Imagine this: you have an amazing idea for a new software application. It could be a small, specialized tool for business, or it could be a social media platform that attracts millions of users. Regardless of what kind of application it is, the question is: how are you going to turn your idea into reality?
You’ll need a development team, of course, but more importantly, you’ll need to decide if you’ll have your developers work in-house, or if you’ll outsource them. This decision can make all the difference in the world as to whether your idea will fail or succeed.
Unfortunately, there’s no cut-and-dried way to tell if in-house development or outsourcing is right for you. It all depends on what your objectives and your project requirements are. So let’s take a moment to lay out the advantages and disadvantages of choosing one development path or the other.
With an in-house development team, you have the opportunity to maximize your software application’s value by having developers who are seamlessly integrated into your organization and can quickly translate changes in scope or strategy into software products or services that are ready to ship.
In short, in-house software development can give you a high-quality team that can deliver excellent results, but the cost, time of hiring and retaining talent can be a source of trouble. That’s why many organizations have turned to outsourcing to meet their development needs.
With outsourcing, an organization turns to an external vendor (domestic or foreign) to deliver their software needs. The reduced costs and effort associated with outsourcing make it an attractive option for organizations looking for a viable software solution.
Besides the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing, there are two flavors of outsourcing model you should be aware of: to build a product from scratch, or augment your existing staff with remote workers.
Get inspired by our article “Take Advantage of the Dedicated Development Team Model“.
Having a vendor build a software product from scratch is what many people envision when they think of outsourcing. With this type of vendor, you will contact to have a technical solution provided to you, after agreeing to requirements, a budget, and timelines for delivery. The vendor hires the developers, who then work on your project, as well as whatever other projects the vendor may be contracted to deliver.
Team augmentation is a kind of hybrid approach, combining elements of outsourcing and in-house development. If you have an existing team of developers on staff but need additional talent, you can use team augmentation to get the talent you need quickly, while letting the vendor handle the administrative details. You can choose the developers who are right for your project, knowing that they will be solely dedicated to your project for as long as you need them to be. The range of available talent is even bigger with team augmentation than with traditional outsourcing. At the same time, you can benefit from the advantages of having in-house developers, as mentioned above, without having to commit as many resources or deal with potential talent shortages in your area.
As you can see, you have many things to consider when hiring a software development team. Either approach — in-house or outsourced — can work, depending on your needs and your constraints. And with team augmentation, your range of options expands even further. Whatever you choose, remember that what matters most is that your software idea gets delivered to the market; so follow whatever path you think will make that a reality.
