How to choose a company offering software development outsourcing services?

Amidst the digital trends and the ever-growing technology, we see a lot of businesses turning their ideas into various software and apps……

….and the demands for custom software development companies and mobile app development companies are growing daily.

The process of developing software isn’t just overwhelming and tough, it’s hard to know the right team of software developers that can handle the project professionally and satisfactorily. 

On FortySeven47 – one of the renowned IT outsourcing platforms – alone we have over 27,000 custom software agencies and to choose the perfect agency becomes increasingly difficult. 

For startups, this has incited more questions than answers. 

Should I outsource locally or offshore?

How do I know which company is right for me?

 What services should I look for? 

These and other questions have left many disturbed when trying to outsource their software development projects.

That’s why Hanna Shnaider, a guest post topic expert, made a guide explaining how to choose a company offering software development outsourcing services. You can view her profile here.

So without further ado, let’s dive into it.

Here are six things you should do to choose the best outsourcing firm. 

#1. What are your goals?

First off, knowing what you want will help streamline your search quickly towards finding the best outsourcing software development company. 

Not only that, you’ll be able to communicate your projects to the outsourcing company correctly and clearly. 

In other words, you want to make conscious efforts to understand your business goals by analyzing the problems and evaluating the possible solutions to choose the suitable offshore or onshore custom software company.

Be sure to know:

• Budget at hand
• Product concept
• Number of hours required to complete the project
• Talents needed
• The quality you desire and more.

#2. Check the team size and the size of your project 

There are varying sizes of custom software development companies around the globe and you’ll agree with me that you can’t find a single “one size fits all” among them. 

Some of these outsourcing companies are suitable for small projects while others are experts at delivering exceptional services when the projects are large. 

So you must do your assignment before approaching a custom software development firm. 

Make sure to know whether your project is small, medium, or large, and next, make a list of possible software companies. 

When should you choose a small outsourcing firm?

It’s okay to choose a small outsourcing firm if you’re a startup and your project requires less than 500 hours to complete.

You barely will find a large custom software agency that would deliver an exceptional job on a project like this.

Additionally, choosing a small outsourcing development company for a project like this comes with some benefits which includes:

• Low cost of service: Small software companies have fewer workers and their charges are reasonably low.
• Quality: Along with a reasonable price comes a high-quality service to boost their brand’s name.
• Efficiency: They work unanimously to achieve a common goal. Hence, efficiency is certain.

When should you choose a mid-sized outsourcing firm?

Choose a mid-sized team when your project requires more than 800 hours and needs a considerable amount of creativity to professionally actualize.

Here are some of the benefit of hiring mid-sized development companies:

• Access to larger proficient staff: Having been around quite some time, mid-sized software companies already have many active employees that can handle your projects as fast as possible. 
• Management Stress reduced: Mid-sized organizations have everything in control and you won’t need to worry much about the project. You can focus on more important tasks.

When should you choose a large software outsourcing firm?

Lastly, you should go for a respected large custom software development firm when your project requires greater technical know-how and more experienced services.

The team has several software developers and you can be sure to have access to a lot of benefits including: 

• Experience in handling large projects: Large outsourcing development companies are equipped with several flexible software professionals who can handle projects of varying sizes. 
• Enormous portfolio: With many years of experience you’re sure they can provide you with a large portfolio and happy clients whose projects might be similar to yours.

#3. Shortlist the best software companies 

Next to knowing the right size of developers for your project, you’ll need to make a shortlist of software companies that specialize in what you need.

It’s expected that you find out the differences and distinction of each outsourcing vendor and selection should be based on relevance and business needs. 

Additionally, quality, achievements, flexibility, location, language, and reviews are all necessary factors to consider.

#4. Technical know-how

Make no mistake, it doesn’t matter how affordable and credible a custom software development firm is, they won’t supply you with the best talents to build your software or mobile app if their technological exposure is obsolete. 

This is where I see a lot of startups throw their hard-earned money into something that in the end becomes worthless.

Therefore, implement various plans and strategies to ensure the company you’re choosing is sufficiently equipped with the needed expertise and technology to successfully carry out your project. 

This might include employing your standard software architectural pattern, software development methodology, and any other relevant data.

Besides, it’s important you:

• Evaluate their portfolio to have an idea about what their deliverables is like
• Checking their accounts on social media to see the activities of the software company 
• Check client’s reviews
• Ensure they are up to date with recent technology trends

#5. Outsourcing Models

Before venturing fully into all the features of an outsourcing software company, you should understand the span of services your outsourcing partner can provide. 

Be sure to know if it’s staff augmentation or possibly autonomous delivery team model.

Staff augmentation, for instance, involves hiring a new set of developers to work with the existing team. 

On other hand, the autonomous delivery model is most preferred by many companies as it allows them to outsource the whole software development projects to a team of professionals with minimum management 

Making research about their model allows you to better understand the workflow of the company you’re hiring.

#6. Communication Channels

This is by far the most important aspect you need to consider when outsourcing to mobile app development or custom software firm. 

For instance, development companies located in Southeast Asia are not conversant with English speaking and therefore will experience difficulties when hired by an English speaking country like England. 

This complication in communication makes collaboration between in-house software developers in an English speaking country and a team of experts in another country becomes seemingly impossible.

One more thing to consider before outsourcing to a team of developers is the frequency of communication. 

You must ensure the development company has a channel that allows for constant communication throughout the entire project.

For best results, you should ensure they allow communication via video conferencing tools (Skype, Zoom, and more) for proper monitoring and face-to-face relationships.

In other words, it’s important to find out about the outsourcing company’s styles and methods of communication before concluding the contract. 

Wrapping up

Let me reiterate that focusing on your goals, budgets, team size, models and communication is key when you want to outsource your project and get custom services. 

Fortyseven provides high-end software development services for decent prices and priorities on supplying long-term cooperation with our client. 

Once we know where you’re going, Fortyseven software professionals will provide you with the necessary support and expertise needed to take you to the result you once envisaged.

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