Software development outsourcing: an overview

Are you struggling with the challenge of in-house software development because of high costs, talent shortages‌ and never-ending project timelines?

We get it — it’s not easy to feel left behind as competitors launch cutting-edge software and applications.

But what if there was a way to overcome these obstacles? Enter software development outsourcing — a leading solution that allows businesses to join a global pool of expertise without breaking the bank.

Reports say that the global IT outsourcing industry would generate ‌revenue of $812.71 billion by 2029. This really shows how ‌IT outsourcing is helping in software development across industries.

In this blog, we bring you the benefits, challenges‌ and future trends of outsourcing software development. Plus, we'll introduce you to Builder.ai, a platform that empowers you to build your own tailored software solution.

So, don't miss out on the opportunity to speed up your software development process and stay at the forefront of your industry.

8 Benefits of outsourcing software development

Let’s look at the top 8 outsourcing software development benefits.

1- Cost-effectiveness

Setting up or expanding an existing software development venture might bring in additional costs for hiring experienced developers, renting ‌space, purchasing equipment‌ and other overhead costs associated with in-house development.

But with outsourcing software development, you can find top-notch developers from around the world without breaking the bank. These developers can be hired at a lower cost and they can work remotely as well.

2 - Access to global talent

With outsourced software development projects, you can access ‌a global talent pool. This allows you to find specialists and experts in specific technologies or industries that might be hard to find locally.

3 - Faster time to market

Outsourcing can accelerate development timelines, as dedicated teams can focus solely on your project, ensuring quicker delivery.

4 - Scalability

Outsourcing allows you to scale your development team up or downsize on project needs, providing flexibility that in-house teams might not offer.

5 - Risk mitigation

Outsourcing allows you to share the risks with your partner. So, if your project gets delayed or you're facing any challenges, talk with your outsourcing partner.

6 - 24/7 Development

With teams in different time zones, you can achieve round-the-clock development, leading to faster project completion and quicker resolution of issues.

7 - Quality Assurance

Reputable outsourcing firms have strong Quality Assurance processes in place, making sure that the final product meets desired standards.

8 - Innovation

Outsourcing partners often bring fresh perspectives and ideas, which can enhance and add more value to your software.

Challenges in outsourcing

Outsourcing isn’t always plain sailing, and certain challenges may arise. However, these all have solutions.

1 - Effective communication across timelines

Outsourcing teams across the globe might lack ‌effective communication with teams in different time zones. Further, it might invite project delays due to differing work hours.

Solution - You can use collaboration tools like Slack for real-time communication. Also, schedule regular meetings at times that work for both parties and use project management tools to keep everyone on the same page.

2 - Quality control challenge

If you and your outsourcing partner aren't aligned, maintaining quality standards can be quite challenging.

Solution - Begin by establishing clear quality standards and metrics. You can also have a dedicated QA team or an AI tool which detects issues by regularly reviewing progress and providing feedback.

3 - Data security and privacy challenge

Sharing sensitive data with an external partner can pose security risks.

Solution - It's always advised to outsource partners with strong security measures and compliance certifications.

4 - Poor cost estimates

It’s a fact that outsourcing saves money. But if you don't outline your clear goals, timelines and requirements, the price of software development‌ might increase because hidden costs and unexpected expenses can quickly add up.

Solution - Always negotiate clear and detailed contracts that outline all costs upfront and consider using fixed-price contracts for predictable costs. You should also review budgets and track expenses regularly to avoid surprises.

5 - Lack of expertise and experience

An underrated challenge of outsourcing is when you don't have a clear understanding and knowledge of the software you’re building. So, with this knowledge gap, you might struggle to evaluate the tasks.

Solution - To avoid such pitfalls, you might want to hire someone in-house, who has a clear understanding of the requirements and the outputs.

Selecting the optimal outsourcing company

Before you find the right match for your company, here’s a list of criteria you need to check for your project. 👇

1- Outline clear requirements

Mapping clear requirements is a foundational step in selecting the right outsourcing company. This process involves outlining the project's scope, goals and deliverables in detail. It's also essential to specify the technical requirements, including the necessary technology stack and any integration needs.

2 - Expertise and experience

You should select an outsourcing company with a team of developers who are specialists, across different industries and have a good understanding of your market. Moreover, experienced developers bring in a range of polished ideas and works which can overall benefit your venture.

3 - Reputation and references

Typically, you should look for a company's reputation through reviews, published case studies‌ in your industry and client testimonials. You can also request references from ‌previous clients to gain insights into their performance and reliability.

4 - Communication and collaboration

Effective communication is crucial for a successful outsourcing partnership. So, you must assess the company's communication protocols and tools and make sure that they're responsive and willing to adapt to your preferred methods of communication.

5 - Scalability and flexibility

Your business requirements might change over time. Therefore, the outsourcing agency should be scalable and flexible according to the business needs and urgent requirements over the contractual period.

6 - Security and compliance

Outsourced software development companies should have ‌strong security measures. This includes adherance to relevant compliance standards so that data security and compliance with industry regulations are maintained.

Looking ahead: the future of software outsourcing

If you begin by investigating trends shaping outsourced software development, ‌you'll find a clear shift towards companies seeking expertise in areas like AI, Machine Learning‌ and cloud services.

The global shift to remote working has expanded the talent pool and made location less of a factor, driving more businesses to outsource agencies. Therefore, the outsourcing landscape is expanding with more freelancers and independent contractors taking on project-based work.

Also, in the outsourcing landscape, we'll likely see outsourcing providers contribute not just to development, but also to ideation and product strategy. Moreover, it’s expected to see a surge in the adoption of technologies like Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Intelligent Automation, leading to more efficient and cost-effective outsourcing solutions.

Lastly, as outsourcing agencies grow, data privacy concerns continue to rise. Therefore, outsourcing providers have also begun to prioritise strong security measures and compliance with international data protection regulations.

Build your software with Builder.ai – your leading alternative

Builder.ai is an AI-powered composable software development platform that takes care of the entire software development process from the initial idea to the final build.

Our approach brings many of the benefits of outsourced software development, such as they both can provide customised solutions to meet the unique needs of the client. But Builder.ai has added advantages, too.

For instance, unlike software outsourcing companies, at Builder.ai, you don't need to manage multiple aspects of the software development process, from finding the right team to overseeing the project. Our AI project manager, Natasha takes care of it all.

Most importantly, outsourcing software development can be more expensive due to the need for skilled developers, project managers‌ and ongoing maintenance. Whereas, with Builder.ai’s user-friendly interface, you can quickly build cost-effective software without needing to know how to code. This saves time and reduces the learning curve.

Also, Builder.ai effectively overpowers software development agencies as we offer ‌custom functionality, unlike some agencies that are limited to rigid templates. This means your software can be tailored to your specific needs and stand out in the market.

So how does this happen?

All you need to do is simply share your idea, and you can get tailor-made apps with 650+ features to choose from as well as infinite customisation options.

You simply need to explain your idea to our AI companion, Natasha, and she uses these blocks to rapidly create an outline of your software.

The work is completed faster and cheaper because Natasha handles all the repetitive coding. Then it’s off to our software design team and developers. They personalise it and create any bespoke elements you need.

To build your software at speed, simply head over to Builder Studio. The Builder Studio platform has been built with user convenience in mind and intuitively guides you through the software creation process.

Here’s how you can build your custom software in no time 👇

Create robust custom software today

100s of businesses trust us to help them scale.

Book a demo

By proceeding you agree to Builder.ai’s privacy policy
and terms and conditions

1 - Discuss your ideas with Natasha

On Builder Studio, you’re welcomed by Natasha. You can express your software ideas to Natasha via voice, text or uploading a PDF or doc file.

Before you chat with her, have a checklist of features and be as descriptive as possible about your software idea. The more detailed information you give ‌Natasha, the better her suggestions will be.

For instance, if you’re building ‌‌‌‌food delivery software, your prompt could look like this:

“I want to create a custom food delivery app that offers a seamless and enjoyable experience for both customers and restaurant partners. The app should provide an intuitive user interface for browsing menus, placing orders, and tracking deliveries in real-time. Additionally, it should support secure payment integration, including credit/debit cards, digital wallets‌ and cash-on-delivery options.”

Based on your prompt, Natasha will ask you some supporting questions and you simply need to answer them based on your requirements.

2 - Choose a base

Once Natasha has your requirements, she’ll create a custom framework for your software based on everything you tell her. She'll also suggest some existing applications (for example, Uber Eats and Instacart) that you could base your software on.

When you’re ready, click 'Next'.

3 - Make it mine

In this step, you provide your software’s name, choose the colour scheme using the colour wheel and upload your brand logo.

4 - Refine your software idea

Journeys

In only a matter of seconds, Natasha creates app user journeys with corresponding features.

Go through these journeys carefully and see if you want to add more functionality to your software. For instance, check if you want to add journeys for tracking logistics or creating a community on social.

Features

By clicking on individual journeys, you can see the feature list each journey contains. You can scroll through the features list and check if a journey contains non-essential features or if you want to add extra features.

To remove a non-essential feature, you can hover over the feature and click ‘Remove’. This way you can manage project costs. If you’re not sure what features to remove, you can click on an individual feature and check the label at the top. We highly recommend keeping the ‘Essential Features’.

Want to add more features?,Click the ‘+’ button. Here you can go through different categories or use the search bar to look for missing functionality. In case you don’t find the feature you’re looking for, you can also add a custom feature.

Instant prototype and user flow

Once you’re happy with the features of your app, you can create a prototype by clicking on 'Preview your app' in the top-right corner.

Sign up and Natasha will create a working prototype of your app. You can click on the screen at different areas to progress through the journey.

You can also see the user flow by clicking on the 'Flow mode' at the top of the screen to see how users will interact and navigate within your app.

If you need extra help, Natasha is on hand to help and you can interact with her at any time by clicking on 'Speak to Natasha'.

She’ll provide you with suggestions and help you find features or journeys from the library. Or you can click on 'Book a demo' to talk to our product managers who’ll guide you through your software development journey.

Click on 'Save & Continue' to go to the next step and also to save your progress or it might get lost.

5 - Plan delivery

It’s time to choose the platforms you want your software to be available on. Want a desktop app? Click Windows or macOS. Fancy a mobile app? Hit Android or iOS. Not sure about the platform? Choose multiple platforms and see how they change the price and timelines.

Next, you can choose to add Natasha to your platform to supercharge the customer experience of your app. Natasha uses Large Language Models (LLMs) to engage your customers in fluid, human-like conversations.

In the development speed section, you can change the speed of each development phase according to your needs. The faster the development speed, the higher the costs and vice versa.

Next up is Design. If you have your software designs ready, you can save on your costs by clicking 'You have design' and we’ll reduce your costs accordingly. You can share your design files (preferably in Figma) and our designers will upload them, so you can kick them off straight away.

If not, you can choose the 'We do your designs'‌ option. Here, you simply need to add your brand assets and we'll do everything from storyboarding to fully designed screens.

Now it’s time to plan the phases of your project. Here you get 3 options:

• Clickable prototype: you’ll get a visual representation of your software to test with users
• Basic build: you’ll get an MVP (Minimum viable product) – a hard-coded but simplified version of your idea; this allows you to collect feedback and iterate before you do a full build
• Full Build: you’ll get a market-ready app, including a kick-off with our product team and review sessions

After that, you need to select your support plans. With 'Full Build' you get one year of Studio One support included free of charge.

Once you’ve planned your delivery, click on 'View Buildcard'.

6 - Review Buildcard

Buildcard provides you with a bird's eye view of all the selections you made in the previous steps. Here, you can review all the features, cost per feature and delivery details.

You can also download the PDF of Buildcard or invite others to show your team members what you’re building.

If you want to make any changes, simply click on 'Edit Buildcard' under the 3 dots in the top-right corner.

If you’re happy with everything, click on 'Add billing details' to go to the next section. Alternatively, if you want to review it with experts, click on 'Review with an expert'.

7 - Select your payment plan

We offer weekly or monthly payment instalments, with visible payment dates and amounts for each option. You can also choose to pay upfront to reduce the cost of your build. You might not be offered this flexibility in payments if you choose to build your software with an outsource agency.

Now, you can simply select your preferred billing cycle, then click 'Continue' to proceed.

You’ll be asked to input your payment details and agree to the terms and conditions. Once that’s done, click 'Continue to Payment'.

Once your payment is done, you can set up a meeting with our product managers to begin your software development.

8 - Monitor your software build in real-time

All software development with Builder.ai comes with 1 year of Studio One. This gives you access to Builder Home, your real-time project dashboard, where you can monitor development progress and make sure your software is exactly the way you want it.

It also includes ‌access to a suite of collaboration tools to help improve your software design. You can chat with your team of experts in Builder Meet, brainstorm in Builder Whiteboard and visualise your ideas with prototypes from Builder Now.

Your software is monitored, updated, bugs fixed and security updates are all taken care of too.

Conclusion

Software development outsourcing is not just a trend; it's a strategic move that can propel your business forward in an increasingly digital world. It offers numerous benefits, from access to global talent to accelerated project timelines.

While there are challenges to navigate, the future of software development outsourcing is bright, with advancements in technology and collaboration tools making it easier than ever to work with remote teams.

This is where working with the best in the industry significantly increases your chances of successfully building your own software.

Builder.ai helps you build your software efficiently. We:

✅ - Assign you a dedicated project manager, who keeps all stakeholders on your software project aligned and on track; you never need to speak to a software developer or write a single line of code

✅ - Speed up development time by giving you access to a comprehensive library of reusable features, fitted together by AI

✅ - Give you upfront costs and competitive timelines so your project stays under control

If that’s something you’d like to explore, please get in touch 👇

Create robust custom software today

100s of businesses trust us to help them scale.

Book a demo

By proceeding you agree to Builder.ai’s privacy policy
and terms and conditions