Scaling High Performing, Multinational Teams (feat. Andy Hilliard)

In this podcast episode, Krish Palaniappan interviews Andy Hilliard, CEO of Accelerance, about offshoring and building effective globally distributed teams. They discuss the importance of understanding cultural differences in offshoring, the challenges of offshoring for different types of positions, and navigating the risks of offshoring with defined vs undefined vision. Andy Hilliard discusses the challenges and trends in outsourcing software development to offshore service providers. He highlights the importance of having a strong product ownership role and the need for both clients and service providers to invest in developing product ownership capabilities. Andy also emphasizes the proliferation of overnight service providers and the importance of vetting and integrating offshore teams into the client's ecosystem. He discusses the challenges of understanding cultural differences and the need for clients to spend time overseas to build relationships and trust. Finally, he introduces his book, 'Synergia,' which provides a blueprint for building effective globally distributed teams in the new era of software development.

Topics

Multinational Team Building Challenges

Andy and Snowpal, discussed the complexities of building high-performing multinational teams, with a focus on cultural differences in communication and work approaches among engineers in different regions. Andy shared his personal experiences working with engineers in Latin America and the US, stressing the similarities in their work styles. They also highlighted the importance of clear expectations and responsibility in such collaborations. Towards the end, Andy was introduced as the CEO of Accelerance and author of the book "Synergia". The conversation emphasized the need for organizations to understand and adapt to the cultures of teams they collaborate with, especially for long-term projects. They also touched upon the challenges of remote work and the significance of cultural understanding in building successful teams.

Offshoring Software Development: Due Diligence and Advantages

Andy and Snowpal, discussed the potential of offshoring in software development and the importance of choosing the right offshore partner. They explored the idea of offshoring specific positions or tasks, and whether certain positions, such as engineering, might be better suited to offshoring due to lesser interaction requirements. Andy emphasized the need for due diligence in choosing an offshore partner based on their strengths and weaknesses. They also discussed the challenges and advantages of offshoring, with Snowpal posing scenarios where the company has a clear idea of what they want versus a situation where they need help to fill a void. Andy emphasized that each situation has its own strengths and weaknesses, and outsourcing can work for anything, but it's crucial to do due diligence and validate the service provider.

Servant Leadership in Service Provider Relationships

Andy and Snowpal discussed the importance of becoming a servant leader when working with service providers. Andy emphasized that this approach increases accountability and strategic value. Snowpal shared his experiences with different service providers, highlighting the differences between business and technical clients. Andy advised Snowpal on navigating these situations and discussed the challenges associated with working with offshore service providers, particularly in the area of product ownership. He noted the growing trend of clients needing to enhance their product ownership skills and observed a lack of practice and thought leadership among service providers.

Binary Ecosystem Challenges in Industry

Andy and Snowpal discussed the challenges posed by a transactional, binary ecosystem in their industry. Andy emphasized the dangers of companies with large numbers of engineers but lacking leadership positions, making it difficult for clients to engage. Andy also noted the influx of new service providers, many using AI to create a wide range of services. Snowpal agreed with Andy's points, highlighting the potential for confusion and misinformation. Andy stressed the importance of companies investing in vetting and integrating individuals into their systems, regardless of whether they work remotely or within the organization. Snowpal, however, argued that the problem was not so much the 3x growth in the last three years.

Cultural Differences in Staff Augmentation

Snowpal discussed the challenges of staff augmentation in software development, highlighting the importance of understanding cultural differences. He shared his experience as a product company and the difficulties of finding the right team to work with. Snowpal emphasized the importance of understanding the cultural background of the team and the company, including where they went to school. Andy responded by emphasizing the importance of building relationships and trust with offshore partners, suggesting that spending time on this leads to better technical results and efficiency. He also shared his Peace Corps experience and how these principles applied in a business context.

Cultural Differences in Workplace and Software Evolution

Snowpal, discussed with Andy about the importance of understanding cultural differences in the workplace, particularly in terms of asking questions in a meeting. Snowpal, shared an experience from a guest named Prasanna who had noticed this cultural difference in China. Andy then talked about his book focusing on the evolution of software and product development outsourcing, emphasizing the need for radical changes in approaching it, such as increasing cultural and team alignment, creating a holistic ecosystem, and redefining value flows. Andy warned that sticking to pre-pandemic methods could lead to disaster in the current world.

APIs, Podcasting, and Global Perspective

Snowpal introduced his company's recently launched APIs on AWS marketplace, highlighting the benefits of their subscription-based model and the ability to license and run them in their own infrastructure. Andy praised Snowpal's podcasting skills and suggested he consider full-time podcasting due to his natural conversational manner. Snowpal agreed to include Andy's LinkedIn and company website links in his podcast. The discussion also revolved around Andy's book, 'Synergia, a Blueprint for Building Effective, Globally Distributed Teams', with Snowpal expressing interest in further exploring the topics and inviting Andy to return for future conversations. The importance of a global perspective in software development and the value of learning from other cultures to avoid or reduce mistakes was also emphasized.

Takeaways

Understanding cultural differences is crucial in offshoring to ensure effective communication and collaboration.
Different types of positions may have different suitability for offshoring, and it is important to choose the right offshore partner based on their expertise and track record.
Offshoring with a clearly defined vision is more straightforward, while offshoring to fill a knowledge gap requires a partner with subject matter expertise.
To navigate the risks of offshoring, it is important to become a servant leader to the service provider and integrate them into your environment. Clients and service providers need to invest in developing strong product ownership capabilities.
Vetting and integrating offshore teams into the client's ecosystem is crucial for successful outsourcing.
Understanding cultural differences is essential for effective collaboration with offshore teams.
Building relationships and trust through spending time overseas can lead to better outcomes in outsourcing.
The book 'Synergia' provides insights and strategies for building effective globally distributed teams in software development.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Background

06:42 Understanding Cultural Differences in Offshoring

13:01 Offshoring for Different Types of Positions

22:15 Navigating the Risks of Offshoring

28:21 The Role of Product Ownership in Offshore Service Providers

30:13 Challenges of Outsourcing to Service Providers

32:43 The Proliferation of Overnight Service Providers

36:00 The Importance of Leadership Positions in Service Providers

38:22 Understanding Cultural Differences in Offshoring

41:04 The Importance of Trust and Commitment in Offshore Relationships

45:42 The Book: Synergia - A Blueprint for Building Effective Globally Distributed Teams

Summary

Andy's Experience with Cognizant:

Andy's background with Cognizant, starting in the mid-nineties.
Growth of Cognizant into a global software development service provider.
Andy's role in expanding Cognizant into the US market.

Establishment of Andy's Company in Costa Rica:

Andy's decision to start a software development company in Costa Rica.
Growth of the company to around three hundred software engineers.
Targeting small to mid-cap companies for near shore software development services.

Establishment of Accelerance:

Evolution of Andy's business model towards near shore software development.
Expansion of business networks across Latin America, Eastern Europe, and Asia.
Creation of a network of complementary software development firms.

Discussion on Offshoring and Distributed Teams:

Comparison of working with engineers in different regions (Latin America, Asia, Eastern Europe).
Challenges and considerations in offshoring software development projects.
Importance of understanding cultural differences and team dynamics in distributed teams.

Selecting Offshore Partners:

Factors influencing the selection of offshore partners.
Importance of vetting and understanding the capabilities of offshore service providers.
Differentiating between business clients and technical clients in offshore engagements.

Importance of Product Ownership and Leadership:

Increasing importance of product ownership in offshore engagements.
Challenges posed by the lack of practice leadership in many offshore service providers.
Impact of third-party providers offering practice and thought leadership in the offshore ecosystem.

Conclusion:

Discussion on the challenges and chaos in the offshore service provider landscape.
Emphasis on the need for due diligence and careful selection of offshore partners.