Steps on hiring a remote development team
Before the 2020 global quarantine, 56% of companies all over the globe allowed remote work. From this point forward, this number shall only keep increasing. But even before the pandemic began, many people have wanted to work remotely, in order to have flexible hours, spend less time on transport. Some companies have been forced to review their ways of working and hiring a remote development team has been one of the major shifts. Here are a few useful tips, which can help you in hiring a remote development team or getting things organized.
Geography of your development team
Given all the tools which are at our disposal nowadays, you can pretty much hire a development team wherever you want around the globe. Even so, it is important to closely review details to hire in the best possible conditions. Due to an extensive talent pool, not to mention affordable rates, South America, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe are popular when it comes to hiring development teams.
Time zones can seem challenging but, in such a context, it is important to bank on quality. Even if your development team does not have the same time zone as you, but quality of work is present, you can settle down for a team which isn’t in your time zone. It is true that when you have a closer time zone, you can almost work simultaneously but as long as the work is being done, time zones aren’t an issue. It’s essential to have regular meeting sessions to be up to date on how the work is moving forward.
Choosing the right collaboration model
It is key that you think about the collaboration system which shall best work for you. Before making up your mind, you could visit tech fairs and conferences to learn about all the options you have at your disposal. You could also ask for referrals as well.
Several websites around the globe help you hire freelancers for example Upwork, Youteam, Pilot etc.
You could also hire dedicated teams. All you need is an onboarding process which will help you develop a competent team. This way you’re sure that your employees are devoted to your cause and when you use platforms like the ones mentioned above, you don’t need to deal with legal and administrative hassles.
Review and sort through profiles
Selection and recruitment are the core elements of the future success of your remote software development team. You must not forget that remote developers are a crucial extension of your existing team. Your search and hiring methods will ultimately depend on the model of collaboration you eventually wish to choose, however, here are a few tips based on the experience of our clients :
- In addition to checking the technical skills necessary for the job, ensure the candidate is motivated to contribute to your product’s development.
- Use the tools and methods you already know and like — these can be the ones you use while hiring in-house developers but also additional means.
- Conduct several interviews, but don’t delay feedback — tech talent markets are rather tense, and the developer you’re considering might be reviewing other options.
- Technical skills are important, however, if you are looking for a perfect fit for your team, pay attention to soft skills too.
All this can be extremely overwhelming. If you have a hard time making up your mind, don’t hesitate to set up an additional interview. It’s better to put aside some additional time initially, rather than waste later on with the wrong person or a team. An additional interview or meeting session never hurts.
Trust is key and bank on working methodology
Working remotely with collaborators can seem overwhelming at first. The only contact you’ve had is through the Internet. This is why it is important to make trips and meet the people you and your teams are working with remotely. Moreover, focus on virtual team building. Initially, it may seem tedious but then these aspects turn into reflexes. Make sure your teams have all the required tools for effective communication, collaboration, and progress tracking.
Even though your teams work remotely, knowledge needs to be shared constantly as it can only help both parties. It is also important to remain up to date with the latest trends.
The working methodology is an aspect which is important as well. While building a remote software team, flexible collaboration methodologies like Agile tend to work best. Agile allows to make the development processes more efficient by minimizing expenses and lowering risks during implementation. The most popular frameworks are the Agile Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC), Scrum, Extreme Programming (XP), and Kanban.
Build your software team with Ualog
Our transparent IT out staffing cooperation model helps clients scale their development teams quickly and efficiently. You are the one who chooses and hires developers, as well as manages them with the tools and methods you like. Ualog helps you organize daily sync-ups. It is true that daily sync up calls may seem too much for some teams, they can truly work wonders in helping your team keep in touch with each other and stay abreast of overall progress. Remote developers should also be free to make as many calls as needed throughout the day when there is a need for some clarifications. We give great importance to security. To ensure the security of your data while working remotely, your developers should be well-informed of the BYOD policy. This way, the use of personal devices will not harm your business.
Moreover, make sure remote programmers use a secure and stable internet connection. A Plan B shall be required for each unexpected issue such as power cut offs or poor internet quality. If you’d like to learn more about Ualog’s services, don’t hesitate to contact us, and our experts will get back to you shortly.
