How to Communicate with an Offshore Dedicated Team in 2022

TRIARE
7 min readDec 2, 2021

Creating dedicated teams entails collaborating with a vendor to engage anything from two to a few dozen tech workers who will be completely focused on your tasks. This method is more dependable than typical outsourcing, which involves developers working on many projects simultaneously.

What should we expect in 2022? Probably, western companies will need even more specialists all over the globe. 61% of US recruiters report hiring developers as their biggest challenge. Thus, embracing remote work and outsourcing provides the most convenient solution to meet the talent demand.

Besides talented and qualified people, recruiters are looking for good English speaking and writing skills. To know more about Ukrainian knowledge of English, let’s see the statistics — an English Proficiency Index in Europe.

Although Ukrainians are not at the top, the IT industry becomes there is more prevalent: an increasing number of people begin studying English to get an excellent job in the IT field.

Check out the difference between In-house Team, Remote Team, and Dedicated Team!

Thanks to DAXX’s recent research, we have a complete picture of how many nearshore software developers are and how much they earn in Eastern Europe.

Among eight nearshore development centers, Ukraine ranks second by the number of specialists after Poland. However, the average developer salaries in Ukraine are significantly lower than neighbors’. We are sure that knowing the simple rules of communication will help anyone succeed in any sphere, including offshore business.

How can offshore teams use communication effectively?

Hiring dedicated developers offshore helps leaders expand their businesses with skilled professionals they cannot hire in their own country. It is crucial to communicate effectively in order for all employees to reach an understanding.

You may be familiar with or have an idea of the daily routine if you are now working as an outsourcing company or are considering doing so. Misunderstanding with an offshore software development company might rise to the level of concern if not managed properly.

In 2022, this issue will be more important than ever. Thus, we explain the successful connection from the position of a remote service provider. More significantly, we highlight the actions that any development business must do in order to succeed. This info was gathered from our staff, clients, and partners and might save you a significant amount of time and energy.

TRIARE knows more than enough on effectiveness and high performance. Check out the article about us saving money and time for our clients.

What causes failure in communication?

Sometimes clients face difficulty effectively communicating their message to a digital firm and vice versa. What appears to be evident is frequently ambiguous for a developer or project manager from a different cultural milieu. We were astounded when we sought out our network to determine the most painful causes of misunderstanding. There was no new information, but it was unexpected that these reasons persevered in the industry despite the company’s continuing tendency to outsource talent abroad.

Let’s look at the leading causes of the trouble communicating.

Maintaining Poor Communication

To be continually informed of the present status of development, a service provider must maintain a regular communication practice. Sad to say, this is not always the case. Emailing should be done frequently — daily or weekly — to track progress and explain the workflow. Meanwhile, custom website development teams draw a blank from the service provider. They either combine synchronous and asynchronous communication, email vs. Slack messaging, or fail to follow up at all.

Different time zones

Staff reduction in the development sphere occurs due to poor time management. The time difference between Ukraine and California, for example, is 10 hours. Such a huge number of hours of time difference requires more time devoted to scheduling work hours to avoid problems. But very often, little attention is paid to this, and difficulty occurs. The trouble is exacerbated if the team does not guarantee that at least a few working hours overlap. However, if the staff completes the prior responsibilities and sends all relevant info to the Western office, the project gains time in the form of ongoing progress. ​

Processes

Processes are crucial since they include numerous things such as deadline reminders, precise estimations, and progress updates. All of this reporting, managing a large number of minor jobs at the same time, and the website development process becomes jumbled as the project grows. If there is a problem with a small workflow, consider what occurs when this problem scales up.

Quality issues

This brings us to a common result of poorly managed processes: a challenge to maintain quality. Companies can compromise it by hoping to deliver quickly. As a consequence, they provide unfinished websites and software that have not been subjected to the necessary quality assurance procedures.

Rushing things does not guarantee a good outcome. One should not forget that delivering high-quality goods, even in small numbers, will benefit your company’s reputation as an offshore development supplier. So that such issues do not arise, both parties should be engaged in comprehending one other.

“Nobody will remember how fast you did it, but only how well.”

By the way, did you know that TRIARE Triare was recognized as a leader in software development? Click here for the details.

Tips on Successful Offshore Team Communication

There are tried-and-true methods for regaining control, which will help you to organize effective communication. Nevertheless, in order to have a noticeable influence on your business processes, they must be activated on a regular basis.

Establishment of daily routines

The first significant step is to have systematic team and group meetings and guarantee that other stakeholders participate. Day-to-day teamwork can be a crucial component in the process performance of all teams. In case a “buddy relationship” is established between the offshore and onshore personnel, which is beneficial for both. It is necessary for three primary reasons:

  • It simplifies the process and guarantees that work is performed in the right sequence.
  • It provides any further training that may be required as jobs (particularly unusual ones) are performed.
  • It gives a possibility for both sides to ask questions.

The third reason is put above all others as when it is not happening, and major problems are more likely to arise. Let’s be honest: the aim of collaborating is to have questions addressed. You can ask a dozen queries to your in-house coworkers every day and don’t even realize it. This is also important for addressing the majority of consumer issues — one colleague pushing others to find answers or remedy problems before they escalate.

In addition to this, asking for details can also benefit from building a pleasant working place. Creating a practice to ask questions can make others feel comfortable enough to ask inquiries that will benefit the entire company. Asking some questions can also assist in establishing a trustworthy and honest workplace.

We recommend that software outsourcing businesses arrange a group video conference with stakeholders. If you use Slack or another messaging platform in-house, make sure they are as well. Speak by voice as often as possible, and use video when possible. However, it is critical to constantly have an agenda and restrict the length of these conversations.

Workflow management

It is claimed that 90% of all interactions are nonverbal, which is also the most prevalent source of “losing in translation.” Wherever work is done, there is no reason not to have some form of the process control program. It doesn’t have to be elaborate, flashy, or anything more than a simple to-do list. However, it must be understood by everyone. Furthermore, it must include a method of conveying your priorities and monitoring who is responsible for them.

Embracing a culture of open-mindedness

We all have those situations when we feel misunderstood, unheard, or even helpless. Building an open and routine communication culture will help in improving the work environment and uncover knowledge difficulties.

Through the use of video/voice and text, conversations have a significant influence. There are a great many things we can’t do via email. We must accept that our work will continue to be spread extensively.

The indisputable fact that one will not be able to interact with the offshore team as readily as with someone in the real office is frightening. However, by adopting this notion and conserving some patience, you will be on your approach to making them work for your offshore team with the customer more productive.

If you are currently putting together your own software development business, take into consideration our benevolent pieces of advice to get along with the IT services provider. The final outcome will be well worth it!

Also, see the benefits of hiring Ukrainian web developers for your business!

View more articles on the TRIARE’s official blog.

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TRIARE

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