How to Coordinate Your Workflow With a Nearshore IT Outsourcing Team

A Good Workflow is Key to Success

Working with a nearshore IT outsourcing team can seem a bit daunting at first. After all, transferring control over your project to another party might not be something all business leaders are used to. Luckily, it doesn’t have to be that way. Nearshore teams are one of the best IT outsourcing solutions for software development. Thanks to the advanced digital tools we have today, it almost seems like they are working in the next room.

However, outsourcing is not as simple as passing a list of needs to someone else and expecting excellent results. It requires both the client and the provider to work together towards common goals. That’s why every development process must establish a clear workflow, which will vary from organization to organization.

Here at BairesDev, we believe that an efficient workflow will almost infallibly lead to a successful project. Without it, teams are bound to become confused and hesitate too much before moving forward. This one goes out to all managing teams looking to keep outsourced teams on track and on budget.

The 5 Levels of Communication

Any workflow comes down to how effectively you can communicate with your nearshore development team. More often than not, businesses will designate an internal team that is constantly available to communicate with the outsourced team. This team is led by the Product Owner, who will strive to keep as close as possible to project and shorten feedback loops. The role of this person is to:

Facilitate communication
Boost product innovation and creativity
Follow a product development roadmap
Maintain a detailed backlog

Knowing this, let’s break down the different levels of contact businesses have to keep in mind when nearshoring, and how they can step up their level of participation.

Chat tools

It is very likely you are already familiar with productivity-oriented chat applications, such as Slack, Wrike, or Stride. These work for establishing easy, frequent, and real-time communication channels. As the simplest way of sharing information between parties, they are able to achieve remote, but not distant, cooperation.
Daily catch-up calls

Catch-up calls are great for getting quick progress updates and discussing any urgent issues. Their extremely brief duration (no more than 15 minutes) means that everyone will bring up only whatever is relevant for the moment. As a client, you can confirm if the process is still on schedule and get daily reminders on where the project should be.
Backlog Meetings

Development teams work with Agile methodologies, which means they meet regularly to refine the product backlog, clarifying requirements, estimates, and blockers. Participating in these backlog meetings will make it very easy to help your IT outsourcing team to stay on track and set priorities straight.
Sprint reviews

At the end of each sprint, the development team will get together and review their deliverable work. This event is a must-attend when outsourcing IT services. The Sprint Review is the moment where the team needs the client’s feedback the most since that's the only way to tell if the project is fulfilling the client’s vision.
Face-to-face meetings

Setting up face-to-face meetings with nearshore development teams is easier than you might believe. Being time zone and culturally aligned, your outsourced team will require less planning to make things happen. This level of contact is great for building trust and rapport between both parties, which leads to smoother cooperation down the road.

Collaboration Hacks

Tips to help you in any type of Nearshore Software Outsourcing Project

Exercise transparency
Transparency means keeping open communication channels at all times while also being very clear about the goals and project deadlines, especially at the beginning of the relationship. Being very specific and leaving everything on writing is a huge boost.
Don’t exploit urgency
When everything is urgent, the value of the word decreases severely. Try to establish keywords for identifying task priority, so that the team can focus on the things that matter the most. At BairesDev, we use Trivial, Minor, Normal, Major, Critical, and Blocker.
Share a Cloud Workspace
In modern software development, this is a must. Putting progress on cloud-based workspaces will help everyone keep up to date with progress and collaborate more easily, while also making everything accountable in real-time.
Use the Same Project Management Software
If both parties use the same project management software, completing the backlog and prioritizing tasks will be a breeze. If you do not have any experience with your outsourcing partner’s software, keep in mind most of them are very similar and intuitive, so getting on board shouldn’t be an issue.
Ask Lots of Questions
It is normal for companies to get a bit lost throughout the development stages. Sometimes, it might not be clear why something takes time or why something is done a certain way. Asking questions not only clears your doubts but also creates an atmosphere for free movement of ideas. Don’t be afraid to speak your mind, suggest solutions, or express concerns.
Simplify ideas
Both the client and the provider will have their own jargon and a heavy bag of knowledge from their industry. Talking in complex ways and expecting the other to understand will most likely make things go slower. Both sides should try to use analogies and explain things in business-related terms at all times.

The Benefits of Working with a Nearshore IT Outsourcing Team

As an IT outsourcing company, we provide solutions for all types of enterprises. We have a wide range of services, all led by the top talents in the field using cutting-edge technology. Here’s a quick list of the benefits of software outsourcing we offer our clients in every single project:

Access to Top IT talent: Our multiple-location distributed approach allows us to tap into various pools of global and regional talent. We select the most skilled professionals and match them with our clients’ project requirements.
Quick implementation and scalability: No matter the size of the company, we have dedicated teams of engineers ready to prioritize growth and results. Our software development services get any project running on Day 1.
Guaranteed performance and reliability: At BairesDev, every development team is led by senior developers with 10+ years of hands-on experience. As IT partners, we are prepared to take on any current or future issues.
Reduced focus on IT management: BairesDev has an extensive range of specialized services and areas of expertise. We help our clients focus on their core business, rather than spending time and resources on other endeavors.
Tech expertise and know-how: We have invaluable expertise in outsourced software development projects and full-cycle custom software solutions.
Money and time savings in labor costs: We provide on-demand talent and technology solutions, helping businesses bypass everything from talent hunting to hours of training to office supply maintenance.
Risk mitigation and crisis relief: Security is one of our top priorities. We guide our clients throughout the world of cybersecurity, neutralizing every possible threat as the project develops.

Getting Started with Software Outsourcing

If you are contemplating the decision of working with an IT outsourcing company, it is essential to find the right match for you. As a starting point, consider your project’s schedule, identify your available internal skills and resources, define your budget, and establish clear goals and outcomes.

At BairesDev we can develop your product from start to finish, or handle individual segments of the process for you. We offer world-class software product development services from requirements and systems analysis, architecture and design to development, testing, migration, and deployment. Contact us today.