If your business is ready to engage an IT Staff Augmentation Partner, you have already decided you need and want help. Whether your enterprise wants support for a one-time software application development project, ongoing support for enterprise systems or trained expertise in a particular technology environment, you want to be sure you get the right resources, the right knowledge and the right support! In this article, we outline three questions to ask a prospective IT staff augmentation partner.
‘…we encourage you to develop a detailed list of questions and issues you want to address before you select your IT staff augmentation partner.’
Here are three questions to ask a prospective IT staff augmentation partner:
Delivery Models – Every business need is different and even your business needs may change from month to month. What delivery models does this partner offer? Ideally, you want the most flexibility to respond to changes. You plan for one thing and then discover that you need more resources or a different type of resource. How does the partner respond to that kind of change? You may want onsite resources that are embedded with your team, or offshore resources working from the partner offices to deliver services remotely, OR you may want a hybrid delivery model with some resources onsite and some offsite. Can your partner accommodate those needs and do they have experience in delivering services in this way?
Resources and Knowledge – Your project may require knowledge of mobile application frameworks and tools, an understanding of big data or data extraction, transformation and loading (ETL) or software integration. Does your partner have team members who are expert in the areas you need? If so, will they ensure that these resources are available throughout the life of the project or will they be pulled and assigned to another project? If your team needs additional knowledge and skills, you need to know that you can depend on access and availability.
Reporting and Communication – Understand how your project or ongoing support efforts will be handled in terms of daily, weekly or monthly communication. Be sure your service level agreements (SLAs) reflect guaranteed communication and reporting. Who will report and who will be the liaison? If the staff augmentation team is onsite, how will they communicate progress and issues to THEIR management team and who will be responsible for reporting to your team? If the team is offsite, how and when will you communicate? What types of reports will you get and how detailed will they be? Who do you call if you have a question? You don’t want to be dealing with a sales person! If the team is hybrid, the onsite and offsite team must work together to ensure that they act as a team AND that they interact with YOUR team appropriately.
These are just a few of the things you need to consider when you interview an IT staff partner. You will find more details and information in the links provided below and we encourage you to develop a detailed list of questions and issues you want to address before you select your IT staff augmentation partner.
‘Whether your enterprise wants support for a one-time software application development project, ongoing support for enterprise systems or trained expertise in a particular technology environment, you want to be sure you get the right support.’
If you want a skilled, dependable IT partner and worry-free IT staff augmentation, explore our IT Staff Augmentation Services, and read our White Paper to find out how to select an Offshore Outsourcing Partner. Explore these links to other articles about IT Staff Augmentation: ‘3 Reasons You May Want to Consider Staff Augmentation Services’, and ‘Confront Concerns About IT Staff Augmentation: 4 Benefits of Engaging a Partner’.
