Full Guide on Remote Software Development Team

In recent years, many businesses have been outsourcing areas of their software development work to remote software development teams across the world. Since the coronavirus outbreak, people have been unable to work from the office, creating a global trend of remote work. At the moment, 1 in 5 workers are working remotely, and 98% of workers desire to work remotely, at least occasionally.
But what are the benefits of hiring remote software development teams, and what are the pitfalls? In this article, we tell all about this, including tips and steps for successful remote team hiring.

A remote development team is a group of IT specialists hired from various locations, mostly abroad, to work on a specific project. This approach helps businesses cover specific skills needs, cut operational costs, and access top talent without being restricted to a single geographic location. The client can hire a few specialists to strengthen the existing on-site team or build a remote dedicated development team from scratch.
The use of tools like Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Skype, and others allows teams to effectively collaborate remotely and maintain real-time communication.

There are multiple different reasons why companies choose to look for and use remote software development partners such as:

• Reduced development costs
• Faster results
• Saving money on physical premises
• Operational costs optimization
• Wider talent pools
• Higher employees’ productivity and loyalty
• Reduced employees’ turnover

However, remote work in software development — or any other industry — is no longer a mere trend. Today, it’s the only possibility to keep your business afloat. As the coronavirus hit the world, many businesses were left to scramble for solutions to adjust to the new pandemic reality. Offices were forcibly closed due to the quarantine measures, and all the software engineers were working from home. The main benefit of the in-house teams — daily face-to-face communication — was no longer applicable as all the teams had already moved to the online communication channels only. So, it seemed to be the best time to consider outsourcing some of the previous in-house functions to cut costs and mitigate the risks.

The global economy bounced back quickly from the initial shock, returning to positive growth in 2021. That year, it reached 96.3 trillion U.S. dollars and is projected to keep growing in the years ahead. Despite the positive dynamic and the opportunity to come back to the office, the trend of remote working is strongly incorporated into the work approach.

As one of the leading IT outsourcing providers with 10 years of experience working with clients from the US, Canada, Australia, Sweden, Norway, and the UK, Leobit shares how to find your ideal remote team and transition your business into remote mode as smoothly as possible.

As it was already mentioned, the main reason why so many companies have been outsourcing their work to remote software development teams is due to the enormous benefits it provides to business sustainability. Let’s go over the specific advantages of remote software development and assess if it is appropriate for your business requirements.

Benefit #1. Reduced Development Costs

Under the threat of an economic crisis, it’s essential to save money without sacrificing the product’s quality. One of the most important benefits of hiring your remote software development team abroad is that this allows you to get the work done at considerably lower costs if compared to hiring a full-time employee on-site. Outsourced companies usually have a per-hour or per-month rate, so you can decrease your costs according to your current needs. Depending on your software development needs, you can decide between a short-term and long-term cooperation model or consider outsourcing your full software development function or just a part of it.

Benefit #2. Shared Responsibility

If the success of your business depends on the quick reaction and immediate adaptation to the quarantine conditions, an outsourced remote team is the best solution for you. The priority of such teams is ensuring the quick development of your ideas into products and features, resulting in pretty fast delivery of your products and services to the competitive market. Sharing part of your responsibilities with an outsourced partner will help you focus on your core values and improve the company’s overall efficiency. While the project manager and delivery department of the provider’s side will take control of the development process and quality output, you can focus on other income-generating activities.

Benefit #3. Faster Results and Enhanced Productivity

Hiring a remote development team will allow you to boost productivity and enhance your competitiveness. When it comes to proper teamwork and enhanced productivity from the start, it’s better to hire a software development company able to provide an established team of experienced remote developers rather than an independent freelancer who’ll need time and proper guidance for the usual forming-norming-storming-performing routine. This way, you won’t need to spend time and effort managing each person separately, their performance, and teamwork. At the same time, well-established outsourced companies can provide you with ready-made, dedicated teams of developers who have been working together for a long time and can deliver quality results from the start. Such teams are well-coordinated and used to remote communication, freeing you from a managerial burden.

Benefit #4. Wider Choice of Quickly Available Professionals

Outsourcing gives access to a more extensive talent pool and helps you find real professionals who are ready to work on your project. By looking further than your city or town, you can get a team of highly knowledgeable software engineers not available in the local labor market. When outsourcing to a software company, you are given on-demand access to a pool of developers, quality assurance engineers, designers, architects, etc., for your long-term or short-term project needs. You can easily adjust your team size according to the project requirements at different stages of development, and there is no need for you to hire a full-time employee if you only need a couple of weeks of their time.

Benefit #5. Risk Reduction

One of the key benefits of running a remote team provided and managed by an outsourced vendor is risk mitigation. Outsourcing the part of your activities allows you to transfer all project risks to the external part. A remote team of engineers plans all the risk-reduction factors for you and guarantees delivery on time and within budget. Outsourced companies also have extensive experience in configuring and setting up secure remote work processes, so you don’t have to worry about compliance and safeguarding your sensitive data.

Outsourcing software development to remote teams broadens business growth opportunities and gives more flexibility. But just like any other approach, it has its own drawbacks that are worth being aware of.

1. Communication Difficulty

One of the most significant drawbacks of remote teams is the communication barrier created by the absence of face-to-face interactions. Despite the fact that digital tools like emails, chat platforms, and video calls offer alternatives, they often fail to reproduce in-person communication. This can lead to misunderstandings, slower decision-making, and the potential for key information to be missed or misunderstood. Additionally, for smooth communication, a good internet connection is crucial, which can also be an obstacle due to some regional infrastructure limitations or connectivity issues.

2. Time Zone Differences

Remote development teams often work across multiple time zones, which can create substantial scheduling challenges. It also affects real-time cooperation when the team from different locations has to work on the same tasks and needs to discuss everything within the process. This can hinder important decision-making and feedback loops, probably leading to slower project timelines. Sometimes, important meetings or brainstorming sessions might need to happen outside regular hours, which can feel inconvenient and affect team energy and focus.

3. Difficulty in Performance Monitoring

Tracking the performance of remote software development teams is sometimes more complex than in traditional office settings. Without physical oversight, managers often find it challenging to estimate an employee’s workload, work quality, and progress on tasks. Although digital work tools can provide insights, such as tracking time spent on specific tasks, tracking progress, or monitoring code commits, they may not be enough to fully comprehend.

4. Cultural and Organizational Disconnect

When a team is spread out across different locations, maintaining a consistent company culture becomes more difficult. Organizational values, goals, and traditions can easily get lost in a remote setting, where employees may not feel as connected to the company’s mission. The absence of in-person interactions and company-wide events can also make employees feel disconnected from the organization, thus reducing a sense of belonging. Over half (53%) of remote workers report feeling less connected to their coworkers. This cultural gap can also impact how decisions are made, how feedback is delivered, and how employees engage with one another professionally.

After discussing the main benefits and drawbacks, we can now focus on how to set up a remote team correctly. Here are 5 tips to ensure seamless communication with your outsourced development team.

Tip #1: Hire the right specialists
Tip #2: Set Clear Expectations and Deadlines
Tip #3: Provide Regular Communication
Tip #4: Assign a Responsible Person
Tip #5: Be Mindful about Time Zones

Tip #1: Hire the right specialists

Initially, successful partnership with remote developers begins at the hiring stage, so it’s one of the most important processes that can pave the way for reliable and long-term cooperation. Look for developers who not only meet the technical requirements but also align with your company’s culture and values. Assess their communication skills, problem-solving abilities, and adaptability during the interview process. These soft skills are just as important as technical expertise when working remotely.
Also, build your team based on your project’s needs. For complex tasks or setting up processes, hire experienced developers who can take the lead. Junior developers can support simpler tasks but should work with mentors to grow and stay productive. A balanced team ensures better collaboration and results.

Tip #2: Set Clear Expectations and Deadlines

Make sure that your remote team is fully informed about your communication protocols, project specifications, and any other work rules you’d like them to keep to. Setting clear expectations in writing is always helpful for any remote cooperation and will help both sides to organize the work process better.

Tip #3: Provide Regular Communication

When you work with a remote development team, it isn’t as easy as popping into the room next door if you have an issue. You will need to contact the team another way. Make use of tools that can boost the communication flow and streamline the working process, such as Slack, JIRA, Trello, Google Hangouts, etc. It is important to make sure that all relevant project updates are in a timely manner.

Tip #4: Assign a Responsible Person

When outsourcing software development services, you will lose some of the control over the development process. This can be easily overcome by appointing one person from your company responsible for the regular contact and reporting. It can be a product manager or a team leader who will pass on your requirements to the team and will also be the contact point in case any clarifications are needed.

Tip #5: Be Mindful about Time Zones

Bear in mind different time zones when scheduling meetings, sending messages, and checking in. In this regard, Ukraine is a perfect offshoring destination. It is just one hour ahead of most European countries and several hours ahead of the EST timezone. At Leobit, we are always ready to adjust the team’s schedule to ensure at least 3-4 working hours overlap with your timezone and have daily visual communication via GoToMeeting, Zoom, Slack, or any other channel of your choice.

Lviv, Ukraine is one of the best strategic and most attractive centers for IT outsourcing and remote software developers hiring. The city has huge IT potential and the largest number of Ukrainian developers and specialists now working in distributed teams for companies abroad. According to IT Research Ukraine, Lviv and its region now host 599 tech companies, up from 192 in 2015. This growth over seven years means 28% of all Ukrainian tech companies have offices in the area. Now Lviv is home to more than 51,000 IT professionals.

Most Lviv-located companies specialize in providing IT outsourcing services and are ready to staff you with well-adjusted remote teams immediately. The majority of Lviv software development service providers work with clients from the USA, the UK, and the Nordic countries. Such a profound experience of remote teams resulted in the English language literacy of developers. Research by the IT Ukraine Association shows that over 80% of Ukrainian IT specialists have intermediate or higher English proficiency, which helps make communication smoother and more efficient.

Lviv has an advantageous geographic location. It can be highly beneficial for you when looking for an outsourced remote team here. The time difference with most of the European countries is just a few hours. Lviv also has a more convenient time to overlap with the US than other outsourcing destinations. It ensures smooth communication of a remote team with the clients.

Ukraine is quickly becoming Europe’s leading software development center, with places such as Lviv at the forefront. Today’s economic fallout doesn’t necessarily have to affect businesses negatively. It can be just the right time to take a turn and consider outsourcing software development services and optimize budgets and operations. An excellent place to start may be contacting Leobit’s experts to learn how an outsourced remote team can help your company cut operational costs and deliver faster!