Eastern Europe: the Software Development Hotspot of Tomorrow?
Software development skills are always in hot demand and the pandemic has made no change to that. Global companies still need new software like new applications, APIs, and even proprietary software. But American big businesses are now turning their heads to Eastern Europe to fulfill their software needs.
Software development doesn’t need to happen on-site, so why restrict your employment options? Because of a growing willingness to outsource work to remote developers, US companies are preparing to take more European developers on board than ever. There is a surplus of independent developers and companies in Europe ready to take on tasks from abroad.
Are you ready to bring in outside workers for software development? We’ll examine outsourcing to European developers for US companies and look at how you can find a suitable freelancer software development team in Europe.
Why Use A Remote Software Development Team?
Despite the 140% increase in remote workers in 2021, there are some doubts about the effectiveness of taking remote workers on. Time zone problems, cultural differences, and difficulties relating to management are significant factors that make the decision-makers grumble.
But the benefits are apparent. Software development companies can reap the rewards of remote workers in three key ways:
Lower Cost of Living in Europe
Thanks to lower healthcare costs, a weakening Euro, and lower inflation rates, Europeans enjoy a lower cost of living than Americans. Planning to outsource software development can be more cost-effective overall as the wages that Europeans (and especially Eastern European developers) demand are lower.
The dollar buys also more than a euro, so many software developers are looking to the West. Whereas an American developer would expect an average wage of $107,510 per annum, Eastern Europeans only expect $41,170. Tech companies could expect to halve their wage bill by turning to service providers behind the former Eastern Bloc.
A Strong Push towards Engineering
Engineering is a top priority across the Czech Republic, Ukraine, Poland, and the rest of Eastern Europe. After the European Commission estimated that 900,000 IT jobs would go unfilled in 2014, there was a huge push towards engineering.
There is a large number of highly qualified software developers from excellent universities who are ready to find jobs. European countries have a rich talent pool that is ready to go toe-to-toe with the very best American development teams at a fraction of the cost, meaning that software outsourcing is handled by skilled professionals.
The Best Teams are Still in North America
Despite Eastern Europeans have all the skills for custom software development, companies in Eastern Europe are not ready to offer competitive wages yet. The best development team in Poland will not be able to locally demand the same wage as an American team. Hence, they are looking for software companies in America and the United Kingdom for outsourcing opportunities.
Just like Poland, Ukraine is another popular outsourcing destination. With the post-communist culture pushing people towards science and tech, any given European country in the east has the potential to provide a number of software solutions to any US-based problem.
Hot Skills in Demand
Outsourcing software development is easy because software development is an incredibly dynamic business. Software engineers are constantly in need of leveling up their skills and learning how to use the newest languages to improve what they can provide.
When outsourcing software development to Eastern Europe, you know that you do not need to worry about constantly upskilling your team. A specialized developer or developer team can be brought in to perform specific tasks — you don’t need to teach web development or mobile app development to your whole team when outsourcing to highly qualified offshore software development teams can fill the gaps.
Finding The Best Software Development Services
Finding the best remote workers can be a challenge. Although we know that a number of popular “outsourcing countries” have excellent reputations, it’s hard to know which services you will actually receive.
Whether you decide to work with a singular freelancer or an established software development company, you need to understand what makes a successful remote work position. Here are my top three qualities you want when outsourcing software development.
Cultural similarities. Despite being on the opposite side of the world, the cultural differences are smaller than you think. 79% of Polish citizens view America favorably and finding other Eastern European software developers makes software development outsourcing less of a cultural problem than it may first seem.
Of course, finding the right people means finding software developers who can communicate effectively. Poland, the Czech Republic, and Croatia are all rated high for English proficiency — bringing competent developers and effective communicators is easy from a lot of countries within Europe.
Convenient time-zone overlaps. Even though Eastern Europe is between 6 and 10 hours behind American time zones, it’s possible to find workday overlaps. If you need to have meetings with your workers in European countries, think about how much face-to-face time is necessary.
If you need extra help, thinking about remote team bonding ideas can greatly improve your team’s output. Even though your team may be spread as far as Eastern Europe, building a team mentality can improve the standard of work and worker happiness.
EU membership. If you are working with a number of developers in popular outsourcing destinations like Poland and the Czech Republic, you have the European Union to protect your intellectual property.
Tightening restrictions around intellectual property in EU countries means that when you need proprietary software, you know that a foreign software development company is sworn to follow those laws. European companies would not be able to run off after the project was completed.
Conclusion
Eastern European developers have the right mix of technical know-how and the low wages demands that are making them very attractive to American development companies right now. Outsourcing companies are turning to the east to find the next wave of highly skilled developers to onboard.
Although there are potential cultural problems when bringing any foreign worker into a new business environment, places like Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, and Czechia are all making the case to be one of the top countries offering high-quality services at low prices. Can you afford to miss out on the chance to take them on board?
With Upstack, there’s nothing that can stop us when it comes to scaling your business. Hire a vetted programmer today!
Originally published at Upstack.co on Aug 20, 2021, by Austin Miller.
