The toughest part of outsourcing is choosing the right vendor to work on your project, regardless of the model you’re utilizing. Nearshore outsourcing might pair you up with the right people, but you still have to look for different parameters to help you determine if you’re making the right choice.
Today, we’re making a list of the top 10 tips you should remember the next time you choose a nearshore partner. If you’ve never done it before, let’s start by explaining why you should partner with a nearshore development agency.
Why You Should Partner With A Nearshore Development Agency
Nearshore outsourcing partners are a great choice when planning to reduce general overhead and save on general logistics. A great nearshore agency can offer you the services you want without additional spending or paying any hidden charges.
10 Tips For Choosing Nearshore Partners the Right Way
1. Identify Your Primary Technical Needs
Different organizations have different technical needs based on their project plans. Determine all your primary technical needs and set them to the highest priority. Then, focus on the technical expertise and tech stack that can positively impact your project and find a vendor who can provide said expertise.
2. Check The Experience of The Vendor
The experience level of the vendor can play a big part in the quality of the final deliverables. Vendors with higher experience can solve different issues as quickly as possible. To ensure your product development isn’t halted, you should review the experience of all your potential vendors.
This expertise usually includes:
- Number of projects completed
- Specialization of different tech stack
- Types of clients
- Project management experience
3. Mind The Time Zone Differences
Time zone differences often result in slower feedback and information exchange since not every team member will be online simultaneously. Though nearshore outsourcing is chosen more often to deal with the issue, it still can happen.
To ensure the time difference doesn’t impact the development, you should create overlapping time schedules that are fair for all employees so all team members can have a certain time for sharing information.
4. Note If The IT Staff Will Be Working On Other Projects
Outsourcing vendors take on multiple projects and clients simultaneously, so they must distribute their time between several projects. Check how much time they will be delegating to your project. The more time they assign to your project, the better the results will be. It’s best to partner with vendors dedicated to one project at a time.
5. Check Efficiency For English
English is the standard language of communication around the world, and efficiency in English is a must if you want to ensure proper communication for your project. Discussion and exchange of information is important to convey the exact requirements and specifications; whenever choosing a vendor, always check for their English efficiency or choose from a location where English is the official language.
6. Check If There Are Any Hidden Costs
Different vendors always come with different pricing, depending on the project’s complexity or other requirements. However, most vendors are not completely transparent about their work and include hidden charges within the pricing, which can hike up the final bill.
When discussing partnership and pricing, always discuss in detail to determine if the vendor is charging any kind of hidden fees before agreeing to their pricing model.
7. Compare The Work Environment And Culture For Both You And The Vendor
Long-distance teams are always bound to have cultural barrier issues. Some of these issues include:
- Cultural misunderstanding
- Different time perceptions
- Misreading body languages
- Differences in specific habits
- Difference in national holidays
- Unique conventions of conducting business
- Mentality peculiarities
These issues can hamper the seamless nature of the development. Ensure the creation of a comforting culture where both teams can thrive.
8. Ensure Your Partner Lives And Breathes Agile Methodology
Agile methodology is the best way to stay relevant in today’s highly competitive market. Agile practices can provide the best results and a high-quality end product. Modern outsourcing vendors work with agile developers, and you should always choose a partner who is a master of agile and will lead the entire development with practices.
9. Ensure You Will Have A Cross-Functional Team Working With You
If you want a fresh perspective, you must recruit members from different walks of life. Companies with diverse teams are 70% more likely to capture new markets. When you’re planning to nearshore your business operations, partner with a vendor who has a diverse team and offers unique ideas.
10. Ensure The Vendor Promotes A Continuous Learning Culture
The world of software development is constantly shifting, and outsourcing vendors must stay up-to-date with the different tech stacks to deliver an updated product for their clients. When choosing an outsourcing vendor, you should always partner with one who promotes a continuous learning culture within their organization.
To Wrap It Up
Choosing an outsourcing vendor isn’t something you can rush. Choosing the right agency can make or break your brand reputation and planned project.
Want to ensure you’re partnering with the right professionals? Impala Intech is here to help with our specialized team of experts who can take on any scale project.
FAQ
It varies depending on the project, but engagements can range from a few months to several years.
Visiting their facilities can help build trust and a stronger working relationship.
SLAs should specify project timelines, deliverables, quality standards, and dispute resolution processes.
Request financial statements, conduct due diligence, and check for long-term client relationships.
Eastern European partners often provide a highly skilled workforce and a competitive cost advantage.
