In-house teams have become less critical for modern businesses. According to research from Statista, nearly 70% of the workforce in the tech sector works remotely.
The past few years’ events have proven that remote teams can work as efficiently as those working from office locations. Thus, several companies have chosen to hire from global tech talent and become even more agile whilst delivering the expected project results and cutting project costs.
Software development outsourcing is not a new trend, but it has gained massive momentum after the pandemic. Moreover, this momentum is not slowing down soon.
Nevertheless, how do companies stay flexible whilst working with a remote team, and how do they ensure the efficiency of the development process?
What is the agile methodology, and how does it pair with nearshore development?
This article will tell you how a dedicated team of nearshore developers use agile software development to deliver sustainable business value to an organisation.
What is agile software development?
Agile software development is built on several principles in which software development requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration between self-organising cross-functional teams.
Agile methodology promotes flexible planning, evolutionary development, early delivery, and continuous process enhancement and also emphasises rapid and flexible responses to change.
There are numerous reasons that agile software development is so favoured.
- Firstly, agile software development permits more flexible and iterative development than traditional waterfall methods. Agile means that software developers can react fast to changes and new requirements, and the end product has better quality.
- Secondly, agile methods encourage close cooperation between developers and customers, leading to a better understanding of clients’ needs.
Agile software development can be executed in several ways, but there are common elements that are commonly involved. These include:
- Flexible planning.
- Short development cycles.
- Close collaboration between developers and customers.
- Constant testing and feedback.
- Continuous improvement.
Agile software development is a good choice for software projects with tight deadlines or if you decide to use a software project outsourcing company. It’s also appropriate for situations where customer involvement is essential, as the agile approach encourages client feedback and collaboration. Furthermore, organisations with short product life cycles can find agile methodology helpful for their business growth.
What are the advantages of agile software development for projects?
Thanks to its evolutionary nature, agile software development has become a popular software project management method. Agile’s iterative approach empowers developers to make gradual progress whilst delivering measurable results throughout the software development process.
Every party involved in the project monitors the developmental progress through iterations and makes timely changes based on user, stakeholder and partner feedback.
The advantages of agile software development are:
Cost-effectiveness
Cost-effectiveness is a necessity for every business, organisation or government and is one of the principal reasons outsourcing is considered in the first place. Agile nearshore software development gives them precisely this.
Agile nearshore development projects are more cost-efficient when compared to other projects using the waterfall methodology. With increased efficiency, enterprises and organisations can cut project costs and avoid project costs spiralling out of control.
Easier adaptability
Agile software development allows for more agility throughout the development process. Agile development teams are better suited for new feedback and possible alterations at each development phase.
Subsequent amendments or changes are discussed and implemented in the following sprints. When clients need to change the project’s goals, an agile team at Helmes will quickly react to the new objectives and switch to them without losing momentum.
Better communication between vendor and client
Naturally, agile developers from a nearshore agile development company must have their input in the project, and agile relies on continuous and clear communication between clients and the team.
Clients can voice their input clearly so that all aspects of the project are considered, alterations and made, thus, improving the product as it develops to serve the business goals better. Being nearshore, the vendor will likely have similar cultural traits, be in a similar time zone and be more likely to understand what the client is attempting to convey.
Cultural and time zone differences
Often overlooked when hiring for a nearshore agile software development partner are a partner’s time zone, cultural proximity and work ethic.
Working alongside teams with similar work ethics and cultural values is imperative to ensure a successful project outcome. Add language proficiency, slight time zone difference, and highly skilled experts, and a client has the perfect blend of specialists providing agile nearshore software development services.
Better flexibility to react to project challenges
Agile software development nearshore projects do not always go to plan. Challenges and issues crop up in any project, and one of the principal goals of the agile software development approach is to confront those challenges as soon as possible and remember them before they delay the entire project delivery.
The central concept of nearshore agile development is to produce incremental progress whilst making the correct iterations to address incoming concerns and challenges. The agile development team is flexible to react to any circumstances throughout the project’s development. This way, the development team guarantees that their agile nearshore software development services conform to the client’s needs.
More control for clients
Agile allows our clients to receive regular updates and progress reports. Companies can provide regular feedback to the team to ensure the project is heading in the direction the client desires. Again, clients can control the progress through constant communication with the agile development team if they choose to be deeply involved in the project.
Fast hiring and scalable teams
Nearshore software development cuts the costs of hiring professionals and enables clients to hire them much faster.
Having a nearshore agile development partner means clients can rely on the precise number of specialists to complete a project and save weeks of scouring over CVs, interviews, and contract negotiations of potential hires.
Using professionals from an agile nearshore software development company means a team can be assembled in weeks, begin working faster on your project and deliver tangible results much quicker.
Moreover, clients can scale their teams faster as well. Agile nearshore development allows allocating as many specialists as a project needs when required so that clients can expand their team according to the project’s needs.
Increased predictability
Agile teams work in sprints that last a set number of days or weeks, during which the agile development team achieves specific goals and showcases partial deliverables. This way, clients can understand the dedicated team’s capacity, predict the project’s outcomes, and make better decisions for future sprints.
Agile is focused on producing results, and clients apply specific metrics to measure the project’s progress.
This paints a clearer picture of their project’s development and delivery, with clients better understanding the resources needed to develop the product and subsequent costs and timelines.
Most agile nearshore development companies state that agile procedures result in better-quality products. Naturally, the quality of the final deliverable would depend on the specialist expertise of the agile nearshore development company clients partner with and the overall project approach.
Working with agile nearshore developers offers many advantages, but how do you know if you need it?
What to consider when hiring an agile nearshore development company
When opting for agile nearshore software development, companies consider these key points:
- Define the project scope and objectives upfront. Besides, being explicit about your strategic goals is vital to excellent cooperation. This approach will help the nearshoring partner understand your needs and expectations and allow them to provide more accurate project estimates.
- Make sure team members are on the same page regarding project management and communication. Agile nearshore development requires close collaboration between the client and the development team, so it is crucial to establish clear communication channels from the start.
- Be flexible. Agile development is about making changes and adaptations as the project progresses, so clients must be ready to accommodate their plans accordingly.
- Trust in a partner. Despite the distance, there is a strong need to build open and transparent communication with your agile nearshore development company.
- Remain patient. Like any software development project, an agile project can encounter unforeseen delays and setbacks. It is pivotal to stay focused on the final product in that case.
With agile nearshore software development services, organisations can restructure and change during times of crisis while accessing an extensive pool of talent and staying responsive to dynamic business changes.
Although agile nearshoring is not the answer to every challenge, it is a powerful solution to harness the potential of an organisation’s software development process.
Agile nearshore partner for international brands
Why Helmes as an agile nearshore development company
Most businesses and organisations outsource their software projects, mobile app development or data analytics because they can harness more third-party specialist skill sets that they may not have in-house.
Plus, using an agile nearshoring development company is typically more cost-effective than employing local custom software development professionals.
Simultaneously, most organisations are concerned that outsourcing to partners in time zones too far from their own contains more risks, namely cultural and time zone differences, delays, communication concerns and a general perceived lack of control over the software project and its subsequent outcome.
Nearshoring with Helmes has the benefits of traditional outsourcing methods whilst eradicating its flaws.
Our combination of agile and nearshoring development can guarantee the success of a software development project in several ways.
By leveraging the benefits of agile methodologies and the talent and expertise of nearshore software development teams, our clients have improved their software development processes and delivered better-quality products.
In addition, our agile nearshore teams can help your company get the most out of software development projects and sharpen your competitive edge long-term by being more flexible and responsive to change.
Moreover, the agile teams at Helmes adopt sustainable software engineering – embracing energy efficiency, environmental sustainability, and not over engineering code within software projects and mobile app development.
Helmes is an international agile nearshore development company that assists companies operating in various industries, from telecom and insurance to banking.
Helmes has enabled organisations to access a future-back approach to transformation and ensures our clients receive maximised business value from their products.
