Choosing Nearshore Software Development Company | Top Nearshore Development Companies Guide

As a means of accessing technology talent, nearshoring has become an essential part of the business playbook. Since not all companies are lucky enough to have software development expertise in-house or a sufficient pool of engineers locally, many choose to source the missing talent through a nearshore software development company. At its best, this approach can help you build a skilled tech unit – on the caveat of selecting a reliable firm.

In this post, we describe the steps to take when choosing a nearshore development company and the qualities that will hopefully help you identify the best one. Dive in to learn more.

Why partner with a nearshore software development company?

A nearshore software development company is a software development partner operating in a neighboring country or in one with a similar/adjacent time zone.

The goal of this partnership is to build a tech muscle in a strategic region with a 1-3 hour time difference and a wide talent pool. This approach lets you access a wide range of experienced developers with varied skills, scale your local unit without losing time on local staffing, save costs, and establish a sustainable team. Below, we focus on the key benefits of why partnering with a nearshore software development company is an attractive option for organizations operating in various domains.

Tech expertise and skills. Nearshore software development companies allow businesses to access a pool of top-tier IT professionals from nearby countries. These experts will bring the skillsets and expertise unavailable within your company walls.

No overhead costs. Overhead is an extra expense that has no direct impact on your profit. A nearshore development firm can easily eliminate these hefty expenses. Imagine office space, IT infrastructure, and team retention resting on the shoulders of your provider, allowing you to invest in marketing, R&D, or explore other winning models for your business, for instance, a nearshore software development center.

Time zone alignment. A provided team will work in an office located 1-3 hours away from your headquarters. It helps reduce the impact of a time zone gap – the bane of the traditional outsourcing approach. With a nearshore software development agency, you can easily achieve real-time collaboration and swift communication between your primary and remote branches.

Cost savings. The average median pay for a software engineer in the US is $62.58 per hour or $130,160 per year – an exorbitant amount, especially for startups. According to Accelerance, nearshoring cuts this paycheck by up to 40%-70%, and nearshore development companies can be your gateway to a pool of technologists with reasonable rates.

Now, let’s review the 7 steps you should take to make your collaboration with a nearshore software development services company fruitful.

Step 1. Create a Project Scope before hiring a nearshore software development services company

While service providers do the heavy lifting by sourcing the development talent for you, it’s in fact the clients who always know best when it comes to their business. Thus, before you embark on your nearshore development journey, it’s a good idea to craft your Project Scope – a document that helps keep you on the right path throughout the project.

Your Project Scope is the heart of your software development project and the primary step in your search for nearshore development services. This document allows you to better understand what kind of technologies you will use, the type of skills you need to bring in through nearshoring, as well as your budget, time frames, and how you’ll measure your success. On top of helping you source the right kind of engineers, your Project Scope eliminates uncertainties and ensures predictable results. Thus, it’s worth your time.

Step 2. Choose a location to find top nearshore software development companies

You may be wondering where to find top nearshore software development companies. There are two options, depending on your market: Central & Eastern Europe and Latin America. The first option is best suited for EU-based companies: for instance, you may consider exploring nearshoring Ukraine, Romania, Poland, or Moldova. If you stem from the US, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia or Argentina can be the sweet spot for flawless nearshoring.

When choosing a hosting country for your nearshore development activities, you may take into account several criteria:

Developer rates. Nearshore development services typically excel at curbing the exorbitant costs of onshore development, given that you can choose a region where developer rates fit the bill when it comes to your budget. For example, Eastern Europe, one of the hottest nearshoring locations, offers competitive developer rates within a range of $50-$55 per hour of work of a senior engineer, including service fees.
Talent availability. Not only do nearshore software development services allow companies to save, they also let them access a more diverse pool of talent than they may have access to locally. Countries with hundreds of thousands of engineers can offer you a broader choice and even better development skills, as competition leads to higher proficiency levels. For example, Ukraine boasts nearly 275K software engineers on the market, and thus nearshoring software development services here can potentially drive hundreds of skilled candidates your way.
Industry/tech expertise. It’s one more key criterion that can help you select the best nearshore software development partner. Many engineers draw their experience working at ambitious companies and startups, strengthening their skills and domain expertise, which lends itself to high-quality nearshore development services. For example, Ukrainian engineers boast strong domain expertise in Fintech, Healthcare, and Edtech, given the number of local startups and companies in this area headquartered in the country. In fact, Clutch suggests that there are 300+ companies that can help you with financial software development, 100+ eCommerce, and 150+ Edtech companies, all contributing to the domain expertise of local engineers.

Below, we’ve gathered a table to highlight the key countries where you can access the best nearshore software development companies. Take a look at the time zone, number of software engineers, hourly rates, English skills, and top tech skills you can access.

Country	Time zone	Availability of tech talent	Average (hourly) software development costs	English proficiency	Top skills
Poland	GMT +1 hour	400,000	$45	High	Java, Algorithm JavaScript, SQL, Python, C#, PHP
Ukraine	GMT +2 hour	300,000	$30	Moderate	Java, C++, JavaScript, C#, Python, PHP, Swift, Security, Mathematics
Romania	GMT +2 hour	200,000	$35	High	SQL, Java, JavaScript, Python
Czech Republic	GMT +1 hour	130,000	$50	High	Mathematics, Security, Python, C#, SQL, JavaScript, HTML, and CSS
Bulgaria	GMT +2 hour	220,000	$30	High	Java, Python, C#
Moldova	GMT +2 hour	15,000	$25	Moderate	Java, JavaScript, Python, PHP, C#, algorithms, data structures
Mexico	GMT-5 – GMT-8	225,000	$30	Low	data science, machine learning, Python, C/C++
Argentina	GMT-3 hours	160,000	$40	High	Mobile, data analysis, statistics, Python, Java.
Brazil	GMT-2 – GMT-5	500,000	$35	Low	Cloud, data, JavaScript, Node.js, Java, SQL, PHP, Python
Colombia	GMT-5	75,000	$25	Low	Data analysis, statistics, mobile development, Python, Java, C++, Ruby

We at nCube can help you set up a nearshore branch in these locations or any other tech hub of your choice.

Step 3. Shortlist potential companies

The most arduous task is probably to sift through a long list of nearshore software development outsourcing companies and choose ones that can potentially become your partner. To save you some time, here are some signs of a the best nearshore development companies:

A modern website;
Client testimonials and success stories;
A career section with recently posted vacancies;
A blog with recent posts;
Information about the company’s offices, phone numbers, and locations;
Social media presence.

When choosing a provider, be sure to pay attention to the values the company transmits and choose those whose values resonate with you most.

Step 4. Verify your chosen nearshore development companies

At this step, you can single out companies you find reliable enough to work with. Narrow down your shortlisted nearshore software development firms by comparing and contrasting their portfolios, particularly the types of companies they worked with, including their size (startups, mid-size, or enterprise)and domain. That way, you can choose the most relevant nearshore software development company. Then, you can pay attention to the software development model they provide, including the following:

Adding missing skills to your existing team;
Building a nearshore development team from the ground up;
A turn-key nearshore software development solution executed with the company’s own resources.

Depending on the model, you can select the right kind of provider who will provide the service in line with your business needs.

Step 5. Contact nearshore software development firms

Once you’ve verified the providers, schedule an intro call with them. At this point, it’s vital to pay attention to the quality of communication and identify the red flags. If you feel that a representative of a nearshore software development firm takes a lot of time to respond, neglects your business needs, or tries to sway you to sacrifice the things you deem essential for your project, it’s best to part ways from the get-go. Ideally, your communication should be guided by a personal account manager on the provider’s side who will always be in touch with you.

Step 6. Participate in every aspect of the process

It’s both in the client’s and provider’s best interest to build a squad that endures in the long run. And it takes two parties to build a sustainable nearshore development team. With that in mind, it’s best to discuss your developer and project needs in as much detail as possible. Below are the steps best nearshore software development companies follow to customize a team formation process:

Discovery. Going over the client’s project scope and candidate profile description;
Talent sourcing. Human Resources managers on the provider’s side launch the process of nearshore staff augmentation, including candidate search based on the requirements;
Internal review. Suitable candidates undergo Tech & HR interviews and an English proficiency test;
Client review. Shortlisted candidates are passed on for client interviews.

Step 7. Prepare a legal base

The provider of nearshore software development services should always emphasize the security of cooperation. That includes Service-Level agreements with clauses that safeguard your Intellectual Property as well as outline the terms of scaling up and down, time-frames, termination conditions, and other critical aspects. You can review the contract with your legal department and amend it if needed. The bottom line is that the best nearshore software development company like nCube should go the extra mile to make your partnership as safe and secure as possible.

When do you need a nearshore development company?

Companies tend to make the shift to nearshore partnerships when they face certain scenarios. Below we will explore some key circumstances so you can identify ones that imply your organization may need the help of a nearshore development company.

Your team starts to drift away from core business activities

At some point during the project, your team may become overwhelmed with tasks, which may lead to a loss of focus on their core duties. When that happens, it’s critical to take stock of your priorities. This is where the option of hiring a nearshore software development partner may become relevant. In fact, such a scenario is rather common, especially for companies where software development isn’t a central activity. In such cases, a solid nearshore software development partner can help you balance things out, in a way that you can beneficially combine your business activities while meeting the demands when it comes to software development.

Resource allocation challenges

Companies without established tech units have to fight an uphill battle when it comes to finding software development resources. The problem typically stems from the lack of local tech talent. As a result, companies tend to bridge the gaps by hiring freelancers or shuffling various tasks between different outsourcing vendors. However, we believe that hiring a nearshore development company offers a more comprehensive approach, as the provider can help you build a skilled team that will oversee your project from start to finish. A solid nearshore software development partner like nCube will also adapt the size and composition of the team based on your evolving needs throughout SDLC.

You have budget constraints

When building a local tech unit is beyond your budget, a nearshore development company offers a viable solution. Such a partner provides access to software developers located in nearshore zones with lucrative hourly rates, for instance, Central & Eastern Europe or Latin America. Additionally, with a nearshore software development partner by your side, you avoid the pitfall of insufficient resource allocation. You will have the opportunity to add developers who will handle a predetermined set of tasks while being fully integrated into your project as if they were your internal team members.

Your company is growing rapidly

Expanding into new markets often necessitates the addition of resources at short notice. This is especially true for startups undergoing rapid growth. In such cases, partnering with a nearshore development company can provide a viable solution to meet the needs of your expanding company. By engaging a nearshore software development company, you can bring in skilled developers to handle increasing workloads or time-sensitive projects. With access to vast pools of IT talent, a nearshore partner can effectively address the demands of any growing company. For instance, at nCube, we can build a standard development team within a timeframe of 2-6 weeks.

nCube is your trusted nearshore software development company

As a provider that has spent the past 16+ years in nearshore development in Eastern Europe and Latin America, we have the right processes in place to help you build your nearshore branch. Below is why you should consider us as a nearshore software development company:

Hire talent fast. Jump on a call with us, tell us about your project – and we’ll start looking for the needed profiles right away. On average, it takes us 2-6 weeks to get a team up and running.

Access to niche skills. If in-demand skills like Data, Artificial Intelligence, and Machine learning are a part of your playbook, you’ll need a wide pool of talent to build your team. nCube has a network of 125,000 experienced software engineers across CEE and LATAM, so we can help you secure the needed experts in your chosen location.

Top 1% of tech talent. Through our high screening standards, we’ll help you hire the best-in-class software engineers with the right kind of tech competence and cultural fit. Pulling back the curtain on our internal sourcing process, only 1 out of 5 candidates make it to the client interviews. They undergo such stages as tech skills and communication skills assessment, as well as English proficiency tests.

Moderate software developer rates. In the world of nearshore software development, a software development company will offer affordable rates, so you can save up to 50% compared to your local market. Additionally, office space, team retention, payroll, and employee perks are on us.

Collaboration on your terms. With us, you’ll be in the driver’s seat for all team decisions – from hiring to project management. It means that you can select the processes and methodologies (be it Waterfall, nearshore Agile development, or any other model) and the team will follow it.

If you’re interested in a partnership based on these principles, contact us to discuss our model.

Software development nearshore company: Frequently asked questions

What is a nearshore software development company?

A nearshore software development company specializes in building teams of software engineers and other IT talents in neighboring countries or ones with an adjacent time zone. It typically has an office and a team of HR specialists ready to source talent in the chosen region.

What is offshore vs nearshore software development?

Time zone difference is a key aspect in the offshore vs nearshore software development dilemma. With software development nearshore, a company is located within a similar time zone or with a slight gap, usually no more than 3 hours. Offshore providers don’t let you enjoy the advantage of time zone proximity, as your primary and offshore teams will be 8-12 hours away from each other.