Software outsourcing is not a generalized approach for a company. Every company has different needs and solutions for projects to be completed by the right team. There are three options a company can hire for projects between in-house staff and an outsourcing partner:
- Extended team
- Managed team
- Outsource team
Each team has a different purpose and solution to offer depending on the project and the project’s workload a project manager needs help on. But the question remains: What are the differences between the three teams and how can each team help a company with a final product?
Extended Team
An extended team lets the in-house project manager oversee the project while using an outsourced team, even from abroad. Unlike an outsource team, an extended team only brings in people to help develop the project than the entirety of the project. Extended teams share the project between an in-house project manager and a small, outsourced team of engineers. By extending the team increases the capacity and flexibility to scale a project quickly and increase the delivery of products based on the changing consumer needs. The company and the in-house project manager remain in charge of the project and all aspects of the project’s development during the entire process.
Managed Team
A managed team is similar to an extended team and an outsourced solution. The project manager is outsourced from another company to develop a company’s project and using the company’s in-house engineering team. The outsource project manager reports to the company’s product owner to ensure the project meets the company’s need and solution. The outsource project manager and in-house product owner will discuss the project’s needs and solutions in order for the outsource project manager to make key decisions for the in-house product owner as communication will be sporadic and limited. The engineers that comprise of this managed team is from Software Architect to Scrum Master.
The team at VUSE uses this approach to ensure skilled, talented engineers deliver quality products while sharing the risk and responsibility with the company.
Outsourced Team
An outsourced team is the traditional and least hands-on option. An outsourced team oversees the entirety of the company’s project. The company will outline the project’s needs and requirements and the outsourced team will return a finished project by a specific deadline. The in-house project manager will have little to no communication with the outsourced team during the entirety of the project.
The team at VUSE is an experienced development partner, delivering reliable and cost-effective custom software solutions from smart customization of pre-developed platforms to full-cycle software development solutions.
Choosing the Right Team for you
Choosing the right team for your company’s project depends on the following three factors:
- Level of flexibility
- Time commitments
- Project requirements
Each of these factors should be considered on choosing the right team to develop the company’s project.
Still unsure which team is right for the company? Let’s look at some examples of different size companies and their solution needs.
A Startup Company
This company is small and is developing a brand-new line of products to meet the consumers demands. The company’s software will need to be continuously updated and changed as it continues to develop new products. This company will benefit more from an extended team as it let’s the company’s in-house project manager constantly communicate the company’s needs to an outsourced team that can quickly adapt and change the software. For the company to use an extended team, it can deliver products on the company’s terms without hiring more in-house engineers.
A Larger Company
A larger company that has many employees releases new software on a schedule. This type of company needs a team that does not overstretch the in-house project managers who are more focused on larger company projects. This type of company will benefit more from an outsourced team that can deliver the final product by a specific deadline. The company will create a contract and set a work agreement with the outsourced team for specific projects to be completed by the outsourced team. Using an outsourced team means less room for last-minute changes the company can demand on the team.
A managed team will fall between these two types of companies, depending on the company’s needs and solutions. If the company’s project manager is overburdened with other projects but the project requires in-house management and project flexibility, a managed team will be the better option to fill in the gaps the company has to complete the project.
Finding the right team for a project, a company needs to consider carefully and with exact precision what the project will demand on the team. The team at VUSE offers options to augment and support the company’s in-house development teams to help scale and deliver finished projects on time. Whether it is an extended, managed, or outsourced team, the delivery and execution of the project will be worth the savings.
