Nearshore software development services offer a strategic approach to outsourcing tasks to neighboring countries. For instance, a company based in the UAE, Kuwait, or Saudi Arabia outsourced its software development needs to a nearby country like India.
As businesses continuously seek innovative solutions with cost management, world-famous companies consider nearshore software programming. Intel, IBM, Microsoft, and HP (Hewlett-Packard) employ nearshore IT development as a cost-effective solution for their tech needs.
For businesses who want high-quality software development and proximity to their time zone, nearshore development outsourcing is best for them. They can partner with nearby countries and access skilled talents with an ideal balance of communication, profitability, and cultural fit.
Whether you are a startup, SME, or an enterprise, nearshore software development can help you grow faster, reduce risks, and stay ahead of the competition. If you’re looking for an optimized software development process, it might be time to take a chance, considering the immense advantages of choosing nearshore.
In this article, we will discuss everything you need to know regarding nearshore software engineering, including its benefits, costs, implementation tips, and how to choose the right partner. Let’s move forward!
What is Nearshore Software Development?
Nearshore software development is an outsourcing model in which companies hire dedicated software developers from nearby countries within similar time zones, often focusing on regions with shared languages or cultures to outsource their IT projects.
Why Is Nearshore Software Development an Ideal Choice?
For example, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and UAE companies outsource to top software development service providers like Excellent Webworld in India because of the 2-hour time zone difference. Due to the small gap in time-zone differences, it becomes easy for clients and nearshore software developers to communicate in real-time. Also, they can fly to meet and discuss the project requirements in person without spending long hours on flights.
Important Figures on Nearshore Outsourcing
Types of IT Outsourcing Models: What’s the Difference?
Among the top three types of IT outsourcing models, you learned about nearshore software development outsourcing in the above section. However, to get a broad picture of outsourcing, it’s essential to understand the other two alternatives of nearshore development:
Let’s understand the difference.
Onshore vs. Nearshore Development
Onshore development outsourcing is the practice of hiring software development service providers in your own country. A good example of onshore outsourcing is when your company is situated in Abu Dhabi and you hire web developers in Dubai.
The closer your team, the simpler it becomes to track project development and other connected operations. But if you are limited by budget, this practice is not for you. Onshore software development is for those who do not have budget concerns. Because this service generally comes at a higher cost.
Typically, onshoring in developed regions like the USA, Canada, UK, Western Europe, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and UAE is expensive because of the higher living costs. Besides, many of these countries lacked skills and experience in popular software development frameworks locally.
Based on your location, nearshore software development can be the best outsourcing option. All your issues regarding communicating during working hours, paying higher hourly rates, and getting work from skilled tech professionals are resolved with the nearshore software development model.
Offshore vs. Nearshore Development
If you compare nearshore vs offshore software development, you will find one similarity, where clients hire developers from different countries. The difference between these two outsourcing models is the geographical proximity between the client and the hired team. That means the client and development team are located in distant countries with a time zone difference of more than 4 hours.
For example, one of Excellent Webworld’s clients is in the USA, but they have outsourced their mobile app development project with us as their offshore development team in India. The client and our company share a 10.5-hour time zone gap. Similar to nearshore software programming services, offshoring is also an outsourcing practice that allows access to tech talent at a lower cost.
To understand better, let’s use examples of Gulf countries that choose India for IT outsourcing.
6 Key Steps to Choose the Best Nearshore Development Company
Typically, it’s important to consider project requirements, developer’s skills, communication method, credentials, and countries to outsource software development when choosing a nearshore custom software development company. Check the following to learn the top 6 ways of finding your best fit.
1. Define Your Project Requirements
As every industry is different, the requirements and challenges are different for every unique business. Before connecting with any nearshore software development team, evaluating your project needs will be good. For example:
Key-Questioners for Evaluating Project Needs
By listing answers to questions like this, you can find out your core project needs and develop a clear proposal.
2. Research for Potential Nearshore Developers
Suppose you have your team and are confused between in-house or outsourcing hiring for new developers. In that case, IT outsourcing allows you to access talented and skilled developers in multiple regions at affordable prices.
There are several nearshore developers available globally. With the careful evaluation of developers, you can identify the best match for your organization. Ignoring proper parameters and skill assessment, you are risking the quality of work delivery and miscommunication.
Instead of going through all this, invest your time researching potential developers with the skills, experience, and working methodologies that perfectly fit your team.
Find your perfect match in search of nearshore software developers by:
Check This to Find Out More On Steps & Sources to Hire Developers
3. Verify the Developer’s Credentials
Before proceeding with the final hiring of shortlisted developers, perform due diligence to make sure they have lived up to their claims. This way, you ensure that all the risks of miscommunication or fallouts are prevented after finalizing the team.
Some popular ways to find out the credibility of software developers:
1. Explore portfolios or case studies of developers you are outsourcing.
2. Check outsourcing companies’ reviews on independent directories like Designrush and TopDevelopers.
4. Evaluate Collaboration Methods
In addition to the same working culture and time zones, collaborating with a nearshore software outsourcing partner needs a proper arrangement. So, ask your potential nearshore partner about the preferred ways and tools they choose for communication and streamlined project management.
Ensure better collaboration by having details of the following:
For example, to stay on track, it’s important to take regular updates regarding project progress, discuss changes, and give feedback to developers. For that purpose, some clients and their nearshore software developer teams use communication and project management tools such as Trello, Slack, and Jira.
Besides tools, it’s equally essential that the candidate or developer has an established collaboration workflow. Connect with them and learn how they track and measure progress to reach a product-market fit for your project.
Pro Tip: Consider working with developers who apply agile methodology to quickly work on changes based on feedback received.
5. Consider Cultural Fit and Communication Practices
Nearshoring is all about getting benefits from cultural and language similarities, but some exceptions exist. Even though being a neighboring country, some countries may have different working cultures and languages than yours.
It’s essential to find nearshore regions convenient for you in terms of communication and working culture. This way, you can ensure better workflows and an understanding of the project needs and progress from both sides.
For instance, Australia and China share a time difference of only 3 hours, making them a possible nearshore destination for outsourcing. However, most Chinese developers only speak their local language and are not so fluent in English communication.
Also, they share a different working culture and principles than Australians. In this case, outsourcing to Indian software development companies like Excellent Webworld is better for Australian clients.
6. Interview the Software Developer
A face-to-face interview with a software developer is a must to identify red flags before signing a contract.
Nearshore IT development allows you to find nearshore software developers with similar languages, time zones, and cultures. Even with this feasibility, communication issues can disturb your project goals. Even with this feasibility, communication issues can disturb your project goals. Therefore, you can identify the weak matches early by conducting face-to-face interviews with the candidates.
Interviewing nearshore developers before making an informed decision allows you to learn more about them. Remember, once you hire a developer, you commit to a long-term partnership, and reducing risk at an initial stage is suitable for your project’s health.
Check these interview questions for candidates to help you better understand their communication skills and expertise in software developer technologies.
Top 6 Benefits of Nearshore Software Development
The vision of outsourcing by top business leaders is to divert their focus to marketing and growth. For example, popular brands in Gulf countries outsource their mobile app development projects to Indian software development companies to expand their digital presence in the Middle East. Similarly, you can leverage the benefits of custom software development in different ways by outsourcing with a nearshore development team.
1. Overcome Talent Shortages
Nearshore outsourcing allows you to hire talent to fill vacant positions quickly and without the burden of training. With nearshore developers, companies can expect to receive the best work on their projects. They can fit into your team without taking longer to get comfortable and add value to software development projects.
2. Access to Skilled Developers
With limited skill sets, you can’t develop the best software solutions that solve problems for end users. If you have to find a different developer for each skill set, it ultimately costs you a lot. Instead, nearshore software development outsourcing has a broader range of talent pool than the local job market.
Without providing large salary packages, you can get the advantage of hiring talented developers with multiple skills you need in nearshore locations like India. Connect with software development consulting companies to understand the required skill set for successfully developing your software. They can also help you provide skilled developers or find the best nearshore development companies that fulfill your project needs.
3. Overcome Language and Cultural Barriers
Transparent communication and an easy understanding of project requirements are the core bases for smooth collaboration between companies and outsourced teams. By connecting with nearshore developers, the chances of miscommunication get reduced, and it enhances your project outcomes.
4. More Affordable Than Onshore
The nearshore software development model is more affordable than hiring onshore developers, especially considering the developer’s salary, benefits, and overhead costs. As the cost of living is lower in nearshore regions than in developed nations, you can hire talented nearshore software developers at affordable prices. This advantage can help you with software project estimation, considering budget while maintaining work quality.
5. Real-time Collaboration
Nearshore software programming is about outsourcing to neighboring countries, and they generally share similar time zones. There is a maximum of 3 hours of time difference in nearshore IT development. This lets you connect with the outsourced developers in your time zone and working time. You can make quicker decisions on problem resolution by working in real-time. Ultimately, this leads to steady development and faster project delivery.
6. Reduce Travel Time
The flight time is shorter in your neighboring country, so if you hire a nearshore software development team, you can visit them in hours. Essential meetings for your project can be held quickly and with less travel time and flight costs with nearshore software development services providers. For example, if the company from Dubai outsourced with an Indian company for their embedded software development needs, they can easily meet within the flight time of just 3 hours.
5 Best Tips To Implement Nearshore Development Successfully
You need the best nearshore software development strategy to complete your software project successfully. Careful planning, clear communication, and a strategic approach are the essence of building partnerships to get work done as expected. Let’s explore the top five tips that can help you implement nearshore software programming successfully.
Nearshore Software Development: Challenges and Solutions
Nearshore software engineering is known as the ideal IT outsourcing model in terms of cost, quality, and delivery timeframe. However, there are a few challenges that you must be aware of. Let’s learn about some nearshore development challenges and their strategic solutions.
1. Differing Expectations
There is a chance of getting different opinions on project requirements and goals from clients and nearshore developers. This may happen due to software developers misunderstanding business needs.
Pro Tip: Setting expectations between you and your outsourced developer is crucial. You can achieve this by providing precise plans, documentation, and milestones to the developer regarding the agreed objectives.
2. Data Security and Compliance
In categories such as fintech development and healthcare app development, security is the most important; you can’t ignore it. You also have to comply with respective industry standards and regulations. Otherwise, you are at risk of being fined. So, it’s important to implement data on protective measures.
Pro Tip: To protect customers’ privacy, get onto the solution of implementing data security measures with nearshore developers. Know if they are familiar with complying with security acts such as GDPR, PCI-DSS, and HIPAA. At Excellent Webworld, we know the importance of data protection and give you developers who excel in building cloud security solutions.
3. Inconsistent Progress Updates
Nearshore web development and software development projects get sidetracked and set on a lower priority if the nearshore developer fails to report to you periodically. Without establishing proper and consistent active communication, your time gets wasted on checking the development status.
Pro Tip: Never let your busy schedule avoid taking updates on project progress with the nearshore software development team. Establish a reporting channel between you & developers with familiar tools. Set key milestones and bring updates on them regularly.
Cost Comparison of Nearshore Development to Other IT Outsourcing Models
To get a better idea of software or app development costs with different IT outsourcing models, let’s understand with an example. Check the following cost comparison table by considering clients from UAE, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia.
Please note that these are the average estimated costs of different IT outsourcing models. It can vary depending on specific regions, skill levels, and the company you work with.
| Role | Onshore (UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia) | Nearshore (India) | Offshore (USA) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Project Manager | USD 40 to 60 Per Hour | USD 20 to 40 Per Hour | USD 120 to 200 Per Hour |
| Business Analyst | USD 35 to 55 Per Hour | USD 15 to 35 Per Hour | USD 100 to 150 Per Hour |
| UI/UX Designer | USD 40 to 60 Per Hour | USD 15 to 35 Per Hour | USD 90 to 150 Per Hour |
| Solution Architect | USD 50 to 85 Per Hour | USD 25 to 45 Per Hour | USD 150 to 250 Per Hour |
| Front-end Developer | USD 35 to 55 Per Hour | USD 18 to 35 Per Hour | USD 80 to 140 Per Hour |
| Backend Developer | USD 40 to 60 Per Hour | USD 20 to 40 Per Hour | USD 90 to 150 Per Hour |
| Mobile Developer | USD 55 to 80 Per Hour | USD 20 to 50 Per Hour | USD 100 to 180 Per Hour |
| Web App Developer | USD 50 to 70 Per Hour | USD 20 to 45 Per Hour | USD 90 to 150 Per Hour |
| QA Engineer | USD 40 to 65 Per Hour | USD 15 to 40 Per Hour | USD 70 to 120 Per Hour |
| DevOps Engineer | USD 55 to 85 Per Hour | USD 20 to 50 Per Hour | USD 120 to 200 Per Hour |
Future of Nearshore Software Development [Top 3 Trends]
The future looks promising as nearshore software development provides numerous advantages like cost savings, access to skilled talent, and closer collaboration. These benefits are fueling key trends and expectations for the future of nearshore web development and software programming. Let’s learn about the top three trends that will be adopted by nearshore development.
1. Automation and AI Integration
With AI development and automation integration, developers become free from repetitive tasks. These allow nearshore software development teams to focus on higher-value, complex development work.
2. Expansion of Nearshore Talent Pools
As the demand for tech talent rises, more regions will emerge as nearshore development hubs. These nearshore development centers offer a diverse range of specialized technical skills.
3. Focus on Real-Time Collaboration
Advancements in communication tools will enable smoother, faster collaboration between clients and nearshore software development teams. This way, project reporting and efficiency increase effectively.
Wrapping Up
Nearshore software development is a good outsourcing model to consider for strategic development. This approach gives collaboration benefits with the team of skilled developers in the time difference of just 1 to 3 hours. While it gives significant cost savings to onshore and offshore development, it also maintains high work quality.
By carefully choosing the right engaging model and streamlining communication, you can set a strong foundation for successful nearshore web development and software programming. Continuously monitoring progress will help you accelerate innovation and growth throughout the process.
You can connect with top nearshore development companies such as Excellent Webworld which has a strong local presence with a team of 300+ experts. With this collaboration, you can get the opportunity to work with skilled nearshore software developers and talented project managers who have delivered 100+ GCC Projects.
Happy Nearshore Development!!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Nearshore software development is an IT outsourcing model where companies give software development tasks to neighboring countries. These countries typically share the same time zones, cultural alignment, and cost advantages.
Outsourcing is dedicatedly meant to provide tasks to external parties regardless of their location. On the other hand, nearshoring specifically involves outsourcing to nearby countries and closer regions that have the same culture and time zone benefits.
Nearshoring software programming offers a cost-effective way to access skilled talent, faster communication, same time zone, and closer cultural alignment. All these make it easy for outsourcing options to collaborate and manage projects efficiently.
The popular nearshore software development company for the UAE is Excellent Webworld. It is known for providing high-quality software development services focusing on the UAE market.
To hire a nearshore developer, research companies, or platforms specializing in nearshore outsourcing. Look for their expertise and client reviews, and assess their ability to collaborate with your team through communication tools and a suitable project management process.
Article By
Paresh Sagar is the CEO of Excellent Webworld. He firmly believes in using technology to solve challenges. His dedication and attention to detail make him an expert in helping startups in different industries digitalize their businesses globally.
