An argument for onshore outsourcing.

– Robert Kruger 16 September 2011

The opening sentence of a written piece is widely considered to be the most important. Consider this opening sentence:

“Recently passed financially viable slump and a fear of prospective one have put extra lines on the forehead of people globally as such issues do nothing, but stimulate the economies with menace of demand of different things.”

This is the actual opening sentence of a recent blog article from a website and application development firm in India. You can search for this sentence if you want to “read” more – I am intentionally not linking to the article to spare you the pain.

Just for fun, I wrote – in actual English – what the author of that opening sentence might have intended. Keep in mind that this is a wag – the last half of their opening is incomprehensible. Here is my version:

“The recent economic downturn, combined with concerns that more bad economic news may be on the horizon, is cause for concern for business owners around the world. These concerns are a distraction, pulling businesses in the wrong direction.”

I ran my version through a language translator, converting out of English, and then back to English. The result may have different word choices, but it has a similar feel. Here is what came back into English:

“The new recession combines with interests that false economical news on the horizon can be, reason is to the providing for business owners in the whole world. These interests are a diversion and draw business in the false direction.”

Here’s what I think happened. The article – one that speaks to the high quality of outsourced work - was written in a foreign language and then automatically translated to English (without review by an English-speaking person).

If you are considering outsourcing website or app development work, you first need to understand what is at risk.

• What happens if you are into the development cycle and an issue arises that would be best resolved by letting the developer communicate directly with your customer? If your developer’s communication skills are at the level of the opening sentence above, your reputation will take a significant hit.

• Because of time zone differences, a meeting between your customer and your development team will be difficult, if not impossible, to coordinate. If you aren’t transparent about offshore outsourcing from the beginning of your project, you will be outed to your customer, probably at a bad point in the project.

• Even if you don’t allow your outsource contractor to communicate directly with your customers, they are still affecting your product and your image. Development notes, instructions, documentation, data organization, data field names, and countless other bits of written material will pass directly from your contractor to your customer. There is no way to avoid it.

Before you decide that outsourcing to a country on the other side of the world is your only option, consider ONshore outsourcing. Here are the clear advantages of onshore outsourcing:

• It can be a huge advantage if your entire team can communicate easily. You can include developers in the conversation with your customers.

• Work can get done in a timelier manner if everyone working on the project is working the same hours. Large time zone differences slow down progress by delaying communication.

• All parts of the project can be conveyed in an understandable way, including in-app documentation and notes. The final product you deliver to your customer will be better.
• Your customers will notice that you value quality above making the cheapest possible decision.

Onshore outsourcing is on the rise. There are good reasons for this shift. The high-quality and affordable solution you're looking for is available right here.

Dialogs Professional Services provides the highest quality web and mobile app development at truly affordable rates. Best of all, we speak your language. Call us at 800-707-0106 or use our contact form to see for yourself how onshore is a viable solution.