In my previous entry, I mentioned that scaling a business in a sustainable way can be challenging. Many enterprises find the idea of developing an in-house software team, dedicated to product development, much more expensive than their company’s current situation can handle.
It is not a surprise then that a growing number of startups and scaleups turn to IT outsourcing – and the list includes famous brands such as WhatsApp and Slack.
There are many benefits of this approach, but they boil down to one crucial fact. Outsourcing some or all of your software work boosts the output of your growing company without raising your fixed costs. This increased flexibility can be a game-changer, especially if you struggle to quickly hire the right talent locally or your business has already embarked on the scaling journey.
When looking to outsource your IT operations, one of the first things you will need to decide on will be the region in which you’ll look for your future contractors. There is one place many people think of when it comes to cheap IT outsourcing – and its associated problems.
Luckily, there are other promising destinations – like Poland – and I will mention some of the reasons you should give it a go. But first things first, let’s define crucial concepts to guide your search.
The most common options you could consider when looking to outsource IT operations are onshoring, nearshoring, and offshoring.
Onshoring involves relocating IT processes to another location, usually within the national borders, for instance to another region where rates or availability of the services you require are better than in your locality. Onshoring helps to achieve better output and flexibility without extending the payroll.
However, the majority of developed countries lack skilled specialists – last year, Germany alone was short 82,000 IT staff – which pushes businesses to look for software developers abroad.
The first option – offshoring, also known as farshoring – involves outsourcing IT operations to contractors in distant locations, including the ones in different time zones – mainly because of lower costs and economic differences. A common offshoring destination is Asia.
Even though offshoring brings immediate benefits, such as cost reduction or quicker turnaround due to work round the clock, it actually may not be the best strategy for mid- and long-term business plans. The risks associated with the quality of coding translate into the increased challenge of its control, incurring additional costs and liability. The story of the Max software issues leading to a pair of deadly Boeing 737 crashes proves this point well enough.
Having tried farshoring, many European companies experienced first-hand how deep cultural differences can effectively hamper project execution – and so has their interest in nearer IT outsourcing destinations revived.
Nearshoring helps to maximise business efficiency while reducing the barriers of farshoring. Seamless communication, little or no time zone difference, multiple cultural similarities, and cost-effective travels make this type of IT outsourcing more secure and viable.
Many growing businesses enlist IT outsourcing companies in nearby locations, very often just outside the borders of their countries. For German businesses, typical locations include CEE countries, Poland in particular. In the last few years, it has become one of the top IT outsourcing destinations. Here are some reasons you should get interested in it, too.
It may sound boastful, but Polish software developers are among the best in the world, or at least that’s what competitions such as HackerRank’s Programming Olympics prove, ranking Poland as third in the world. Polish software engineers usually boast at least one HE degree in STEM–and each year approximately 40,000 ICT graduates enter Poland’s IT talent pool.
At the same time, O’Reilly’s data demonstrates that salary median of Polish developers falls in the middle of CEE’s pricing levels–meaning that Polish developers are far more affordable than the ones from the UK, Switzerland, or Sweden.
Outsourcing to Poland from Switzerland or Germany means practically no time zone differences, which helps to streamline development processes.
The city of Wroclaw, where Scalo is located, is only a few hours drive from Berlin, making it a favourable nearshoring location for businesses headquartered in the German capital. Also flying to Poland from anywhere on the European continent usually doesn’t take longer than 2 hours.
A member of the European Union, Poland shares similar cultural values, customs, and references. The way Poles work and manage their organisations and projects is close to what you can experience in the Western European countries – helping to ensure smooth communication without significant cultural gaps.
As part of the European Union, IT outsourcing companies in Poland are well-versed in strict regulations concerning data privacy and personal data processing. Ensuring compliance with GDPR will not be a problem for Polish software developers.
The IT market currently accounts for 3.3% of Polish GDP, and it grows at a stable rate of 5-10 per-cent a year. Poland has also fostered a thriving ecosystem of innovative tech startups – focused on everything from fintech, to SaaS and hardware.
If you want to find excellent programming skills at a reasonable price with the added benefit of proximity and security, then look no further than Poland. Contact us and let’s talk about how Polish software developers can boost your business growth.