. The following explains four strategies (success factors) when selecting your software outsourcing partner.
Managing Long-Distance Outsourcing Relationships
In today’s world, you do not have to be in the same place as your outsourcing agency. However, collaborating with outsourcing agencies on the other side of the world could be challenging to manage if your company is located in Western or Northern Europe.
If you are aiming for a trustful long-term collaboration, visit your outsourcing agency from time to time. Also, sometimes they might come to see you and get a hands-on impression of your team and the business you are running.
Therefore, it’s important to have a direct flight between you and your outsourcing agency once in a while. Alternatively, a one-stop flight with a total travel time of fewer than five hours may be good enough.
Choosing this option reduces travel time and increases flexibility, making it easy to hop on a plane quickly.
Being in the Same Time Zone
Having your entire project team within the same time zone is the best thing you can do for your business. It eliminates all obstacles to communication and promotes unity among your team, resulting in exceptional outcomes.
Another significant advantage of working within the same time zone is scheduling online meetings during regular business hours. This way, you can gather all team members in one online session and have a productive discussion.
Communication is key to creating successful software projects. Many outsourcing companies have adopted Agile principles allowing their team members to communicate efficiently and complete complex software projects quickly.
If your company still needs to adopt core Agile principles, this can be the perfect opportunity to improve your company’s processes by learning and applying these from your vendor.
Right Tech Stack and Expertise
Choosing the appropriate technology stack for software development is vital to the project’s success. It’s important to select a partner with expertise in the chosen stack who can provide valuable guidance in aligning the technology with your software vision. If the stack has yet to be chosen, finding a partner who can provide expert consultation and help make the best decision for your software is crucial.
In any case, before starting a collaboration with an external vendor, pay attention to the following questions:
- Do they understand your tech stack?
- Can they add value by consulting you beyond the daily tasks?
- Do they have a proven track record of successfully implementing projects?
What are the elements of a good tech stack? Whether you are building a frontend or backend application, you will need various software technologies. The natural choice, however, strongly depends on your plans and the software you plan to build.
Considering all the above, agencies with diverse expertise and yet deep knowledge of specific technologies are in high demand on the market. It is up to you to find the one with the expertise you do not have.
Building a Trustful Relationship
To build a trustful relationship with your business partner, you must pay attention to communication. Besides significant factors in software development, like professionalism and tech skills, communication is essential.
Many people underestimate the power of good communication. Poor communication can make your software development project fail regardless of the powerful tech skills your team may be equipped with.
But what is good communication? How to select a vendor that communicates well? Before making a final decision, pay attention to the following segments:
- What are your first impressions after meeting them for the first time? Are there any doubts?
- How did they react to your questions and concerns?
- Are they afraid to ask challenging questions?
Keep in mind that to make the collaboration successful, you need to have a trustful relationship with the team of your outsourcing partner. You can only achieve this through excellent communication.
Conclusion
The most considerable benefit of IT outsourcing is taking advantage of different markets and helping your business grow.
With an external partner, you get a fresh outside perspective and the opportunity to ensure the highest possible outcome of collaboration. Sometimes, you will want to jump on a plane and visit your outsourcing partner or ask them to visit you to lift your cooperation to the next level.
Having both teams within the same time zone brings many benefits in having meetings with the entire team during business hours.
People with the right tech skills will help you get your business on the right track. However, poor communication skills have the power to ruin it all. If you want superb software products, choose an outsourcing company that pays much attention to communication. Communication between your team and the vendor’s team should be honest, constructive, and respectful.