Offshore Development vs Onshore Development

Companies both big small such as multi-national companies, start-ups and even local businesses are looking into what the offshore development business model offers. Offshore development was only something that large global companies engaged in many years ago due to the geographical and language challenges that existed. Today, these are both not a factor as the communication and transparency challenge are both negated due to the technology that has come into everyday life. First, let’s discuss what exactly is offshore development as well as what why it has become such as a popular as well as viable option for many companies across the world.

✓ Offshore Development Model
Offshore development means the process of outsourcing your development needs such as web, mobile or even custom software development to countries such as India, the Philippines, Ukraine and so on. The reason why people look at offshore web or software development is mainly the cost-savings that is had, the time that can be saved as well as to minimize internal overhead or costs. The offshore model has been around for a long while but with world becoming more global and technology making it easier than ever before to communicate to anyone no matter where they are located, the demands for offshore development have increased substantially due to how easy it has become.

The offshore model is used for multiple things not only offshore software or offshore web development such as customer service, data-entry, cold-calling along with many more BPO or KPO processes. The main reason is that a person in India or any other developing country will cost significantly less when compared to the US, UK or Australia for example to name a few Western countries. The bottom line is that if you are able to find a good offshore development partner, you can really save yourself time, money, HR headaches and other operational expenses. The key is to find a good offshore partner who has the experience, expertise and technical skills to accomplish what you need whether that maybe be a simple website or even a run a fully operating customer service center.

✓ The Onshore Model
The onshore model is when the work whether that be web development, software development or anything else is not outsourced or offshored to another country. It is done locally in your country by the people that live within it. For example, if you need a website developed, you would get it done by a web development agency within your country such as the US, Europe or Australia. The benefits are obvious such as they will understand the local culture, communication will not be a problem as well as it will be easy to explain to them what you need comparatively to someone outside your country. Lastly, they will not be any time difference compared to an offshore development partner in some cases.

Cost is the main difference between the onshore and offshore development model. The cost will be much more to hire a local development person in the US, UK or Australia for example when compared to hiring someone in a developing nation such as India, the Philippines or Ukraine for example. An onshore development partner will also be able to provide you other local expertise that an offshore development partner will not be able to. What makes business sense for you is ultimately your decision.

✓ Which One Is Better?
The magic question of which one is better really depends on what type of work, what type of budget and who you actually choose to work with. Just because you work with an onshore or local partner doesn’t mean that you will be happier or your experience will be better by any means. If money is no issue and you have a true need for someone to understand your local culture, then the onshore development model is what you need to choose to go with. If you don’t have a huge budget and are looking for something that does not require local expertise, then the offshore development model is what you should go with. Offshore development can really save you time, money and much more when it comes to getting what you want done easier than you imagined. The key is to find an offshore development company that knows what they are doing and has done what you need in the past or at least has the complete expertise to deliver what you are looking for. Finding a suitable partner is by no means an easy task but if you take the necessary steps to find a suitable offshore company, then you can really get a lot accomplished. For example, if you are located in the US and work with an offshore development company in India, you can get work done while you sleep due to the time difference which can work towards your advantage. Choosing to work with or not to work with an offshore development partner or an onshore development partner is really a case by case decision which needs to be carefully evaluated. If you are able to find a suitable and experienced offshore development partner, you can get a lot accomplished without breaking the bank. If you are looking for an experienced, trusted and affordable offshore development company, please feel free to reach out to the team at Mind Digital for any of your development needs you have, big or small.