There’s certainly no shortage of ways to find on-demand tech talent today. Over the last decade, a multitude of outsourcing companies have launched to connect companies to software developers across the globe.
A challenge for many startups and established companies, however, is finding quality, highly-skilled talent with in-demand skills. If you’re looking to scale or expand by outsourcing your software development projects, it’s important to choose the right partner to help connect you to the best talent.
Outsourcing your software development needs can help you scale faster and surpass your competition
When it comes to outsourcing development, the African continent—particularly countries like Kenya and Nigeria—is a growing outsourcing hub offering companies many benefits. Africa offers benefits similar to long-established outsourcing hubs like India, with benefits including:
A growing, highly-skilled software engineering talent pool
English is among the most spoken languages in Africa, with countries like Nigeria and South Africa taking top positions
Labor costs are lower in comparison to those in North America, Western Europe and some Asian countries
In fact, GitHub’s latest annual State of the Octoverse report revealed that developers from Africa created 40% more open source repositories on the software engineering marketplace over the past year—a higher growth percentage than any other continent globally.
As economic growth in legacy hubs like India and the Philippines leads to wage increases, companies are looking to new markets for skilled remote, cost-effective tech talent.
Despite the growing number of software engineers in Africa and around the globe, finding the right outsourcing partner is not something to rush into. There are few things you must consider before engaging with an outsourcing partner. Here are three tips that will help you find the right outsourcing partner, and ultimately the best tech talent to help accelerate your company’s growth:
1. Clearly outline your project’s requirements and budget
To get the most out of your experience with an outsourcing partner, you must clearly outline your project’s requirements. It’s important to provide critical information and requirements to your outsourcing partner to ensure they are able to connect you to talent with the skills you’re looking for.
Having a solid understanding of your business needs and goals will not only set your company up for success, but also make the most of your time and resources. Simply put, finding the right talent for your company is dependent on your ability to clearly define your business and project objectives, and determine what success would look like.
The more specific your requirements, the better. Failing to do this could lead to costly rework down the line or even after the project’s underway. Additionally, although most outsourcing partners may be able to interpret vague requirements, there’s still potential for costly misunderstandings. Be sure to look out for partners with the skillset to help you define your requirements if necessary.
Although one of outsourcing’s main benefits is its cost effectiveness — please remember that quality service will never be cheap. Communicating early about your budget will ensure that you use your company’s resources effectively. Just like outlining your project’s requirements is important, so is being clear about how much you are willing to invest in your project. Before selecting an outsourcing partner, be sure to have a realistic understanding of what you’d like accomplished and whether you have the budget for it.
2. Make expertise an important factor in the hiring process
Once you’ve outlined your requirements, you can now begin to reach out to potential outsourcing partners. It’s best practice to reach out to at least three vendors so you can assess their expertise and capability to meet your needs. Key factors to consider when evaluating potential fit:
Technical knowledge and expertise
Large talent database with in-demand skill sets
Proven track record of solving problems
The right outsourcing partner will be able to connect you to the talent you need. If a prospective partner expresses a lack of expertise in certain technologies, save yourself the trouble and find a partner that does. For instance, if your product/technology is reliant on data— be sure to look for an outsourcing partner with data science expertise.
3. Choose a flexible partner
Today’s ever-changing environment makes flexibility more important than ever when building products or managing projects. Selecting a flexible outsourcing partner will enable you to meet the demands of your customers, no matter what arises. This is especially important when your outsourcing partner is in a different time zone.
Outsourcing partners with access to talent willing to work in various capacities is also important. There will be times your company may need a small team of developers for a 6-month project. Other times, you might need one dedicated developer on an on-going basis. Finding an outsourcing partner with the ability to cater to both is critical.
Many companies are often faced with the following challenge: onboard an in-house team or outsource the project. Regardless of the stage of your company, outsourcing presents many benefits and offers a way for you to reach new milestones and scale to new heights. Companies across the globe are outsourcing and it can prove to be a solid growth strategy for your company.
WeJapa connects companies like yours to highly-skilled technical talent on the African continent ready for full time, part time, contract opportunities and everything in between. Our process is pretty simple:
You provide us with a talent request order (Job Description or Stack list) to enable us analyze and process your needs
We hand-select the top candidates based on the criteria you provide
You’re matched within a week
We have a growing database of thousands of software engineers, data scientists, and product managers that can fulfill your project’s requirements. Send us a note at hr@wejapa.com to learn more about how WeJapa can help you hire top tech talent and accelerate your business’ growth.