Key Points to Consider When Building Your Development Resource Sourcing Strategy

Innovation in the tech environment moves at lightning speed, and no business can afford to fall behind.

With tech demands outpacing traditional resource sourcing, businesses in fast-moving sectors such as e-commerce and fintech are increasingly searching outside the in-house box to fill development capacity and capability needs.

Balancing core business functions and service quality is challenge enough for most in-house IT teams. Add industry-disrupting innovation and emerging technologies to the list, and the scales quickly threaten to tip over.

There comes a point where businesses face a choice:

• Put development on the back-foot while prioritising mission-control projects and risk falling behind the competition, or

• Increase in-house headcount, or

• Outsource.

The majority choose to outsource — and for good reason.

80% of retailers rely on software development outsourcing, with the market revenue predicted to reach $103.9 billion by 2021. Source: Statista

The wide variety of models within the resource sourcing space means the decision-making doesn’t stop here.

Businesses that see the greatest success in outsourcing have a clear understanding of their goals and requirements right from the outset. This involves weighing up factors such as cost, risk, quality and project control, and subsequently mapping them against business goals to make the best decision.

At BrightBox, we’re acutely aware that getting a grasp on those specific business needs can be a challenge in and of itself. Especially when making your first venture into outsourcing, searching for the right delivery partner, or gauging the scope of work needed to form a long-term strategy.

That’s why we decided to put together a comprehensive Global Sourcing Approach that covers all the bases.

Our Sourcing Approach lays out all the key considerations every business should consider before settling on a resource sourcing strategy — from understanding your team’s capability to choosing between resourcing partners and sourcing models.

As the saying goes, “fail to prepare, prepare to fail”. Getting clear on your options will allow your business to reap outsourcing rewards while keeping risks to a minimum.

Why so many organisations outsource development

Before choosing a resourcing partner, it is vital to consider why you need outsourcing in the first place. It goes without saying that any specialised solution you select must match up with your business needs.

The initial decision to outsource is always based on a combination of factors: cost, flexibility, speed to market, and access to industry-leading tools and processes being the frontrunners.

Data from the Deloitte Global Outsourcing Survey 2020 shows that at 70%, cost considerations come out on top as the leading driver of outsourcing. Considering that the Covid-19 pandemic has rattled business models worldwide and across all industries, this comes as no surprise. Businesses can save up to 30% on operating costs by teaming up with an outsourcing partner — making a convincing appeal to ROI.

But while the cost is the number one reason to look outside of in-house talent sourcing, there are plenty of other factors for companies to consider. Given the uncertainty of the current economic climate, being reactive wherever possible is a must — except when it compromises the quality and innovation needed to stay ahead of the curve.

This is precisely why flexibility comes in second place. At BrightBox, we have seen a rapid shift towards agile solutions within the resourcing sector. The ability to rapidly respond to demand and market share changes make flexibility non-negotiable for businesses in fast-paced sectors such as fintech or e-commerce.

While in-house recruitment can be a painstakingly time-consuming process, working with a resourcing partner ensures that there is always a specialist on hand — whenever and wherever you need the capacity and capability.

Download your Free copy of 'Our Global Software Sourcing Approach'

Includes the Four benefits of finding the right fit for your business