The Truth about Remote software developers teams vs software houses

Once you have a new software idea, the next natural question you ask is usually ‘how can you turn it into reality?’. But more precisely-

WHO will turn it into a reality?

Software development and technical product development need a team of software engineers to spec, scope, manage, execute and deliver your vision. If your vision is ambitious, it’s best you work with experts who can drive your vision forward. You need a team for that.

Some questions you may be asking is whether the team will work in-house at your premises or will you outsource them and have them part of a remote team. These are important questions to be asked before you embark on your new software project. This decision alone can be the deciding factor of whether your project is successful or not.

Assessing your project's objectives and requirements will determine which solution fits your project. There is not a one-size-fits-all resourcing solution for all projects.

Let’s take a closer look at both of the development paths so you can get a better understanding of what approach best suits your project.

Traditional thinking has usually been that a team in-house is a team that can be seen, managed and therefore trusted. There is also the idea that team members are only productive if they are physically present in the office. That is one of the reasons why leaders choose to hire an in-house team instead of a remote team. Another reason is the desire to build a core in-house team for the project, requiring close cooperation between all team members and retaining the company's culture.

The COVID pandemic, though, turned both these ideas on their heads. Companies overnight had to adapt to their staff working remotely from home, in some cases transforming whole businesses and working cultures.

We know that companies such as Amazon and Salesforce have made their development teams the key to their strategy. Let's take a look at the pros and cons of an in-house team.

Full-time employees within the team can lead to better work results. Developers who are guaranteed a full-time workload tend to be more motivated to deliver successfully against project goals.

An in-house team is overall more involved with the company as a whole, with a deeper understanding of the nuances of how your organization operates and privy to the company’s strategy.

An in-house development team gives you the opportunity to maximize the time and resources available. You can get the most out of your software application’s value by having developers who are integrated into your organization and can translate changes in scope or strategy into software products. Your development team is the heart of the whole project.

It’s easier to talk to one another in person when sitting in the same building together. There is less chance of information going missing or miscommunication.

With any setback, bugs or unexpected changes to the project, in-house developers can respond to everything faster and take action immediately to solve problems.

On the downside, in-house development is:

Keeping developers as full-time staff members is expensive. Having an office where your whole team works can end up being very costly - salaries, taxes, benefits, hardware, office rent, licenses and equipment. It all adds up!

There is high demand for top-level software development talent. If a better opportunity comes around, team members could choose to leave mid-project resulting in delays, unexpected expenses for hiring a new employee and onboarding that resource into the project.

Since the talent pool is local, it becomes very challenging to find top talent for your in-house development team within the area where your offices are situated. The people you choose need to have the right skill set and previous experience that applies to your project. It’s also important to keep in mind the budget for the whole project. Finding the right match can be time-consuming and costly to recruit.

So in-house software development is a great way to set up a quality team entrenched in your company’s culture, that can deliver great results. But the downside of cost is the time spent hiring localized talent and managing the team as a whole can be challenging.

A local talent pool is not the only option to deliver successful projects, and this opens up many opportunities for cost-saving and access to increased skills.

This is the reason why many companies have decided to outsource their development team.

With it becoming easier to connect and communicate with teams across the world, it’s a no-brainer to start thinking outside the box and start exploring outside of your local city limits.

In today’s connected world, you can put together a global team of top talent to work on your project virtually.

Let’s take a closer look at how you can organize and manage a remote software development team.

When you decide to outsource your software development talent, you will work with an external remote global talent service provider.

The advantages of outsourcing software development are:

Outsourcing development to skilled resources in countries where living expenses are not as high, it translates into paying lower costs for those skills. Wages, payroll, taxes, benefits and overtime will always be less than what you’re used to paying in the USA or Europe. This ensures much more bang for your buck!

When you outsource to a remote team, there is flexibility in being able to use resources only for specific aspects of the project or deliverables and then ending work with them when it’s delivered. It’s a far more cost-effective way to work, ensuring project profitability.

The outsourced software development market is rich, providing specialists in all different kinds of technologies and specialities. Looking for talent remotely is a lot faster- you can hire a professional top talent team with the skillset and experiences your project needs in a few weeks, instead of months it takes to hire in-house talent. Scaling a project up or down is easier with a remote set of resources. Going through an external vendor, you can adjust the services you use, project timelines and even add or remove team members as needed.

When you are outsourcing projects to resources outside your company, you are giving up a lot of control over the development process and sharing it with a vendor who you might never even meet in person. This includes confidential information, proprietary code and intellectual property and it’s vital that you secure this information with a mutual Non-Disclosure Agreement, which states what is and is not allowed to be discussed or used outside of the company.

Working globally, you can run into difficulties with communication within the team. Depending on where your outsourced talent is located, you may have to take on differences in time zones or overcome language barriers. These can be mitigated by using different productivity tools like Trello, Asana or Basecamp which makes workflow and management of tasks a lot easier for every team member.

As you can see, there are many things to consider when looking for and hiring a software development team. Either approach- in-house or outsourced talent can work. It comes down to your company’s needs, goals and objectives. Whichever option you choose, the end result is what matters the most. Your project is unique and therefore needs to be approached accordingly. Choose what works the best for your company!

TransData is a global digital technology services company that specializes in delivering customized solutions and products tailored to your specific needs. Our team of talented professionals is committed to ensuring successful project delivery using modern processes. We begin every project with meticulous scope vetting and complimentary project consultancy to ensure it gets off to the best possible start. Our services are flexible, allowing you to scale up or down as needed, and we provide guidance on navigating contracts, SOWs, and managing the safe payment of talent.

If you're looking to take your business to the next level, schedule an exploratory call with us to discuss how our software team can help.