International cooperation: 5 benefits of having a remote tech team
A local team of programmers or a foreign one? Tough choice. What are the pros and cons of cooperation with a foreign company and how to decide? Let’s investigate.
How does working with remote tech team really looks like?
Let’s imagine: a start-up at an early stage of development, which bases its business on technologies, information systems, the Internet and mobile applications. It consists of a small harmonious team of 3-4 people, one of them being responsible for the technical side. Unfortunately, it might be complicated for one person to cope with every technical demand, especially if he has other duties, for example, investor relations, hiring employees, etc.
This company has a deadline from an investor and must quickly create a so-called MVP — Minimum Viable Product, a model that meets certain business assumptions and allows you to test a given tool, service or product with users and develop it further on the basis of their comments. The company can’t catch everything, time pressure causes slow work and stress. How to make the process more effective? The best decision is to hire subcontractors, who have the resources for quick development of products.
And now the team must decide on a local or foreign company. More than often, a foreign company is the best choice.
Problems we cannot ignore
To be fair: problems happen. We should realize and calculate all risks connected with international cooperation to do our best.
Misunderstandings in project valuation and communication are the main enemies of effective work!
The client must be informed about problems in the development process. Sometimes it happens that after a few months of cooperation, it turns out that the application is not working properly, conducted tests didn’t give positive results and the way to release is longer than the software house estimated. There are also reservations regarding code quality. Its structure and cleanliness are really important! The lingua franca of programmers is English and it is a rule. That is why we should pay a lot of attention to the company’s ability to communicate to minimize disagreements between parties.
Effective and transparent communication is a must-have of every business! A guiding principle of a good company is to inform clients from the very beginning about the methods of cooperation, cost estimation, and project management approach. By addressing all of these elements, companies set the ground for building trust and maintaining it during the project.
Why is international cooperation worth it? 5 benefits of having a remote tech team
Economy of time
“Lost time is never found again.” — Benjamin Franklin We agree with Benjamin. Time is very precious and international cooperation saves it and uses it with advantage. You can find teams all over the world which will meet your needs and as a result, win time for you. Teams you can always count on. When looking for local experts, the choice is limited. But let’s make use of the fact that we are in the era of technology! The world is wide and open! You can choose specialists all over the world and find the best for your business. A competent team saves not only nerves but time and money.
Saving money
The price, obviously, is a very important part of a project. It often turns out that employing 2-3 full-time programmers in Poland is a cost comparable to one person’s employment, e.g., in Norway or in Israel.With international cooperation, it is always possible to easily reduce the project team from, let’s say, 4 people to one programmer who will continue to maintain the product after its release. Hiring local programmers does not offer this flexibility.
Communication skills
A developer is not a mysterious person who sits in the darkroom and codes! It is someone you can speak with, explain your ideas, share your doubts and fears. Competent experts are always ready to help, and they are always close. The client receives not only a team of programmers but also testers, project and account managers — people who are advisers and helpers for the best result. A wide choice of foreign teams will give you such an opportunity. When there’s a will, there is a way.
Always close to you — closer than you think
Maintaining constant contact is very important when you need help. We live in a digital world and distance is not objecting while working with a skilled team, even if you are hundreds of kilometers apart. Technologies make it easy to conduct video conferences and share test versions of applications. In spite of this, live communication is still an important part of the work process. Clients are frequent guests in our office, despite the fact that we work remotely on a daily basis.
Experience and trust
The most meaningful values for companies are experience and trust! The working experience, gained from cooperation with dozens or hundreds of companies from various fields, will help to find the most appropriate solutions for your project. What is more, it is easy to temporarily enlarge your team when you are working with a remote team of programmers. You can always find a person, who meets all the requirements for your project. Obviously, the more qualified products we make and the more our work is competitive, the better the image we create.
Just do it!
Are you still concerned about cooperation with a foreign company? You always can ask and clear up any doubts. Competent specialists will let you in on everything your company needs.
If you want to know more about cooperation with a software company, be sure to get our free e-book.