Are you trying to hire an offshore IT team? Hiring a team offshore means that you save money and time while gaining access to the expertise you might not be able to find locally, but it’s not always easy. But how do you find an offshore development team? The usual methods of filling your vacancies, like conventional recruitment agents or job boards, don’t apply in this situation. You may have also heard about scams doing the rounds, leaving companies with uncomplicated projects or with their code held hostage by unscrupulous agents. 

In this article, we’ll show you how to hire an offshore software development team and find the best possible people for the job. 

How to hire an offshore IT team

You can find offshore developers for hire in almost any country in the world, but some of the most popular locations are the Philippines, Ukraine, Romania, India, and China. Bear in mind that every area comes with its own benefits and its own challenges as well. 

1.    Understanding the challenges

When you hire an offshore team, you have to prepare for a few challenges. Labor costs are cut down, but finding the right talent and the right cultural fit may take time. You may need to tier your work across different geographies to fill every role, but then you’ll need to juggle different cultures, labor issues, and currencies. 

2.    Hire with reduced turnover in mind

Many offshoring companies do not follow good labor practices. This can have a significant impact when you hire offshore programmers. If the staff is stressed and poorly paid, you won’t have a highly motivated team. Similarly, if the offshoring employer or agent doesn’t communicate the job very well, there may be a mismatch between the employees’ expectations and the actual work, which could lead to turnover. If an agent or hiring manager doesn’t ask questions about the work or seem interested in what their developers will do, it should raise a red flag. Start with good communication from day 1. 

3.    Build a good employer brand 

Don’t forget to impress your developers. Even though they are hired on a contract basis and will work for numerous companies during their career, they should still feel good about their decision to work on your project. Prepare a few materials detailing your vision for the company, who your customers are, and what you’d like to achieve in the future. If developers feel inspired, they’ll stick around and give it their all. 

4.    Anticipate changing hiring needs

Bear in mind that you may need different skills or additional developers (or fewer developers!) as your project evolves, especially if you are a start-up. Make sure that you speak to your offshore agents about your expectations and give them early warning if things are going to change. If they don’t have the right skills on their books, they may need time to prepare (or may not be a good fit) if your needs change. And at the same time, you should find out what would happen if you decide to scale down. Could you get a discount, for example? Are there penalties? Can you swap out roles and add different skills? Knowing what your expectations are upfront will help the agency meet your needs when they change. 

5.    Screen a few candidates

If you are working with an offshore agency and hiring an entire team in one fell swoop, make sure that you speak to a few candidates before making a final decision. You need to ensure that the developers will match your customer orientation, culture, and language skills. Keep a close eye on the way your offshore team leaders and agents communicate. If communication is generally poor, that should be a red flag. Always ask for references from clients who have completed projects with the team or the agency in the past. 

Conclusion

Now you know how to hire an offshore IT team. Do your research, stay cognizant of the challenges up ahead and have a plan for the future you can present to the agency so you can find the best team for the job. It will be worth the effort.