ETESTWARE OUTSOURCING: REMOTE V NEAR

As our lives continue to be heavily impacted by COVID-19, the team at eTestware, part of theICEway ecosystem, are all working remotely to try and stay safe. Our ‘remote’ status does not mean that we are not working together, however, and we have all vowed to continue as normal in order to beat this. Each week this year we have taken a look back at an article from the past, and today we have decided to continue in that vein but with something a little more apt, with a piece about outsourcing that touches upon remote workers. You can read the original article here or scroll down for a summarised version…

In this piece from October 2017 – it seems like such a long time ago – our testing experts decided to focus upon answering an important question; what are the advantages of outsourcing ‘closer to home’? Adopting a style in which the question was assumed to have been already asked, we proceeded to rattle off some of the key advantages:

- Whilst outsourcing offers the opportunity to create truly worldwide teams, it should be noted that projects are often badly affected by communication break downs

- Outsourcing locally can result in fewer cross-cultural differences to overcome
Almost two-and-a-half years on, it is perhaps safe to say that whilst both of these points have been tackled by new developments in technology and an increase in online communication platforms, they do still hold some validity.

The article went on to outline that no matter where you choose to outsource, you will ultimately be dealing with people, which inevitably means a level of resistance needs to be overcome. This resistance does not need to be too great however, provided you keep in mind the unquestionable logic behind considering local resource over resource derived from the other side of the world (even today):

- People from the same region have comparable salaries, which leads to less friction

- Their daily experiences are more similar, as are their circumstances

- Your own team members will likely be less resistant as they will not feel as though they are being ‘replaced’ by people on lower salaries who are ‘worlds apart’ from them

This final point was further reiterated, its importance illustrated by the fact that your internal team is absolutely crucial, and relied upon for the training and on-going support required by any outsourced testing team:

“…how [the two teams] interact with each other is crucial. QA test planning, execution, and result tracking are more comfortable with team members that understand each other’s mannerisms and speech patterns with less effort.”

This theme of stronger communication through regional outsourcing was solidified with another advantage being described next, namely that of the same / closer time zones and work schedules meaning a greater degree of synergy.

Ultimately, when an outsourced team works together with your own team, there has to be a level of understanding with each test case but more importantly, with the general plan. There is no doubt that effective results can be obtained via working with a team based thousands of miles away, in part because technology now allows for virtually seamless remote working capabilities, but our main point in the article was that a more local team allows for greater efficiencies over a shorter period of time.

In essence, our testing experts can work together with your team to help you reduce costs and save time, two distinct advantages that demand attention.

GlossaryCOVID-19 – A new illness that affects lungs and airways and is caused by ‘coronavirus’. The main symptoms are a cough, high temperature and shortness of breath, but adopting simple steps like washing your hands frequently with soap and water can help to stop the virus spreading.

theICEway ecosystem – a collection of IT companies that combine to provide a complete digital solution for healthcare, cruise and travel and retail clients.

QA Test – This ensures that your product attains the highest level of quality for your customers.

Top TipLooking to outsource? Or perhaps you want to outsource but aren’t sure whether or not to go local? Hopefully this article or the original will help you, but one thing is for sure; throughout this entire period, you must try and remember to keep safe by:

- Staying at home
- Only going out for essential items / one exercise session per day
- Only travelling to work if necessary
- Not engaging in public gatherings of more than two people
- Remembering that police can issue fines if you do not follow this guidance