Migrating Teams from Eastern Europe to South America

After weighing the pros and cons of nearshore software development, you’ve decided to migrate your team from Eastern Europe to Central America. Now, you’re probably wondering when is the best time to make the switch, how to overcome the prior team’s reaction, and where you can find some savvy new developers.

A brief online search will reveal many developers who may be able to help you. But, to get the most effective services, there are some specific features you should look for in your future team. Below is an updated guide for businesses  in the process of a team migration.

When and how

The best time to make the switch is when your product achieves maturity and needs more attention during working hours. If you like the developers you’re working with, though, it’s not an easy decision. You’re taking their business away, and there’s a very good chance they’ll dislike it.

When explaining the reasons behind your decision, try to avoid disappointing them. Mention things like the time zone issue and don’t talk about the quality of their work. Based on our experience, signing a support contract (otherwise known as a service level agreement or SLA) or hourly contract with the initial provider for work during the transition can relieve the tension. Remember that you may also want to send work their way later, so it’s good to maintain a healthy relationship with former devs. 

The situation could become complicated if the departing team isn’t open to collaboration. However, if that’s the case, it’s not the end of the world. The new dev team should be able to sort things out, even without clues from the former team. We’ve gone through situations like this and have found that it’s doable. It just takes some time and effort.

Migration costs 

In most cases, costs are tied to strategy. You may want to make a switch on/off move (i.e. starting with the new team the day after letting the old team go) to avoid incurring costs by having the two teams overlap, but that’s not the best way to go. Instead, your best bet is to reduce the amount of time the former team works — just part-time or less while you’re ramping down.

In certain situations, the pace of development established by the former team must be maintained. In these instances, have the new team ramp up, train, and study the code and environments while the former team continues to push for a while. 

The biggest cost is the learning curve for the new team. Nevertheless, having the team plugged into your structure will quickly deliver value and will balance — if not exceed — the throughput before you know it. 

Time considerations

Like costs, the time invested in migration is bound to strategy. If you want to meet deadlines during and after the process, you’ll need to determine your approach and choose a team that’s up to the challenge.

Determine your approach.  You must decide what kind of engagement model fits you best, which will depend on the needs of your business. You can go for a Dedicated Team, Staff Augmentation, or End-to-End Project service, each of which has its unique benefits. We’re used to creating tailor-made teams for all these situations, so, if none of them suits your situation, no worries. Drop us a line and we’ll help you out!

Choose the right team. The developer market is as wide as the sea. If you choose wrong, you could waste months of transition and training without a payoff. If your team doesn’t adapt to your needs, deadlines will be delayed and you’ll have to start over. With so many possible vendors, how can you know which one is best? One way is to ensure your new team has the following characteristics:

• The team must be yours – A good provider will offer you a ready-made team that’s available to report to you at all times.
• They must manage the right methodologies – Some businesses still use the Waterfall methodology. However, a team with tools and structure-based around Agile methodologies is your best option to develop good software fast.
• You should get transparency – If your vendor provides little transparency about internal workflows, you can’t control whether they’re using Waterfall, Scrum, Agile, or some other framework. The vendor should give you access to virtual management tools such as Trello and Slack, where you can control tasks and check progress.

Perhaps most importantly, they should be talented engineers. More than good, they should be the best in their areas of expertise. We’re able to provide this level of quality because we gather the most skilled developers from across the continent.

Why it’s worth the effort

Let’s be honest, migrating a team is stressful. Yet, all our clients have benefitted from our simple processes and transparency. They value having access to the best talent from more than 20 countries across Latin America while we handle the complexities of management, training, and salaries. And they never have to sign complex contracts or engage in long-term commitments to get that level of service. These testimonials prove that aiming for better quality is always worth the effort. 

We’re happy to review your situation, estimate costs, and develop a customized strategy for you. If you’d like to initiate that conversation or if you have any questions or just want to chat with us, don’t hesitate to reach out through our social media channels or leave a message on our site. I’ll personally get back to you.

Damian Wasserman

Damian is a passionate Computer Science Major who has worked on the development of state-of-the-art technology throughout his whole life. In 2018, Damian founded BEON.tech in partnership with Michel Cohen to provide elite Latin American talent to US businesses exclusively.