In the age of globalization and rapid technological progress, offshore software development companies are becoming increasingly popular. Many companies now move offshore to take their business to the next level. Many well-known companies, such as Samsung, Cisco, etc., have transferred over 210,000 software development projects to other countries. This solution will optimize the processes of creating different products, saving time and money.
In addition, working with foreign labor can be accompanied by various problems, but the right structure and effective practices will easily solve any difficulties. Offshore companies often need help with the following problems: delayed delivery, different time zones, confidentiality and security, and others. Misunderstandings can significantly worsen the quality of work, so here are the best practices for managing an offshore software development company.
Communication Strategies
Offshoring development can sometimes be tricky when it comes to organizing activities. In particular, it concerns the communication of employees. Building optimal communication with each team member in different parts of the world can be challenging, particularly due to language and cultural barriers. In addition, understanding how to solve the problem presented makes it much easier to establish communication.
Establishing effective communication can be accomplished through the following:
Regular meetings;
The use of project management tools;
Establishing communication protocols.
When employees work in one office, it is much easier to communicate with them about the progress of the project and resolve other issues. But in the case of offshore software development companies, you must rely on different communication methods. Often teams use modern technology to ensure constant and effective daily communication. Most often, developers use Skype, Zoom, and others.
Establishing communication will allow them to stay informed, solve various problems as they arise, and make timely adjustments to processes and tasks. In addition, constant communication allows each team member to understand how important he is to the company and how much he depends on him. A qualified offshore programming company implements a variety of effective ways to manage offshore teams. In this situation, meetings can be held regularly every day, communicating with employees via e-mail and work chats so that the team gets to know each other better and build up communication. In addition, it is possible to organize special online events for team building to raise employees' spirits and unite the staff. They don't just allow for networking but also encourage creativity.
Project Management
Offshore developers can work on various projects: human annotation, and many others. For the team to achieve an impressive result, it is worth using effective project management practices. It is the manager who must competently define the job duties of each remote offshore developer. A specialist who will oversee the project will ensure that every team member works effectively. Best practices for project management:
Setting clear goals;
Establishing timelines and milestones;
Having a well-defined project scope.
Approving workflow sequences and timelines allows you to set clear expectations. You should also ensure that each employee clearly understands their role and what other team members should do. It will be much easier for the development team to communicate if a common group calendar outlines daily tasks for each employee. Also, developing schedules is just as important as keeping team members informed. Employees should certainly know the scale of the project, plan their working days and know their area of responsibility. It will allow the most efficient execution of tasks, speeding up the project.
At the same time, it is necessary to control each employee and set realizable goals for them. If you consider this question in practice, you can arrange a virtual meeting with the development team at the beginning of each working week. You can also introduce daily reports.
Cultural Differences
Before you wonder where to hire a product marketing manager, a developer, a project manager and other professionals for your team, you should first become aware that the offshore company will employ a very diverse group of people. The internal team must realize that they must work in a fairly multicultural environment. People from different countries have their views on professional communication and methods of work. That is why it is necessary to ensure the offshore company understands cultural differences. Efficient and smooth communication can be disrupted by various factors: language, dialect, and accents of the non-English speaking development team. Having at least one common language among all employees will help to overcome the communication gap and language barrier.
The following are effective strategies for dealing with cultural differences:
Being respectful and sensitive to cultural nuances;
Providing cultural training;
Building a strong working relationship with the offshore team.
There are several factors to consider when overcoming the cultural barrier: openness (for example, the Dutch are more open-minded than the Asians), friendliness (Asians are more friendly and focused on building long-term relationships), fear of uncertainty (Swedes are not as strict about details), and many others.
Building a Strong Working Relationship
Even if the team does not have special difficulties with communication, it is worth understanding and being aware of how the human factor can affect the work. For the company to provide qualified offshore development services, a strong working relationship must be built between all team members. The most effective strategies in this situation include the following:
Regular communication;
Transparency;
Establishing trust;
Providing opportunities for face-to-face interactions.
Time zones, cultural barriers, and other aspects can take time to overcome. Employees should be encouraged to build strong working relationships, and the team leader should oversee this process. Offshore development is only possible when you understand the product, prioritize, and know how to communicate with the team and understand it well.
Intellectual Property Protection
It does not matter what the company does: offshore app development or creating any other software. It would be best if you took care of maximum data privacy. The security of information provided to company employees may be violated. In this situation, it is worth using effective strategies for the protection of intellectual property:
Having a well-defined contract;
Establishing clear ownership of the intellectual property;
Taking measures to secure data and information.
In this situation, a local database is often created, and access to it is granted only to your team members. It is worth thinking about database backup, the security of each product and other important points. Additionally, it is worth considering deploying certified software to monitor the compliance of remote workers with the company security policy.
Conclusion
For offshore software development companies to work properly, incorporating the most effective practices into the workflow is worth incorporating. In this article, we have presented the best tips on making your development team as efficient as possible when everyone is in different parts of the world. With their help, it will be possible to overcome the language barrier, differences in cultural values, and time zones and achieve the highest quality for each project.
