IT Staff Augmentation vs. Outsourcing to a Dedicated Team: Which Model to Choose?

Companies today want two things: increase sales in their businesses while reducing operating costs. In the technology industry, there are hundreds of very useful software solutions to manage the workflows of your company's departments, centralize data and make it more accessible, as well as integrate between systems to streamline processes. In this, the help of IT Staff Augmentation resources or a dedicated development team can be the key to success.

Sometimes, companies do not have enough internal staff to carry out the projects or implementations that are required. This can stop business growth, which you can avoid by hiring outside resources. There are companies that provide IT Staff Augmentation teams and dedicated development teams, both with the aim of injecting quality, experience, and speed into the project at hand.

These are experienced software engineers and developers, who join your internal development team, to focus exclusively on your project until it is completed and operating optimally. But, although both outsourcing models contribute resources, each one will serve different purposes than the ones we will talk about in this article.

Table of Contents

• There is a shortage of software developers in the face of high demand
• Let's understand what IT Staff Augmentation is and a dedicated development team
• Advantages of IT Staff Augmentation

- When you need to hire resources via IT Staff Augmentation

• Advantages of a dedicated development team

- When you need to hire a dedicated development team

There is a shortage of software developers and high demand

In the United States, they are approaching a shortfall of 1.4 million software developers, according to a report provided by Jobsity. And the hiring of software developers is expected to grow by 21% between 2018 and 2028.

In addition, the outbreak of Covid in 2020 ended up accelerating the digital transformation of companies, as well as the adoption of new technological tools to transfer their businesses to the Internet.

“In addition, filling in the gaps due to a lack of resources or specialists can be challenging and time-consuming at the same time, especially for high-tech roles like iOS developers or machine learning engineers, for which demands have been on the rise. increase since the great resignation", they pointed out in an article published in Entrepreneur, about the hiring of personnel.

As a result of this context, software engineers and developers are increasingly in demand, either directly or indirectly, through outsourcing of dedicated development teams or IT Staff Augmentation.

Let's understand what is IT Staff Augmentation and dedicated development team

One of the oldest outsourcing models is IT Staff Augmentation. As we have already mentioned, this model is based on the hiring of complementary personnel – externally and temporarily – to support tasks and project development, at a cost that fits the budget that the companies have.

Advantages of IT Staff Augmentation

"Staff Augmentation reduces the costs associated with hiring, contractual benefits and contract termination, it also reduces the costs of recruiting, training and retaining personnel", they explained in the book "The Agile Enterprise", edited by Nirmal Pal and Daniel Pantaleo.

• IT Staff Augmentation resources can be hired remotely, thanks to which the company that hires it should not invest in equipment or in more offices for the staff.
• It is an affordable model with low risks, since IT Staff Augmentation engineers tend to adapt very well to internal teams.
• The work dynamic with IT Staff Augmentation is flexible and growth is always sustainable.
• It allows you to fill the talent gaps in your internal team. For example, you may have the best backend developers, but you lack a good frontend developer. In that case, you can subcontract via Staff Augmentation a resource from this area to meet the need in your project.
• There are no limits when hiring resources for IT Staff Augmentation. You can hire two developers, for example, and then hire as many as you need. And if at any time you no longer need a profile, you can end the contract without complications.

When you need to hire resources via IT Staff Augmentation

We will explain the scenarios in which the IT Staff Augmentation model can help you boost your project:

• When you need help with a specific topic of your project, but you don't want to hire full-time employees because it will be very punctual.
• When you want to scale your project, increase the scope and you don't have enough team.
• When you need very experienced developers and engineers in a certain area and you don't have them in your internal team.
• When you want to support your internal team during periods of high activity and work.
• When you need to take care of the budget and reduce costs in software development.

Advantages of a dedicated development team

When we talk about a dedicated development team, it means hiring a team with all the necessary profiles to create your application or platform from start to finish, from idea maturation to coding and deployment.

It is an ideal solution for companies that need to quickly develop their software, and need a development team that focuses solely on this task until it is completed.

• The dedicated development team will be structured according to the needs of your project. It is made for your company and can be adjusted as many times as necessary.
• This kind of team works very well on both short-term and long-term projects.
• The advantage of hiring dedicated development teams is that internal teams are freed up, who can focus on more strategic tasks associated with the core of the business.
• Hiring a dedicated development team is an economically viable option, since the contract can last only for the duration of the project. Then, you can finalize the contract without any kind of commitment.
• This model provides control over the project, since it unifies the efforts in favor of a defined goal.
• The development cycle is streamlined with a dedicated development team.

When you need to hire a dedicated development team

• When you want to quickly launch an app or platform to the market and you need a team of developers super focused on your project, to create it as quickly as possible.
• When you want to develop a project but can only hire a dedicated development team for a limited time.
• If you need professionals specialized in certain technology.
• When you need to free up your internal team, then you hire the dedicated development team to delegate the creation of your project.

Whether you are going to hire IT Staff Augmentation resources or a dedicated development team, as a company you must be clear about what the software development process implies, as well as define the profiles you need in your project. Make sure that communication with the supplier is clear and transparent.

Do you need software outsourcing services? At Rootstack, we have +10 years supporting companies in their digital transformation. Contact us!

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