Thinking about Software Development Outsourcing? Check out common concerns and real risks, like different time zones and language barriers, to get to know how to evaluate your potential outsourcing partner and make the process transparent, cost-effective and efficient.
The popularity of web development outsourcing is ubiquitous today. The outsourcing business is booming and thriving because it provides direct access to top technology talent on an at-need basis at reasonable prices.
Leading companies, who want to maintain a competitive edge, cut costs on software development and focus on their strategic goals, are turning to web development outsourcing. That’s because it’s a reasonable and affordable way to build your website or web application, without the need to invest resources hiring and retaining an in-house team of web developers.
In order to outsource web development successfully and smoothly, your company needs to be aware of the common pitfalls and know how to avoid them.
COMMON CONCERNS AND REAL RISKS OF OUTSOURCING WEB DEVELOPMENT
Hidden costs
It’s possible for hidden costs to add up to 60% onto the initial price of outsourcing services! Unforeseen expenditures may be incurred by a variety of factors commonly overlooked when project requirements are being determined.
Some hidden costs that could easily remain unaccounted for:
Travel costs (it’s likely that you will want to visit your service provider and invite them to your office at least several times).
Operations and infrastructure realignment (new virtual environments, change to internal processes, security, and authentication, etc.).
The transition of knowledge (training and explaining your processes to an overseas team).
Taxes (double-check the tax lines in the outsourcing contract, because you may not be responsible for paying some of the local taxes).
Management of the remote team (managing an overseas provider may add up to 10% to the final price).
Before concluding the contract, always question your potential partner about the possible hidden costs. You should obtain a very coherent picture of how much you will have to pay and for what exactly.
Language barrier
It’s no secret that effective communication is the key to successful collaboration. First and foremost, make sure the employees of your outsource web development company speak enough English to follow your requirements. They don’t have to be fluent, but if there is a communication barrier, it will be extremely hard to get the work done correctly.
Such a barrier would come from four sources: pronunciation, syntax, vocabulary, and accent. In addition, non-native speakers may tend to use the sentence structures of their native language.
To help reduce the impact of these issues, there are a few things you can do from your end to help reduce and overcome the language barrier:
Use common words. Try avoiding complex turns of phrase, specialized vocabulary, and professional jargon.
Avoid slang, idioms, and metaphors. Even if the level of English of the other person is reasonably high, they may misinterpret some notions and jokes.
During calls speak at a steady pace, and make short pauses between sentences so the other person has time to process what you are saying.
Different time zones
You may feel uncomfortable if your remote team is sleeping while you are operating at full capacity. This can be particularly inconvenient if your project requires active cooperation and constant direct communication.
The practical solution to this problem lies in the maximum utilization of “golden” overlapping hours, when both your in-house and remote teams are up and working. Even if you have only several hours a day of overlap, they may be enough to schedule meetings, review work done, and discuss further plans.
Data security
Sensitive data about your company that you transfer to your outsourcing partner could potentially be used by someone to manipulate or sabotage your business. One of your first priorities when assessing a potential partner is to find out about their approach to protecting your data. If something seems wrong with the company’s attitude to security, it probably is.
Carefully discuss the security methods of your web development outsourcing partner, and keep them accountable for sensitive data protection. Question them about any past security problems and how they dealt with them. Be sure to sign a data processing agreement with your vendor.
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