The IT market is a field full of opportunities when we talk about organizational strategies. We are often introduced to new methods and alternatives of outsourcing, for example. This diversity of options opens up opportunities so the companies are able to develop more projects, and even increase their complexity. The staff augmentation is one of these models. Based on this strategy, an enterprise can augment its team without compromising with long-term contracts.
Basically, the staff augmentation works as an outsourcing method, composed by a lot of particularities. First of all, when you adopt this model, you are not hiring other company to develop a project. The staff augmentation is a way to find, in other countries, talents that fit some specific projects demands. In these cases, an IT foreign company will help you to find a suitable developer for a certain period.
When is it necessary?
As the name suggests itself, a Staff Augmentation is usually needed when a company looks for workforce increase. The hired professionals will work temporarily, so the company doesn’t have to worry with long-term contracts. Commonly, the talents are hired for a particular project, and may continue on the company as new demands arises. The main objective of the staff augmentation is reducing some obstacles and costs.
You may wonder why Staff Augmentation should be used instead of an traditional project outsourcing. Actually, both methods can work, and choosing between them depends on your company’s objectives. Once Staff Augmentation guarantees more control over a developers team, the project outsourcing may be a good option for companies that doesn’t have in-house IT sectors.
Benefits of Staff Augmentation
Staff relationship
Once you hire someone, even for a short period of time, that person will start to live your business reality. This is pretty important when the project requires deeper operational knowledge and team communication. That’s why most talents recruited through a Staff Augmentation company need a certain level of training, so this new member understand the business particularities.
Operational control
One of the main reasons so a company looks for the Staff Augmentation is to keep the control over the whole staff. Some projects really require a higher level of monitoring. Once you choose for a Staff Augmentation, the management of the project shall be easier, since the hired team will start to be a part of the staff. This strategy ensures that all steps of the project be executed and monitored in-house.
Cost saving
A Staff Augmentation company will be responsible for dealing with almost all administrative issues. This way, you won’t have to worry with some expenses related to the hiring process. Also, the extended team provided will always be based on the vendor’s company. It means that all expenses with hardware and infrastructure are not responsibility of the hirer, and will be already included in the contract.
Staff management
Sometimes is possible that your region has a lack of IT specialists. In such cases, looking outside the country may be a great option. Staff Augmentation companies provides the opportunity of assembling qualified developers that you would hardly find regionally. Another benefit is the possibility of adding team members as your project demands. A good vendor will probably have skilled members waiting.
Technical control
If what you need is keeping the control of various technical aspects of the developing process, it may be better look for a Staff Augmentation than outsourcing a whole project. Sometimes, a project must be done in-house, and you want to control all technical aspects of it (like tools, programming languages, etc), but don’t have enough human resources. In these scenarios, augmenting your team may be the best to do.
How to start?
First of all, you must find a company that fit your demands. There are plenty of options all over the world, and finding the most suitable one is not supposed to be hard. Once you get in touch, the interviewing and hiring process shall not take long to begin. Since the process happens through the Staff Augmentation company, your only concern will be choosing the best specialist for your project.
Knowing how Staff Augmentation works can be a competitive advantage in the market, making possible that more complex projects get done — keeping your service quality. So if you ever need to extend your team, do not worry on giving Staff Augmentation a shot.
