Choosing between Delivery Teams or IT Staff Augmentation is always a challenging decision. Both options are great and helpful if used for the right project. The question then arises: Which approach should you take for this project?
Should you use delivery teams or IT staff augmentation?
These doubts can only be answered with careful consideration, as they could lead to significant financial decisions. However, these two modalities are here to stay since it’s expected that 500 million people will freelance worldwide by 2030. Furthermore, over 55% of the executives who worked with these modalities plan to increase their budget for the next year.
So, it’s a thing you’ll need to implement either now or later. This article will help you find the best answer to your questions with a clear and simple perspective on both options.
So, let’s get started!
Delivery teams
What is a delivery team?
Before we move on, let’s ensure we all agree on what we mean when discussing Delivery Teams. This type of a team is an intermediate alternative between a team of in-house developers and a fully outsourced one.
They are teams made up of individuals with all the necessary skills for the project at hand, who work independently of in-house teams but report directly to the client or project owner.
Pros of delivery teams
Here are some notable benefits of this method:
- Finely selected: Delivery teams are made up of skilled developers, each specialized in performing a specific task.
- More focused in-house team: Your in-house team can focus on their own challenges and only check the end result of the delivery team’s project.
- Borderless resources: It’s easier to outsource your IT projects because you’ll have access to a bigger talent pool, providing you with more options than a local team can.
- Ready to work: Forget about recruitment processes, filtering candidates, or finding the ones with the best synergy. These teams have already solved this problem.
- Predictable costs: Delivery teams give companies a better idea on total cost. Customers pay the same rate every month, which will only change if new needs arise.
- Speed up whenever you want: Customers can easily add or remove team members to scale up or down as required.
Cons of delivery teams
However, there are also some disadvantages to this approach:
- You don’t get the fine details: Outsourcing usually means giving up most control over the project’s workflow.
- Communication breakdown: Communication between delivery teams is essential for a successful partnership, so there is always a miscommunication risk in case one of the parties doesn’t communicate properly with the other.
- Slow to take-off: Depending on the company you choose, you should be patient. Before the project starts, all aspects of the project must be finalized and legal documentation completed.
- It could be pricier: Delivery teams can be more expensive because they have more responsibility — they are in charge of the whole project, its quality level, and the final result.
IT staff augmentation
What is IT staff augmentation?
IT Staff Augmentation means hiring temporary personnel to fill specific skill gaps in an organization. Outsourced employees hired in this way can work for your company as long as you need them. This approach also provides flexibility to adjust the number of employees according to the project’s needs.
IT Staff Augmentation and Delivery Teams differ from one another. With the latter, the company sends tasks to a team outside the company. On the other hand, with staff augmentation, the company brings in people on a temporary basis to work on specific tasks.
Pros of IT staff augmentation
Here you have the main advantages of IT Staff Augmentation:
- Cheaper option: Since it is a work method involving fewer responsibilities, it’s also less costly. You only pay for talent when you need it.
- Qualified experts: Thanks to the Staff Augmentation process, you’ll be able to quickly start working with those hard-to-come-by resources you’re looking for.
- Flexibility and scalability: Staff augmentation allows a company to easily add more people to its teams when projects require them. It’s a way to get talent when you need it.
- Borderless resources, too: If you are willing to work in a remote mode, you will be able to find skilled workers all over the world.
- Cohesion and teamwork: This approach allows the temporary employees to become immersed in the company’s philosophy and work alongside permanent staff, improving synergy.
- More control over the project: Having the entire team within your company allows you to take full control of the project, fixing errors as soon as they arise and providing closer monitoring.
- Finding diamonds: This engagement model lets you get to know your talent well, so you can find an ideal match for your company and consider them for future projects or even decide to hire them.
Cons of IT staff augmentation
IT Staff Augmentation also comes with certain risks.
- More tasks for your in-house team: Staff augmentation only provides you with some developers, but your technical leader must manage them. You’ll be responsible for training, leading, managing, and, in some cases, providing working equipment to them. More control also means more supervision and management work. Integrating different types of people with different skill sets can be difficult if your company isn’t well organized.
- Unexpected costs: Considering the previous point, there may be expenses you didn’t expect when you decided to add new people to the team.
To wrap up: delivery teams or IT staff augmentation?
Based on what we have seen throughout this article, it’s very likely that you’ve already come to your own conclusion about what is best for you in your particular case. Luckily, many companies have the technology and experience to solve your personnel problems, so you don’t have to worry.
Over the last decade, there has been a silent revolution that has pushed the most qualified people in the industry into the outsourcing business. The pandemic has helped it grow faster than people thought, and now it is changing the industry. This trend, added to the numerous advantages of outsourcing part of the workforce, is why more and more companies, regardless of their size or industry, are choosing to invest in this method.
But often, the only thing that stops tech companies from using these modalities is confusion about which service would best suit their particular situation. If picking between IT Staff Augmentation and Delivery Teams is still confusing, here’s a list of the needs that fit each case scenario.
You should consider delivery teams if:
- You want to develop a project quickly and efficiently without delays or setbacks. A delivery team will focus 100% on the creation of your product, reporting progress every step of the way.
- You need to start a new project immediately but lack time to hire and adequately introduce IT staff augmentation.
- You are a CTO and don’t have enough time to get involved in product development. You can relinquish this responsibility to a managed team, freeing up your schedule, which will allow you to focus on more supervisory and strategic tasks.
- It can help you save money. Working with managed teams can help reduce overall costs, as the company may need to hire fewer managers to oversee those teams. Your company may then allocate additional funds to other projects or resources.
You should consider IT staff augmentation if:
- You want to expand as quickly as possible, you need your business’s team of engineers and developers to focus on a specific part of the product, or you’re facing temporary workload peaks.
- You need access to a specific skill your local team doesn’t have, to follow the project’s development.
- You require experienced staff that you don’t have to train to do their job.
- You have a short-term or medium-term project and a tight budget.
- You are starting a process of hiring new people, but you don’t want to stop the already underway project.
- You need a very specialized team for a particular task.
Definitely, both options can be a great way to make your projects come alive. It’s still up to you to make the final decision: will it be a delivery team or IT staff augmentation?
