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Exclusive Research on Why Remote Working is the Future of IT Industry

Exclusive Research on Why Remote Working is the Future of IT Industry

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Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said on 21st May 2020 that at least 50% (i.e. – 25,000-person) of its total employee strength could get to work remotely within 5-10 years.

Zuckerberg: “Facebook could get to about half of staff working remotely permanently in 5-10 years and will be the “most forward-leaning company on remote work”  

He further said, “Certainly being able to recruit more broadly, especially across the U.S. and Canada to start, is going to open up a lot of new talent that previously wouldn’t have considered moving to a big city.” 

The announcement surely created quite a stir on Twitter and was applauded by many viewers. This displays the inevitable growth of remote working culture across the tech landscape. 

Remote Working in the IT Industry

It is the year 2020 and you are probably working from home- either by force or by choice. Either way, the idea of office spaces are rapidly changing. The world has transitioned from corporate hallways to the home office. And, I wouldn’t be wrong that remote working is the most prevalent in the tech-sphere.

  • The computer/information technology industry ranks 2nd in embracing the remote work culture.
  • According to the annual report by OWLabs, the top industries represented by remote workers in the USA in 2019 are healthcare (15%), technology (10%), financial services (9%).
  • A study reports, software and technology jobs make up for the highest number of total remote jobs posted over the internet. 29.2 percent of the total remote jobs posted are from the IT industry. 

The article shines light upon three important segments:

  1. The Growing Remote Woring Jobs in the IT Industry
  2. How Tech Leaders are Adopting the Remote Woring Culture
  3. Important Facts Witnessed about the Remote Teams Trends

The Growing Remote Working Jobs in the IT Industry

From mobile app development, digital marketing, software development, digital sales support, to copywriting, the remote working culture displays an exponential growth in the tech sector since the last decade. However, the 2020 pandemic outbreak has given a prolific push to remote jobs in the tech sector.

Some of the growing remote job opportunities in the tech sector are:

  • Front-end Development

Tomáš Haviar, Talent Acquisition and Employer Branding Specialist at Bynder (A digital asset management company), believes that remote working practice suits ideal for the software development industry. He says an internet connection and a laptop are the only main prerequisites for a developer to code a website, software or app. He adds that the front-end development sector offers copious remote working opportunities in the coming times. According to Remoters.net, ‘mobile app development’ jobs already make up for 4.51% of the total remote jobs posted over the internet. 

Best Remote Teams

  • Digital Marketing

Melaine Cole, HR Manager at Car Next Door (A digital platform for renting cars) says, “The bulk of marketing has moved online, and so the opportunities to work remotely have increased with it.” And as a matter of fact, about 75% of Cole’s own company’s marketing and communication team has now adopted the remote work culture. 

  • Copywriting

Kurt Birkenhangen, Vice-president at Vast Conference (A conference call provider) says, “Copywriters and content creators can do so much of their job remotely—often with the added benefit of less in-person distraction, Data platforms like Box and Dropbox give you access to team files from anywhere, with the ability to track changes. And with the existence of online meeting tools and video conferencing, the ability to meet, build rapport, and consult with clients can be done effectively regardless of physical location.” 

How the Tech Leaders are Adopting the Remote Working Culture

  • Facebook

Along with Mark Zuckerberg’s announcement to move 50% of Facebook’s operations remote within 5-10 years he also said Facebook will “aggressively open up remote hiring,” first in the USA, then elsewhere.

This announcement certainly hints a significant to ‘aggressive’ growth in the remote teams hiring trend in the near future.

  • Twitter

According to Washingtonpost.com, Twitter said in the second week of May that a significant part of its workforce could be able to work remotely from home forever.

  • Coinbase

Coinbase also made an announcement in May and says it is planning to adopt the ‘remote-first’ policy.

  • HubSpot

Matthew Howells-Barby, the Director of Acquisition at HubSpot recently said in an interview that his team has already moved to a remote work environment last year and how well it has worked for them. 

  • Shopify

Shopify, the popular eCommerce provider, says the majority of its employees will continue to work from home in 2021. 

Danny Trinh, the head of design at Zenly (a location-sharing app) said cost-saving is the main reason that is pushing businesses to embrace the remote-working culture. 

Danny Trinh

Some Important Facts about the Remote Teams Trend

The remote team culture hand-in-hand with the distributed teams culture has been helping tech employers leverage benefits like – higher work productivity, lower office setup investment, lower operational cost, increased employee retention rate, more engaged staff, etc. Some research-based facts about remote working are:

1. Remote working is good for business

According to a study by the University of Stanford, on average, the company saved about $2,000 per employee who worked from home. It also saves employees money that they would otherwise spend on commuting, clothing(professional attire) and childcare. Organizations save an average of $11,000 per year per part-time telecommute, or 21% higher profitability. Remote teams save the company the cost of buying or renting office space, operational costs among others.

2. Better employee retention and loyalty

People love the freedom and flexibility that comes with remote working. In fact, they are willing to work at lower salaries or fewer perks. 54% of employees say they would change jobs for one that offered them more flexibility (Forbes). According to OWLabs 2019 report, Remote workers say they are likely to stay in their current job for the next 5 years 13% more than onsite workers, which highlights employee loyalty.

Hire Dedicated Remote Team

3. Working remotely boosts productivity

Better focus. Remote workers value the flexibility that comes from WFH so much that they are willing to go the extra mile to make it work and deliver results.  A study done by Stanford showed that remote workers were about 13% more productive than their traditional office colleagues. Another study by Forbes also reports that teleworkers are an average of 35-40% more productive than their office counterparts, and have measured an output increase of at least 4.4%.

4. Happier healthier employees

Working at home has been shown to improve mental health, lead to more exercise, and eat a healthier diet than those who work at the office. This shall result in overall increased happiness and morale. Having more time to spend with family during the day can significantly reduce stress levels.

Happier healthier employees - remote working

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5. Less or no time spent commuting

Commuting has led at least 1 in 4 respondents to quit a job, according to the Airtasker study. Remote working eliminates the discomfort of long commutes and traffic jams thus saving time and money. In fact, remote workers saved an annual average of $4,523 on fuel alone compared to office employees.

Summing Up

Remote working is certainly not unheard of. But it is fast gaining momentum, especially in 2020 as a global pandemic forces people to adopt the work from home culture. By hiring remote (dedicated) teams, organizations can easily find a bigger pool of qualified talent from all over the world, at the same time save the company thousands of dollars. In today’s digital age, location is no longer a limitation. Remote working is the new norm and looks like it is here to stay. If you ask us, hiring a remote team is definitely a future proof investment.

What Offshore Outsourcing Will Look Like Post COVID-19

What Offshore Outsourcing Will Look Like Post COVID-19

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At the moment, “COVID-19” is the trending word (unfortunately so) in the Indian subcontinent and South-East Asia. The impact of the coronavirus strain has worsened in the private and public sectors across this part of the world, just as they are decreasing in European and Far East nations. Let’s have a look how Offshore Outsourcing Will Look Like Post COVID-19. 

Thus far, the pandemic has been seen to decrease the output of the offshoring and outsourcing industry, since the majority of the industry relies on badly affected nations such as India, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines, who are under stringent lockdowns. 

What Offshoring Will Look Like Post COVID-19

While most companies in these nations have moved to work-from-home (WFH) set-ups, daily service deliveries and business continuity have still taken a hit, since not everyone has the facilities and wherewithal to work from home. This has led to a mass blockage in workflows, and unintentional breaches of client contracts. Most industries are on the decline; offshore manufacturing is down, while digital and collaborative tools like Zoom and Skype cannot bridge the divide that face-to-face communication does so effectively within the digital service industry.  

Offshore outsourcing is on the rise 

But despite the breaking down of all types of industry, companies and their business leaders are recognizing the need for a diversified medium of business processes, through the constant pressure in this crisis mode. They can see that the overdependence on in-house workers who are unaccustomed to remote working is detrimental to business continuity; the move to providing software, laptops, and facilities for remote workers will certainly aid companies to think on their feet as we move forward.

How Outsourcing Is Set To Increase

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Some experts suggest the move to full-time WFH set-ups might become a reality, due to productivity-tracking tools, cut-downs on travel costs, and the ubiquity of digital services. A post-COVID-19 economy will be built on business processes that run the gamut—in-house, onshore, nearshore, and offshore.

De-globalizing supply and service chains won’t become a reality because our reliance on a larger pool of talent, specialized third-party vendors, and cheaper labour is not easily resisted. The offshore outsourcing industry is valuable exactly for its flexible and cost-efficient methods. The IT outsourcing subset is accustomed to WFH mode, so the possibilities remain, that other industries could acclimate to it too.

Remote Working Is The Way of the Future

People are relying more on remote working for 3 simple reasons: time-saving, digital services, and travel costs. By minimizing travel time and spending money on travel, business continuity is kept up with the minimum of effort. Also, online collaborative tools and APIs have revolutionized how we work. 

Remote Working Is The Way of the Future

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It is challenging to maintain offshore teams over long distances, but technical, administrative, and accounting services that are provided online still can track productivity and meet deadlines. 

Best Remote Teams

What will be the future requirements for this? Better free source software, Wi-Fi and data pack provisions, and cheaper digital devices. Companies are looking into investing in these aspects for the foreseeable future. Most of the services industry is ripe for remote working applications.

Offshoring & Outsourcing Will Continue to Expand

The industry will continue to expand since the benefits of outsourcing outweigh the cons. Here are the four pillars on which it stands:

1. Access to Greater Range of Talent

The medium of outsourcing and offshoring is popular for opening horizons to a vast, international ocean of talent. Whenever a certain local region is undergoing a shortage of specialized talents, the digital outsourcing environment has solved the problem by creating access to specialists and commissions.

With the recent increase in lay-offs and the shutting down of many small and medium businesses (SMBs), legions of well-qualified, proven specialists, including rare ones (e.g., web developers, SEO specialists, data scientists) are now looking for new job offers. The coronavirus phenomenon has closed many doors, but it will only ensure more doors open for the future. Hiring will pick up.

Access to Greater Range of Talent

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2. Greater Focus On Core Areas & Superior Control Over Workers

Offshoring and outsourcing allow businesses to focus on core areas, instead of splitting resources and time for specialized tasks. Offshoring (instead of outsourcing) frequently involves in-house employees in foreign nations focusing on certain tasks and at a lower price. Consequently, control over business and marketing objectives is not compromised. Administrators can manage offshore operations from their home country.

3. Cost-efficiency & Time-efficiency

In hiring specialized, overseas teams to undertake tasks, businesses don’t need to pay out of their own pocket to train and provide office equipment to the in-house employees. Labour costs are also significantly lower in offshore regions, which aid companies to get more instances of high-quality work. 

Also Read: Is a Dedicated Development Team Worth the Cost?

Underlying all these advantages, businesses will also save time and resources on the hiring and recruitment process. The existing pool of highly trained and experienced specialists means no need to vet and interview hundreds of new candidates. When hiring online, HR resources are not wasted. 

Cost-Efficiency & Time-Efficiency

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4. Increased Scalability

Outsourcing vendors and offshore teams can help businesses scale up infrastructure and undertake greater volumes of deliverables. It also allows business leaders to scale up or scale down their teams depending on abundances and shortages in the economy, respectively.

These pillars of the industry won’t shatter under the weight of the burdened economy. The United States still relies on paying less than the American minimum wage for services from South Asia. Vendor rates will fall for the time being, making offshore outsourcing more attractive; later, they will increase gradually in time.

Increased scalability - offshore outsourcing

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Even though physical products shipping and freight costs are rising, labor costs should decrease. In case the costs are too much, nearshore services are a superior option, such as Mexico for the United States.

Dedicated Teams Enact Stable and Reliable Outsourcing

It will become easier to find the best digital services within a reasonable time frame after the coronavirus outbreak subsides, and governments relax lockdown regulations in the major hubs of the offshoring industry. International transactions of services will burgeon, as the best minds on the globe compete, allowing companies to hire them at useful rates. Nowadays, companies are not limited to local prospects and don’t have to overpay for their services.

Dedicated Teams Enact Stable and Reliable Outsourcing

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The best option is the hiring of dedicated remote teams of specialists. There are numerous examples of these teams, be it for digital marketing, SEO, Google Ads, social media marketing, web development, software development, etc. Teams with these skills are efficient, meet deadlines with ease, and collaborate with clients.

Dedicated Teams in Uplers

We, at Uplers, offer dedicated teams within the realms of web development, SEO, search engine marketing, and market automation. We have provided web solutions for over 500 firms globally, and have optimized engagements, impressions, and lead conversion. For their many digital marketplaces and websites. For affordable prices, our team members are steeped in the best practices that enable the smooth operation of digital frameworks.


. We improvise and implement based on the client’s needs.

Happy hiring! 

7 Ways To Manage Offshore Dedicated Teams With Clever Project Management Tools

How to Manage an Offshore Team with the Best Project Management Tools

Worried about failed offshoring experiences? Read these tips to make offshoring a rewarding experience.

It was a usual workday. James Hills, the president of the U.S.-based marketing firm MarketingHelpNet, opened his laptop to check his emails. No emails. His website didn’t exist either.

It took Hills a few moments to realize what had happened. His offshore web development vendors in the Philippines had simply shut it all down. Because of a dispute.

It’s a real-life story. Not fiction. Check the link.

Offshoring Horror Stories Do Exist

The James Hills case is extreme. It is certainly not the only one, though. There are several other horror stories easily available in the public domain. Of offshoring gone bad

So much so that Google readily offers you the keywords “outsourcing failure stories”. Check it for yourself if you must.

Do You Give Up Offshoring, Then?

That – we believe – is the other extreme. It is a typical knee-jerk reaction that throws the baby out with the bathwater. Cliches are cliches because they are true, you know.

If you respond rather than react, you will be able to retain the advantages of offshoring without suffering its cons.

Use these tools and enjoy a great offshoring experience.

Ways to Manage Offshore Teams with Best Project Management Tools

You need these sets of tools to reap the benefits of offshoring without having management nightmares:

  • Project Management
  • Team Management: 
  • Communications Management
  • Team Collaboration Tools
  • Processes and Procedures

There are smart tools and techniques to effectively handle each of these areas. However, tools do not necessarily mean digital tools – some of them are human actions that you need to undertake.

1. Governance: Sign as Detailed A Contract as Possible

As we said, this is a technique that needs human action – not software. And, it is critical for efficiently managing your offshore project with a dedicated team. 

Think through your project needs as thoroughly as you can and put them down in the contract. Have discussions with your dedicated offshore team to check their understanding of the project needs. 

This pre-project-onset action is a necessary precondition of efficient project management with an offshore dedicated team. Ensure that your offshore partners are on the same plane as you in project understanding. 

2. Project Management: The Agile Approach

Project Management Institute’s 2017 Pulse of the Profession report mentions that 71% of their respondents use the Agile approach. In varied projects, not just software development. Respondents for this report consisted of 3234 project management professionals from Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and North America.

Spread your project deliverables across the project timeline. That’s Agile in the simplest terms. This is an approach eminently suitable for offshore partnering. If anything has to fail, you’ll know it fast – that’s the core advantage.

3. Operations Management: Online Project Management Platforms

There are several highly popular ones: Jira, Proofhub, Slack, Trello, and so on. Choose the one that you and your offshoring partner feel most comfortable with. Create a project roadmap using the tool, focused on the Agile approach.

Here’s a glimpse into the user ratings of some of the best project management tools on a scoring scale of 1-10: 

Jira

Jira from Atlassian facilitates the application of the Agile approach. It helps in project task prioritization, identifying bottlenecks. It allows customizing workflows, which helps to add project milestones. Advanced reporting, search and filtering options, and advanced security options are some of the preferred features of this tool. 

  • Total number of reviews: 120
  • Reviewer profiles: 
    • 52 medium-size businesses
    • 21 small businesses
    • 47 enterprises
  • Score 9-10: 64
  • Score 7-8: 41
  • Score 5-6: 13
  • Score 3-4: 2
  • Score 1-2: 0

Proofhub

Apart from project tracking and task management, Proofhub also enables chats, discussions, and collaboration for proofing. It facilitates time-tracking for each task even during multitasking. It can also generate custom reports in addition to default reports. 

  • Total number of reviews: 9
  • Reviewer profiles: 
    • 5 medium-size businesses
    • 3 small businesses
    • 1 enterprise
  • Score 9-10: 6
  • Score 7-8: 3
  • Score 5-6: 1
  • Score 3-4: 0
  • Score 1-2: 0

Slack

Slack is mainly a messaging platform, which also allows the integration of third-party apps like Google Drive, ZenDesk, etc.  It allows both public and private messaging and archiving of documents. However, some users feel it works better as a communication platform in combination with a PM tool like Trello.

  • Total number of reviews: 178
  • Reviewer profiles: 
    • 73 medium-size businesses
    • 66 small businesses
    • 39 enterprise
  • Score 9-10: 138
  • Score 7-8: 38
  • Score 5-6: 1
  • Score 3-4: 0
  • Score 1-2: 1

Trello

This one is an easy-to-use PM tool with a strong collaboration feature. However, it does not offer reporting and time-tracking features.

  • Total number of reviews: 171
  • Reviewer profiles: 
    • 65 medium-size businesses
    • 73 small businesses
    • 33 enterprise
  • Score 9-10: 104
  • Score 7-8: 57
  • Score 5-6: 10
  • Score 3-4: 0
  • Score 1-2: 0

Whichever tool you choose, the important point is to stick to it. Make sure that all project communication gets reflected on this platform. 

Discourage your offshore project manager to pick up the intercom and issue an instruction to three other team members. Get them into the habit of issuing instructions on the one of the best project management tools.

4. The Dedicated Team Model

That is the approach you need to adopt for efficient and effective management of your offshored project. This is the next best thing to an in-house team. 

It might even be better actually. It combines the advantages of in-house and offshoring, minus the disadvantages of either.

Why The Dedicated Team Approach Works Best

  • You have a team committed full-time to your project, under your monitoring and supervision. This is very different from an average offshore team on which you have little control. 

In the prevalent model, you will have little or no say on the team’s everyday functioning. Just the opposite is true with the dedicated team model.

  • The team leader/ project manager cannot make arbitrary changes in the team structure without your prior approval.  

In the most prevalent offshoring model,  is possible that when you hire an agency, the proposed team members have the skill-sets you require. However, the agency might shift team members to other projects. You may only get to know it later. 

That dedicated team model rules out such a possibility.

  • You also save on other overheads like office setup and equipment, orientation and training, etc. You have skilled professionals ready for you to have them in your team. 

5. Communications Management Tools

Team meetings are necessary, whether your team is in-house or offshore. Even with the adoption of the best project management tools. 

The special need for an offshore team is that you cannot have it in any of your office meeting rooms. You need to create an online platform for the meetings. 

There are several options for you to choose from. 

Skype remains one of the most preferred online video conferencing platforms. In 2017,  there were 1.33 billion Skype users all over the world, informs Statista. The estimated number of users by 2024 is 2.27 billion. 

Zoom, however, has emerged as a tough competitor to Skype. In January 2020, Zoom had 12.92 million active users, says CNBC. That is a 21% increase from where it ended in 2019. 

Both tools have their pros and cons. The general consensus is: 

  • Zoom works better for teams that need to have frequent video conferences.
  • Skype works better for teams more oriented towards holistic business solutions. 
  • As per the TrustRadius rating, Skype scores 7.9 out of 10 while Zoom’s score is 8.9.

While Skype and Zoom are the most popular tools for online team  interfaces, there are several other tools that you may want to check out: 

  • Apache OpenMeetings
  • Cisco Webex
  • ezTalks Meetings
  • GoToMeeting
  • Pexip
  • Team Viewer

Please note that the arrangement is alphabetical. It’s not a rating. 

6. Team Collaboration Tools

Google Drive

Google Drive continues to be one of the most popular storage and sharing online apps. Statista informs that in October 2019, Google topped the list of “most visited multi-platform web properties” in the U.S. It had nearly 259 million unique visitors from the U.S. alone.

An average of 1.7 billion people across the globe use Google on a daily basis. 

You get 15 GB storage free on Google. You can upgrade that to 1 TB for US$ 9.99 per month. 

Dropbox

A Forbes article states that at the end of the first quarter of the U.S. financial year 2018, Dropbox had 11.5 million users. 

Dropbox offers only 2 GB storage space free. You can buy up to 1 TB space. The paid plans start from US$ 9.99 per month. 

7. Online Storage & Sharing

Microsoft’s One Drive

It is a good fit for Windows users, naturally. One Drive offers 5 GB of space free and the paid plans start at only US$ 1.99 per month for 50 GB of space. 

If you need more space, there is a business plan for US$ 60 a year for 1 TB space. 

Box

Favored by small businesses and enterprises, Box comes with 10 GB of free space. Its paid plans start from US$ 10 per month. 

End-note

We started with human action, and we end with one as well. 

Treating your offshore dedicated team as a business partner rather than a vendor is one of the best strategies you can adopt. With a long-term relationship comes trust and dependability. Both of these are important factors in giving you a rewarding offshore experience.

Explained! The 10 Most Common FAQs About Dedicated Team Model

Explained! The 10 Most Common FAQs About Dedicated Team Model

Outsourcing has now evolved as an independent service sector by itself. Global Business Services (GBS) is the new terminology for the entire sector. An indication of the popularity and growth of outsourcing.

We have adopted this new terminology to refer to all organizations that offer outsourced services to a wide range of businesses.

Background

Cutting costs and access to talent – these are the two primary reasons that prompt businesses to outsource their needs. That is also making one of the various outsourcing models to emerge as more popular than the others.

Clear Preference For DTM

Younger managers are veering increasingly towards a strategic partnership model with GBS (Global Business Services) organizations. This movement towards a more strategic and integrated partnership indicates a rising preference for the dedicated team model (DTM).

The popularity of the one project at a time kind of outsourcing is on the decline. 

What exactly is DTM? How does one optimize the business gains from this model? That’s what we discuss in this article. Pretty much everything you need to know about the DTM approach to outsourcing.

Top 10 Questions Answered on the Dedicated Team Model (DTM)

1. What Is The Dedicated Team Model?

The dedicated team model (DTM) is a globally recognized approach to outsourcing. Companies use this model to successfully execute their business activities through a third party team that functions fully under the company’s control. 

dedicated team model process

DTM involves an agreement between a company and a GBS organization. The GBS agency dedicates human and other resources full-time to work for the company, matching the company priorities.

2. Who Needs A Dedicated Team?

Any company, whether a startup or an established brand, may need a dedicated team to fulfill specific business needs not within the skill-sets of the in-house team. It is a model that addresses in-house capacity gaps.

This is an efficient solution model for complex business needs as a readymade team of professionals becomes quickly accessible.

3. Who Benefits From A Dedicated Team?

The global outsourcing market valued at US$92.5 billion has been dominated by two core types of business needs: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and Information Technology Outsourcing (ITO). The latest global trends reflect that BPO is on the decline while ITO is growing steadily. 

In 2019, BPO contributed US$26 billion to the total outsourcing market value. In contrast, ITO accounted for US$ 66.5 billion. 

Technically, any business, big or small, startup or established, can benefit from a GBS offering a dedicated team. To take care of the company’s business processes or IT needs.

4. How Does The Dedicated Team Model Work?

At Uplers, we’ve perfected the art of delivering value-adding services via dedicated teams. 

We spend time understanding your business goals, as also your project objectives. We assign the best-fit team for your requirements to give you a seamless business experience in partnering with us.

The team we assign has the specific skill-sets necessary to achieve your project objectives and fulfill your business goals. Our project manager remains in constant touch with you to update you regularly about how the project is progressing.

Best Remote Teams

5. What Are The Benefits Of Working With A Dedicated Team?

To have a dedicated team working for you is like having an in-house team minus the tedious administrative management tasks, and the heavy overhead costs. The benefits are many:

  • You have a team with the exact expertise to match your project needs, readymade to you. No need to go through the long hiring process. You save on both time and recruitment costs. 
  • You do not need to spend time and money to set up office space and procure equipment for your team. Yet you have the dedicated team under your full control, just like an in-house team. 
  • You don’t need to spend time and energy on administrative details like leave etc., but the team’s functioning remains transparent to you. You retain full monitoring options.

6. Why Is The Dedicated Team Model Better Than Project-based Outsourcing?

Project Based Outsourcing vs Dedicated Team Model

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The project-based model may work for specific short-term needs. For long-term business needs, you need a dedicated team as a strategic partner aligned with your overall goals and priorities. The advantages are many:

  • In project-based outsourcing, you have no control over the team composition. The team proposed at the time of hiring may seem to have the cross-sectional skills that your project requires. 

However, you won’t have a say in any changes in the team. The hired GBS agency may shift team members without any prior permission from you. 

  • In DTM, the GBS agency offers you a team that best fits your needs, but you have the ultimate say. Once you approve the team, it remains under your control. 

The GBS agency cannot arbitrarily shift team members around. 

  • You have no control over the day-to-day functioning of the team in project-based outsourcing. You may never know of any delay in the project execution until it is too late. 

You are completely free of any such worries in the case of a dedicated team. The project manager will remain in constant touch with you, sharing regular updates. 

  • It is difficult to address any scaling up need in project-based outsourcing. A dedicated team is scalable at any time as per need.
  • Security continues to be a sensitive area with project-based outsourcing.  You have no control over how the GBS agency will handle the proprietary company data you have to share with them. 

The trust and dependability levels are much higher with a dedicated team. It is a strategic partnership, unlike a short-term hirer-vendor relationship.

7. What Is The Difference Between In-house, Remote, And Dedicated Teams?

An in-house team is a part of your company that physically works with you for your projects. That is still the most commonly-used model across organizations. If you have the right in-house team with the skill-sets that you need to achieve your business goals, nothing like it. 

A remote team is one that works for you without being physically present at the workplace. A remote team could have your permanent employees, as well your outsourcing service providers. 

A dedicated team is an outside team that works dedicatedly and solely for a client organization. The GBS agency tailor-makes a team for you after thoroughly assessing your business needs.

8. How To Manage Your Offshore Dedicated Team?

  • Institute an online project management tool. Your GBS partner may create it, but you need to approve that. Have an orientation training on how the team will use it to ensure that there is standardized usage.

There are existing project management tools that you can use.

  • Make sure that all communication happens through a central communications tool. 

When all official communications become accessible to relevant people in a single digital tool, dedicated teams are able to overcome the problems caused by potential communication gaps. 

  • Keep a target of bringing together team members together at least once an year for interpersonal exchanges, and to help them feel more involved. 
  • Dedicated project managers are a key pillar of successful dedicated teams because they are able to supervise all the moving parts of the outsourcing machinery and identify possible challenges proactively.  

9. How To Deal With The Time Zone Difference When Hiring An Offshore Dedicated Team?

This is an issue that needs to be sorted out right at the outset. 

It partially depends on the scale of the time difference. If it is a 4.5-hour difference, for instance, finding common time for online meetings and calls is not too difficult. 

However, if your offshore dedicated team is on the other side of the globe with a 10.5/11-hour difference – the challenge is much higher. Outsourcing companies understand this challenge and have mature processes in place to provide 24 x 7 coverage, primarily enabled by setting up 3 work shifts.   

10. Why Hire Dedicated Offshore Teams From India?

India continues to be the top-ranked destination for offshore outsourcing. According to Statista, India top-scored in 2019 with an index score as follows: 

Why Hire Dedicated Offshore Teams From India

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  • Financial attractiveness – 2.82
  • People and skills – 2.23
  • Business environment – 1.14 
  • Digital resonance –  0.87

Nearest rival China has an index score of 1.88 in financial attractiveness. Indonesia alone has a higher index score of 2.84 for financial attractiveness. However, Indonesia scores nowhere near India in the other indicators. 

A 2017 article lists the following reasons as the facilitating factors behind India’s popularity as an offshore destination:

  1. The country’s huge population makes skilled labor with high talent easily accessible.
  2. India has a vast IT industry matching the size of the country and its population. The market value of India’s IT sector was US$129.5 billion in 2016. That’s higher than the IT market in the whole of Europe taken together. 
  3. A number of top-ranking Fortune 500 companies have set up several offices in India, pointing to the availability of a dependable talent pool in the country. 
  4. Minimized language barrier due to the high level of English usage in India. It is the second-largest English speaking country in the world, with only the US having a larger English-speaking population.
  5. Supportive government policy since the country’s economic liberalization in the 1990s makes doing business with Indian teams smooth and easy. 
  6. Countries like the US and the Western European countries gain in work-time extension when they partner with an Indian offshore team. 
  7. The icing on the cake, to deliberately use a cliche, is the low financial investment needed when you choose India as your offshore destination. No other country offers as attractive a combination of talent and hard work at such inexpensive rates.

How Uplers Can Help You Build Your Dedicated Team

We have a customized approach to the DTM process to facilitate your partnership with us. 

  • Define your project scope in details and inform us about your requirements
  • We will consult with you about the proposed team structure that best fits your requirements. You take the ultimate decision in choosing your team. 
  • We will propose the right mix of skill-sets necessary for your project in terms of experience and expertise.
  • Once the NDA (non-disclosure agreement) and the contract get signed, we will assign your chosen dedicated team to you.
  • You are free to change the team structure and upscale it at any point as per your needs.
7 Limitations or Disadvantages of Project-Based Outsourcing

7 Disadvantages of Outsourcing for Project-based or Fixed-price Model

Ever since the phenomenon evolved in 1989, outsourcing has only grown. Today, it is an integral part of business strategy. That is not to suggest that outsourcing has gained universal approval. Opinions about outsourcing travel the entire spectrum from the condemningly negative to the enthusiastically supportive. Though there are some disadvantages of outsourcing, it has some unparalleled benefits for businesses.

Peter Drucker

Outsourcing Is Here To Stay

Whichever position across the spectrum you hold, one thing is for certain. Outsourcing is definitely not on its way out. 

Statista informs that the global market value of outsourced services increased from US$ 45.6 billion in 2000 to US$ 92.5 billion in 2019. 

main reasons to it outsourcing disadvantages and advantages

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All the surveys by known market research experts inform us that two primary reasons drive outsourcing: cost-cutting and access to talent. 

There are several models of outsourcing to help businesses achieve these two objectives simultaneously. Let us examine two of them: the project-based and the dedicated team models.

Examining the Project-based Model

In the simplest terms, the project-based model implies:

  • You hire a third party for an entire project at a fixed cost contract
  • You first explain the full project requirements to a third party and double-check that they have got it right the best you can. 
  • Then, you draw up a contract with as many details put in as you can think of, with strict deadlines, and failure punishment clauses.
  • The hired team is then supposed to finish the entire project exactly the way you want it and deliver it on time. 

Seems easy and relaxing, does it? At one level, the project-based model of outsourcing does take a lot of responsibilities off one’s shoulders. However, you may have to pay a rather heavy price for that if you ignore the disadvantages of outsourcing, especially the project-based model.

A Relevant Anecdote: Outsourcing Failure

Hertz, a car rental giant sued the IT mammoth Accenture over a website redesign task that never met its completion. They actually ended up paying Accenture $32 million for a website that never wet live. Hertz is a U.S. organization that operates popular car rental brands including Hertz, Dollar, and Thrifty having approx. 10,200 corporate locations across the globe.

The company faced tough competition against the rising on-demand car hiring apps like Uber and Lift, which resulted in a drop of its stock prices by 85% within 5 years. To this, Hertz outsourced its website revamp task to Accenture in August 2016 and the site was due to go live by December 2017. But there was some delay in the development cycle from Accenture’s end and the due date was delayed to January 2018. But, a second go-live date was requested (April 2018) which was also missed.

By that time, Hertz had noticed that the website revamp task has not even travelled half-way and it isn’t in line with what was planned in the project scope, this caused them to terminate Accenture and the new website never saw daylight.

If you dig this episode carefully, the 7 problems that you may typically face with the project-based model of outsourcing become clear.

7 Disadvantages of Outsourcing for the Project-based Model

1. It’s Never Easy to Capture the Project Details in Totality

It is extremely difficult to think through all the details down to the nuts and bolts of a project before it actually starts. No matter how thoroughly you think, articulate, and communicate – there’s always a chance of missing out on some aspects that do not seem important enough. And most fixed-price agreements relate to this limitation of outsourcing.

2. Possible Gaps in the Understanding of Project Requirements

Communication issues hassle us at an everyday level. How can they simply vanish when trying to communicate complex project needs? And by this, we don’t mean there are no benefits of outsourcing, but communication and management have a significant role to play. 

 Accenture, too, had accepted their lack of understanding ultimately. 

disadvantages of outsourcing and benefits of outsourcing

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3. No Control Over the Everyday Functioning of the Project Team. 

In case there are delays in between, it may be too late before you know. Sudden and unforeseen changes in team members will also remain beyond your control. Lack of control is one of the major disadvantages of outsourcing through a project-based model. And the impact may hurt the project delivery. The onus of putting up a strong reporting process often, unjustifiably, falls on the client’s shoulders. 

Lack of Transparency in Pricing, Resulting in Overcharging

Hertz couldn’t transparently look into the progress of the project development cycle.

4. Change in Project Requirements will Require Cost Renegotiation 

One of the most evident disadvantages of project-based outsourcing model is that you may be in a position where you have to pay what the vendor asks for, or risk not getting it done at all. The contract becomes the sole driver of relationship in many client-offshore team engagements. The solution is, of course, to either keep a favourable clause in the contract or work with agencies that are culturally attuned to the idea of rapidly changing engagement models so as to benefit the client. 

5. Project Delay or Crash from the Vendor’s Side pushes you in a Royal Soup 

You may penalise them financially. However, your projects will still remain incomplete or imperfect. No way can you estimate just what kind of losses you may have to suffer. The truth is, agencies would rather have their work done in time, rather than impose penalties on their vendors. 

Hertz paid Accenture $32 Billion for a website project that was never completed.

6. There May Always be Hidden Costs

To leverage the benefits of outsourcing you need to bear some hidden costs. Such as the time and energy you need to monitor. Whether the project is moving as per the agreed timeline. Is the vendor maintaining the quality standards specified?

7. The Biggest Risk, of course, is Security. 

security disadvantage of outsourcing

With limited control over the project team, the security of all the company information you have to share with them will always remain at risk. Especially as you will have no direct control on how the vendors maintain their security. This disadvantage of outsourcing persists across various models of outsourcing. However, working on white label contracts with defined NDA and detailed documentation can assure you complete security of your crucial company information.

The Solution: Dedicated Team Model

Quite clearly. Dedicated team model eliminates all the risks that the project-based model presents. You choose the team and retain full control over it. 

Project-Based Outsourcing vs Dedicated Team Model

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However, this model also retains the benefits of outsourcing. You get access to global talent and you pay only when the team works..No monthly paychecks to issue when the contract is over and there’s no work.

Also, long-term relationships foster dependability and trust.

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How To Manage Time Zone Differences When Working With Offshore Dedicated Teams1

How to Manage Time Zone Differences when Working with Offshore Dedicated Teams

Managing the time along with short ends plays a crucial role in business. While working with offshore team time becomes a distinguishing characteristic hence it is advisable to predetermine the time zone of the corresponding locations before you hire their services. Out of all the other locations, India is one of the most preferred countries for outsourcing projects. It is due to a number of reasons out of which the difference in time zone works in its best interest.

As it is obvious that the time frame across the world varies greatly, following the Asian standard Time there are many regions in the continent considered best for outsourcing software development. It is certainly different from other countries with large hours.

  • United States- India is almost 10.5 hours ahead
  • Australia- India is almost 4 hours back
  • Europe- India is almost 5.5 hours ahead
  • The Middle East/ East Africa- India is almost 2.5 hours ahead

Scheme of Time Zone

There are incredible benefits that one can easily convert from the time difference window when working with the offshore dedicated teams. Let us have a glance at the same-

Supreme services- in order to obtain unhampered and timely services and to stay ahead of the competitive age, offshore dedicated teams work best. The time difference in Asia Continent also works in the interest of the world.

Absolute coordination among the team- many software development companies have multiple individuals associated with onsite or off-site teams and all together they work in the same interest. The project is constantly transferred from one country to another country depending upon the working hours and this coordinated approach helps in shortening the estimated time of arrival.

Cost-saving- it can help you get the best hands-on your project where you can save time at an almost affordable cost. The time difference of a country like India can be highly turned to an advantage.

Why it is Important to Know About a Business Partner’s Time Zone

In the below-mentioned segment, you will learn about the time difference between the US and most popular offshore destinations-

dedicated teams in India time-zone differences

As we have clearly seen the difference in various geographical locations, it seems more a sign of opportunity rather than a barrier. Understanding the time zone of your offshore dedicated team you can easily set up meetings for a few individuals or the entire team in flexible hours. To maintain transparency among the involving parties you can share the well-structured time schedules and calendars so that all can be benefited.

The Only Elephant in the Room is Not for You

Considering the intensive nature of offshore development teams, the development of software is no longer a timorous concept. With the advent of technology in this segment, a large number of companies are looking out their way to get the best professionals for developing their projects. You might be wondering how to bring the experts in your project development requirements. Well, this is not as poor-spirited as it sounds and bringing some incredible strategies can easily help you to manage and execute the plan.

Elaborate Your Vision- as soon as you embark to outsource the project it is functional to set your right foot at first. You have to present a clear vision to the team so that they can actually realize your idea. In the big picture, you have to take care of the fact that all the professionals associated with your project know your approach.

Uninterrupted Communication- consistent communication is the key to excellent projects and in order to check over the work status or progress made upon such end, you have to maintain conversation frequently. Also keep discussing the timelines, limitations, scope and other such grounds with the team.

Avoid any Obstacles- the success rate of the offshore development project entirely depends upon how efficiently you can deal with the conversation and explaining the requirements. Offshore teams are located all over the world and this only reason can cause many barriers in the communication so it is better to take a pause and consider all the necessary elements which might cause the interruption.

Use General Vocabulary- we are discussing geographical terms, so it is obvious that there will be some common errors regarding the sophistication during the conversation. In order to avoid any misunderstanding or overlooked event, you can give large credit to precise words and short statements explaining your proposal.

It is not faint-hearted to say that managing the offshore dedicated team is a difficult task. With the right mindset and clear approach level you can easily take heed of the suggestions and alleviate your company to another level.

Hire Pre-vetted & High Performance Remote Teams

Trump Cards by Hiring Offshore Teams

The offshore project development team shoulders the responsibility for every business dynamics efficiently. It is even considered wise for the businesses to outsource the project in most of the cases for plenty of benefits including but not limited to-

24/7 Project Development Cycle- The ultimate weapon in outsourcing the project is time and it is in your hands to utilize it the most.

Working With Experienced Professionals- Not every business platform is capable of hiring experts under all circumstances. Hence if you are looking for cost-savvy options but willing to work with highly skilled professionals then you can approach the outsourcing model.

An Increase in Efficiency– Working with an offshore team guarantees the involvement of cutting-edge Technology because the production can accelerate at an unprecedented rate.

Cultural Dimensions- It is a cherry on the top as the cultural diversity can be extended to different levels of benefit in both parties.