How to work with an offshore team of developers
Are you in IT with a start-up and you need to quickly ramp the project up in the calendar?
Is the project going slower than anticipated and you need to find a specific skillset quickly?
Are you still missing that one key skillset on your team?
One of the solutions to situations like these is to partner with a company that has a team of off-shore or near-shore developers that can quickly step in and help move a project along.
But, there are challenges with this as well, how do you know the work is getting done? Are they designing code that will fit into the framework that you built?
There are ways to ensure that the project goes smoothly and the outcome is the one that is forecasted. Some of the items to think about:
- Working with an off-shore team usually means a shifting of work hours due to the time zones involved. This is an important item to keep in mind the offshore team will need to feel as if they are part of THE TEAM, not just an add-on.
- Overcommunicate your goals so they know the outcome desired. Consistent and clear communication is key to a successful project, and not for just offshore team members.
- Ensure that they understand the total scope of the project, what the final product does and how its supposed to be used by the end-user.
- Don’t micromanage their tasks but be sure they have plenty to do with priorities set for the list of tasks.
Working with an extended team has a lot of advantages ie: cost savings in headcount, time to market, and the ability to be flexible to changes that are required.
Unique System Skills is a company with over 12 years of experience working with off-shore teams and we would be happy to discuss how we can help you get your idea off the ground or to a rapid conclusion.