linkedin.com/in/Jignesh Patel 
Imagine:
- You allocate tasks to your team at the end of the day. The next morning, the job is done.
- You start a new project that requires more experts. You hire them in a couple of minutes. But bear no overheads.
- Your business is based in country X, but your team boasts of the finest experts from across the globe.
Sounds utopian, right? But it isn’t a distant dream.
All of it could be the reality for your business if you embrace offshoring and get offshore development center services.
Now, I have heard and read a lot of people talk about offshoring and offshore development centers. And most of what they say about the benefits of ODCs is just scratching the surface.
And that lack of detailed information is what I feel is stopping decision-makers from tasting the sweet fruits that ODCs bear. Here’s my attempt to correct that.
In this piece I’ve tried to shed light on:
- The origins of offshoring;
- What offshore developments centers are; and
- A list of benefits of ODC that you must consider.
Offshoring Has Its Roots In The History Of Economics
Adam Smith, the father of Economics is most revered for his book ‘An Enquiry Into The Nature And Causes Of Wealth of Nations’. Among other findings that shape Economics as we know it today, the book talks about ‘comparative advantage’.
It states that some countries are better at producing certain commodities. And other countries benefit from importing those commodities rather than producing them in-house. This specialization is the primary cause of the wealth of nations.
And that is the basis of the concept that we call offshoring today. The book was published in 1776, but the concept it outlined is the driver for several businesses even in the 21st century.
ODC: Your Comrade In The Odyssey Across Unchartered Waters
An Offshore Development Center (ODC) is an extension of your team in another country.
The experts work exclusively for you making it a dedicated development center. It comes with all the perks of outsourcing, including no overheads and time to focus on what you do best.
But unlike offshoring’s cousin outsourcing, you don’t lose autonomy and control over the project. You are not subletting the project to a third party. The team is yours. You get the benefits of outsourcing, minus the dilution of control.
You get the perks of expanding your team, without actually having to take the pains to do that. That’s two birds without even having to lift a stone.
Want to learn more about the future scope of ODCs?
Here’s a resource that you should check out: Offshore Development Center: What is the future and beyond?
10 Ways A Dedicated Offshore Development Center Benefits Your Business
Below I have listed 10 ways a dedicated offshore development center will benefit your business:
1. On-Time Project Delivery
“So much to do and so little time. ”Every manager has said it at least a few dozen times. Delivering a project on time is as complicated as it is important. When you’ve got too much on your plate, deadlines are missed. Clients get upset. And business suffers.
Not with an ODC supporting you, though. You don’t have to plan, organize, staff, direct, or control a thing. Just let your dedicated offshore team know what to do. And they’d be on it. Deliver the project on time and stay in the good books of your clients.
2. Constant Technical Support
Digitech companies don’t always have all the technical expertise they need in-house. Outsourcing gives you access to that support for a fixed duration. Same with onboarding freelancers.
Now suppose you have questions after your software development project is completed?
An offshore software development center will guarantee constant technical support. The team doesn’t vanish into thin air after the project is delivered. ODCs have got your back. Always.
3. Sharpened Competitive Edge
Jacks of all trades but never became masters in any.
Specialization is the key. If your team’s competitive advantage lies in marketing, do just that. Leave the other aspects of the project to the experts.
With an ODC looking after project completion, you can focus on bringing in new clients, working on other projects, marketing, R&D, or whatever else that you are good at. And when you keep concentrating on that, you’d eventually become better.
4. Lower Overheads
Offshoring brings about a 60% cost reduction for companies. Companies have saved over $200 billion with ODCs in India alone. How? With ODCs,
- You don’t pay for office infrastructure. Or the technology used.
- You are not billed for the recruitment costs.
- You don’t have to organize or pay for employee training.
- Your contribution to the long-term employee benefit programs? Nada.
You just pay for the service you avail. Rest everything is the ODCs matter of concern. With literally no overheads, your rates get competitive and your profit margin widens.
5. Access To A Global Pool of Talent
Irrespective of whether you are in the UK or the USA or Australia or anywhere else, your human resource wealth doesn’t have to be local.
Offshore development centers give you access to a wider pool of tech talent. Concerned about cultural clashes?
An offshore development center worth its salt would have proper communication channels and conflict resolution methodologies in place to avoid that. We are Webential, for example, have never had such an issue.
Plus, we’ve got a list of tools that will help you manage your remote team better.
6. Innovation and Quality At Its Finest
Well, this is an extension of point #5. When you have access to experts from not just your home country, your project gets a global perspective.
Different people, having lived and functioned in different environments working together make space for innovation. And because offshore development centers are strict and vigilant in hiring experts, quality won’t ever be your concern.
7. Round The Clock Running Business
Every rich man’s mantra in life: Do something such that you make money even while you are asleep.
Offshore development teams literally work even when you are asleep. You have the time difference to thank for that. This speeds up the project completion cycle.
Communication gaps? Nah! You can opt for communication to happen in your local time. An ODC gives a literal touch to things that you often tell your clients. Things like ‘always working’ and ‘available 24/7’.
8. Scaling Up And Down With Ease
You acquired a subscription-based service for a project. What do you do after the project is done? Cancel the subscription. What do you do with a machine that isn’t needed any longer? Sell it.
But what do you do with experts not needed after a project? You can fire them. But what if you’d need them again for another project later on? Hire them again? You cannot keep hiring and firing people like that.
But that doesn’t mean you cannot scale your teams up and down. Offshore development centers are tied to your internal teams with a carabiner of sorts. You can have them working for you when you need them. But when you don’t have a project for them, you don’t have to keep paying them.
9. Outsourcing Minus The Security And Control Concerns
Quality control and data security become tough when people working on your project sit thousands of miles away from you. These are the top deterrents to outsourcing. Offshoring plugs in those gaps.
An offshore development center is, in essence, your team, albeit in a different country. This gives you complete quality control. And with transparency similar to what is seen internally, you’ve got no offshore development center security concerns either.
10. Shared Responsibilities
Why bear the entire load of responsibility when you can share it with others? ODCs differ from white labeling because the latter leaves you responsible if things go South. Not offshoring, though.
ODCs share your responsibility and workload. You have project managers who are answerable and accountable for the work of the offshore teams. And you have the reassurance that you aren’t alone.
Getting Started On The Odyssey With ODCs
Honest Confession: Not all offshore development centers are alike. Some just claim to offer the benefits I’ve mentioned.
But we, at Webential, deliver those claims. Our offshore development centers are the centers of success for our partners.
Check out any of our case studies and you’ll see how we walk the walk. We’ve always functioned on offshore development center best practices.
Got more questions about us or offshoring? We are ready with our cups of coffee, contact us to get the conversation started.
