Establishing an extended software development team presents a proven solution to overcome the challenges associated with hiring software engineers in the UK. At OnlyGeniuses, we have successfully assisted numerous companies in Ireland, the UK, the Netherlands, and various other locations in building their extended software development teams in India using the Offshore Development model.
What is Offshore Software Development?
In the traditional sense, “offshoring” referred to a company subcontracting a portion of its work to an external company that operates within the same time zone and shares similar financial and legal systems.
At OnlyGeniuses, we believe it’s time to widen the offshore team definition.
For us, “Offshore Development” entails extending your own IT teams to work in a highly integrated and cohesive manner, without compromising corporate culture or work approach. It involves creating an extension of your team with cultural similarities, simply located in a different geographic area. Importantly, it ensures that you retain full control over your financial expenditures and the parties to whom payments are made.
Offshoring your development team to India stands out as the most proven and cost-effective method for swiftly extending your software development capabilities. With millions of tech professionals in India who have gained on-site experience in the UK, US, and Europe, they possess a deep understanding of the culture and client expectations of these companies. This familiarity facilitates seamless idea synchronization and enables faster communication. Consequently, software development progresses more rapidly at significantly lower costs, typically at approximately one-third of the expenses.
If your work demands profound expertise, heightened innovation, or specialized skills like cloud architecture, Indian outsourcing holds specific advantages for you. No country in the nearshore locations of the EU or US can match the combined quality and scale offered by India. According to a KPMG survey, companies increasingly anticipate innovation as a crucial aspect of their outsourcing arrangements. However, they often encounter challenges in defining, tracking, and motivating innovation from their service providers in nearshore companies.
Smaller companies, placing significant value on cohesive culture, effective team communication, and a unified project approach, should consider requesting their Indian offshore development partner to provide resources with substantial work experience in their respective country. This ensures a seamless integration of teams and enhances collaboration, enabling smoother project execution.
To gain insights into the most daunting aspect of working in a distributed team, we approached Michal, one of our principal software engineers based at our extended development center in India. We posed the following questions to James: What is the most challenging aspect of working in a distributed team? And how do you effectively overcome this challenge?
Michal’s Response: According to Michal, the most challenging aspect of working in a distributed team is communication and the dissemination of information. He believes that team members should have the ability to ask questions and receive answers as easily as if they were able to approach a colleague sitting at the next desk. Michal emphasizes the importance of integration, stating that when team members feel fully integrated, they are more motivated to work diligently towards the success of the software product.
In our case, we have assembled a team of dedicated engineers from OnlyGeniuses, all of whom have prior experience working in the UK. This has greatly facilitated the rapid development of our offshore operations. Additionally, resources in esteemed software companies like OnlyGeniuses are well-trained in knowledge base systems, ensuring effective communication of changes. Moreover, these companies foster an open and supportive digital forum where everyone is encouraged to ask questions and contribute answers.
As you can see, all roads leading to a successful project pass through good communication and if the resource has on-site experience in your country they are much more effective.
During our extensive experience working with UK customers for the past 13 years, we have observed another crucial factor. The demand for top 1% talent is significant worldwide, spanning across countries. We have supported smaller and mid-sized UK companies that faced challenges in securing top-notch talent locally due to the high demand in the UK market. However, these companies were able to hire exceptional developers through us by offering better compensation due to the favorable GBP conversion rate. This allowed them to attract and retain outstanding talent from India.
Benefits of working with OnlyGeniuses:
Setting up your development team through us can indeed lower your cost base, but it’s not solely about cost reduction. Primarily, it provides you with access to a significantly broader pool of tech talent, allowing you to scale your team rapidly. Importantly, this expansion doesn’t require compromising on other crucial aspects, such as:
- Total control
- Total transparency
- Fixed and simple pricing with no hidden component
- Time it takes to hire quality developers
- The quality of the developers in your remote team
- Cultural fit
- Your ability to manage the team and the software project
- Your approach to risk and security in the development process
- The value you put on things like innovation and quality assurance
One of the key financial benefits of outsourcing is the ability to transform fixed costs into variable costs. While you have the option to delegate your software development to a local service provider, engaging a foreign contractor typically offers a cost-effectiveness that is three times higher. By opting for outsourcing, you gain the advantage of greater flexibility in managing your expenses while still achieving your software development goals.
So here are 3 steps you need to take to setup extended development teams with OnlyGeniuses:
Step 1: Provide us with comprehensive details about you and your software project
We initiate this process through initial discovery calls, which serve as the foundation for understanding your company and its business goals. We aim to uncover what sets your company apart and makes it exceptional. Whether it’s the impact of your custom software on people’s lives or your commitment to providing software engineers with the freedom to work on special interest projects, we want to grasp the unique aspects of your culture and the technology you’re building.
Regarding the software engineering project you require assistance with, we would like to gather information about the technology stack you currently utilize. Additionally, we are interested in identifying any gaps in the technical expertise of your team that could be complemented through our remote development services.
Moreover, understanding your goals and expectations is crucial. Where do you envision your product development in the next 1 or 5 years? Are you looking to enhance your web development capabilities or improve your mobile applications?
All these details play a vital role in tailoring the best solution that caters to your specific needs. As selecting an outsourcing partner is a decision that will have long-term implications for your business objectives, we want to ensure that we are the right offshore development team support partner for you before embarking on this journey together.
Step 2: Designing and Deploying Your OnlyGeniuses Offshore Dedicated Team Solution
We take pride in designing the optimal software development path tailored specifically for your requirements. This encompasses identifying the necessary technological expertise, determining the ideal team size and structure, and evaluating the most suitable team location, considering factors like office requirements or a fully distributed team setup. Our approach follows the “extended teams as a service model,” ensuring that you have full control over defining the requirements and deliverables.
Once we establish a mutual confidence in our preparedness for success, we collaboratively map out the software development process. This involves outlining the key milestones, establishing timelines, and defining the workflow to ensure a streamlined and efficient development journey.
To assemble your dedicated team, we implement a recruitment process customized to your specific needs. From technical tests to technical interviews, our senior engineers and CTO meticulously evaluate candidates from the extensive Indian talent pool. Our evaluation criteria encompass not only coding skills but also cultural fit and familiarity with modern software development practices, such as agile methodologies, AI, Blockchain, DevOps, cloud services, microservices, PWAs, UX/UI, and more.
Rest assured, you will only be presented with the very best candidates who have successfully passed our rigorous selection process. Ultimately, as your trusted outsourcing partner, you retain the final decision-making authority in choosing the individuals who will become part of your new team and ours.
Step 3: Setting Up and Ongoing Management with OnlyGeniuses
After contracts are signed and the team is established, our main responsibilities kick in. We take charge of operational project management, ensuring a smooth and hassle-free experience for you. Our comprehensive services encompass various crucial aspects, including office and equipment setup, security measures, payroll management, HR services, adherence to local health and safety legislation, insurance coverage, and the establishment of HR systems. Additionally, we pay attention to the finer details, such as ensuring that amenities like coffee machines, TT tables, pool tables, and other in-office entertainment facilities are in place.
Our goal is to relieve you of all the typical challenges associated with managing a remote office in India. We want you to focus on technical productivity and avoid unnecessary distractions or penalties that may arise from overlooking crucial administrative tasks, such as fire safety requirements. Rest assured, we take care of everything on your behalf.
To provide you with utmost transparency, we send you a single monthly invoice with a pre-determined, fixed price. This straightforward approach allows you to concentrate on what truly matters – building exceptional software and expanding your business.
OnlyGeniuses boasts extensive expertise in executing large-scale software development and IT recruitment projects across diverse locations in India. Our services have successfully catered to clients in the UK, US, Ireland, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, and Sweden. With software development centers situated in Delhi NCR, we are fully equipped to assist you in establishing remote development teams from scratch, comprising up to 50 developers, within a remarkable timeframe of just 3 months.
Rest assured, we are committed to providing you with a personalized and cost-effective solution that addresses your unique requirements. Our approach aims to:
- Minimize risks associated with software development and recruitment
- Align with your business goals and development needs
- Streamline administrative tasks, onboarding processes, and unnecessary bureaucracy
- Most importantly, handpick the finest engineers who possess the skills and expertise to get the job done efficiently and effectively.
Feel free to reach out to our team at Onlygeniuses.co.uk or give us a call. Let us know your specific preferences, such as seeking individuals with 3-5+ years of work experience in your country. Trust us, opting for this approach will yield exceptional results, ensuring you embark on the right path to success.