Challenge of Outsourcing
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The document discusses the challenges of outsourcing, including communication barriers due to lack of nonverbal cues and time zone differences. It offers solutions such as clear communication, well-documented requirements, and the use of various project management tools to enhance collaboration and efficiency. It concludes by highlighting the benefits of outsourcing, such as cost savings, increased organization, and access to a skilled workforce.
Challenge of Outsourcing
- 1. Challenges of Outsourcing Shaer Hassan CEO, Nascenia IT www.nascenia.com
- 2. Differences • They are not in your payroll • You can’t see them often • You can’t communicate them as easily
- 3. Challenge 1: Not in Payroll • Development Team not in payroll. There remains a psychological barrier in communicating to them
- 4. Challenge 2: absence of nonverbal • Non-verbal communication consists of two- thirds of the communication between two persons • Nonverbal communication: body language, facial expression (smile, frown, surprise etc.), even touch and smell are completely absent.
- 5. Challenge 3: time lapse • Time lapse in communication. It’s not like go to the next desk and give some instruction. • Difference in time zone • You might not feel comfortable to dial a number any time of the day and discuss an issue right away.
- 6. Address Challenge 1: not in Payroll • Communicate the expectation and requirement clearly – responsibility of both the parties. • Understand and make understand the business domain • Understand that delivering working software is paramount important • Act like members of a single team
- 7. Address Challenge 2: Nonverbal • Use humor carefully. Humor can be regarded as sarcasm. Understand cultural difference. • Be clear. Make the requirement well- articulated. Be rather over-communicative. • Save the warmth of communication for video call.
- 8. Address Challenge 3: Delay in communication • Be organized • A well documented requirement saves hundreds of hours and millions of dollars down the line
- 9. Tools to use • Mails: Communicate the requirement at first • Skype: Making understand the business domain, clarify understanding • Yugma / Skype screen share: Clarify understanding, showing demo (if reqd.) • Google Doc and spreadsheet: communicate requirement at first, for managing a very small project • Project Management tools: During development phase – managing a small to large sized project
- 10. Project Management Tools • Basecamp: very basic, easy to setup and use • Pivotal Tracker: Provides little more flexibility • Version one, Target Process, Mingle etc.
- 11. An Outsourcing Story 1. Client Mark sends email: “I need this work …, can you do this?” 2. OSD Fuad replies: “Yes we can, sends some work example or references to prove expertise” 3. Mark sends spec often in a doc or spreadsheet. 4. Fuad sends back Questions on spec and domain 5. Mark sends reply or set up a meeting 6. Fuad estimates time, milestones and cost 7. Mark and Fuad negotiate and agree on price and estimate 8. Mark sets up project management tool (OSD helps on that) 9. Mark provides access to existing codebase (if any), to version control e.g. Git, SVN. 10. Fuad and his team starts work
- 16. Outsourcing Story (cont.) • After finishing milestone sends invoice • Client make wire transfer • Repeat…
- 17. Success Rate • 98% for us • We have been doing it for more than 5 years. Nobody complained about communication issue in last two years. • People all around the world are have been doing it for tens of years!
- 18. Brighter Side • You are automatically becoming organized. All your requirement and bugs are documented and threaded in a project management tool. • You are in good hand of professionals who have experience of developing myriad of software
- 19. Brighter Side • Projects are completed often faster. Hey! They aren’t in your payroll! They want to finish the work, get paid and move on!
- 20. Brighter Side • You become efficient, flexible, competitive and agile. Focus on your core business.
- 21. Brighter Side • You save money: – Save by paying at the rate of a low cost living standard. – Save by not keeping developers on your payroll round the year. – Save by not paying for the training and overhead cost. – Save by avoiding hassle of hiring and retaining programmers.
- 22. Brighter Side • Supply meets your flexible demand. • You achieve workforce productivity
- 23. Bottom-line • With the expense of organizing and streamlining your communication, you save your cost, time, effort and hire an experienced and large team offshore!
- 24. Thank you shaer@nascenia.com