Exclusive Interview with Chirag Mudsa - CEO, CMarix on "Top App Firms"

In this exclusive interview, He shared his insights on outsourcing and several more things. Let’s check his success story and thoughts.

1. What are the different types of outsourcing?

Over the years, outsourcing services have evolved across industries and we now have following types of outsourcing.

● Professional outsourcing ● IT outsourcing ● Manufacturing outsourcing ● Project outsourcing ● Process outsourcing ● Operational outsourcing

2. Why do you think companies outsource, what benefits does outsourcing provide them?

IT companies and enterprises all over the globe prefer outsourcing IT development jobs and other tasks expressly for the following benefits:

● The cost advantage or the benefit of getting an IT development job completed at a lower budget is the principal impetus for outsourcing IT jobs. ● Enhanced efficiency through professional experts is another key advantage of IT outsourcing. ● Getting complete freedom from the worries over IT tasks, development and project management tasks to concentrate on the core business areas is a key advantage of IT outsourcing. ● Through IT outsourcing a company can do away with the obligation of building and maintaining its own IT infrastructure and setup. ● Easier access to skilled professionals and experienced experts related to their IT needs is another major benefit of IT outsourcing. ● Availability of IT experts and developers of different skills across different time zones us another crucial advantage of IT outsourcing. ● Fast-paced, smooth and professionally sharp services have always been a key impetus of IT outsourcing.

3. What would you say are the top risks of outsourcing?

In spite of several key benefits, IT outsourcing also exposes a company to several risks and vulnerabilities like the following.

● Lack of compliance with the industry standard is a key risk for all IT outsourcing projects. ● Subpar quality or gap in terms of expected quality is another key risk area for IT outsourcing. ● Miscommunication or lack of understanding between the development company and the enterprises is another key risk area. ● Higher development cost because of hiring industry-leading development companies is another key risk area. ● Loss of control while handling remote IT teams is another key risk area for IT outsourcing. ● Issues concerning intellectual property are also key risks when handling remote IT teams. ● Long term dependency on the technology service provider is a key concern for IT outsourcing.

4. What challenges do companies face when outsourcing their call center functions and how should they minimize risk to their core business?

While companies are always exposed to a number of risks and vulnerabilities, there are several mitigatory processes and methods that can do wonders in reducing risks and challenges of IT outsourcing. Here we explain these ways to mitigate risks.

● Check their industry-wise reputation and several case studies where their excellence, expertise and compliance standards can be laid bare. ● Carry out a thorough background check including their portfolio. ● Check on their status across industry review platforms such as Clutch. ● Inquire whether they are offering state of the QA processes comprising all major testing tools and protocols. Make sure they follow Agile or DevOps processes and offer Split testing to test a product at different stages. ● Before starting with an outsourcing project, set the project guidelines, timing, communication protocols and channels. ● Make sure you sign a Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA) to make sure complete secrecy and compliance for the project are maintained. ● Make sure all cost factors are discussed well in advance and no hidden costs are billed at the end of the project.

5. What are the top 3 questions a company should ask a potential outsourcer?

Since a company needs to evaluate an IT company first by asking the most relevant questions related to their field, there are certain questions that need to be asked with a priority. Here are the top 3 questions a company should ask an outsourcing company.

● What is your experience in the industry? ● What are the topmost successful app projects in your portfolio? ● What kind of financial health your company has? ● What are the key technologies and tools your company has proven expertise with? ● What is the cost to value you ensure with your development service?

6. What industry sector outsources the most?

As of now based upon the outsourcing data across industries, certain industries outsource more than others. As of now, IT leads in outsourcing followed by the defence, government, media, health & pharmaceuticals, retail, manufacturing and automobile.

7. What are the top 5 reasons organizations outsource?

There are many reasons for outsourcing. The top 5 reasons for outsourcing tasks include the following.

● Reducing development cost. ● Avoiding in-house development and maintenance hazards. ● Reducing the burden of IT infrastructure and cost. ● Concentrating on key business areas and ROI. ● Availing top-level expertise and experience in similar IT projects.

8. What effects do legislation (e.g. DMA/FTC etc) have on the outsourcing industry and what are your views on this?

These legislations cover various types of IT outsourcing jobs and tasks, ensure following the best industry standards, practices and compliance norms required by the industry. In spite of creating temporary disruptions for the processes of many IT outsourcing firms, these regulations, in the long run, will help to create better value for the client companies and end-users.

9. What challenges do offshore outsourcers face that domestic ones do not?

In comparison to domestic outsourcing, offshore outsourcing faces the following challenges.

● The challenge of different time-zones for project collaboration. ● Cultural and linguistic differences with the offshore developers. ● Higher development costs in some countries pose additional challenges. ● Lack of scope for individually reviewing each and every developer in the team. ● The difference in respect of industry and compliance standards between different time-zones.

10. What are the key drivers for companies to outsource offshore?

There are many drivers and impetuses that inspire companies to outsource IT jobs. Here we mention some of the key drivers.

● Lack of efficiency with an in-house team of developers. ● Budget constraints. ● Unavailability of local experts with similar tech stack and jobs. ● Cost burden for hiring experts with specific tech stack. ● Lack of resources for managing an IT project. ● Challenging and highly demanding project needing expertise.

11. How have the campaigns and projects companies outsource changed over the last 5 years?

Several new technologies appeared in the scene in the last five years or so. Naturally, companies requiring to upgrade with the cutting edge technologies either need to spend a huge sum in hiring most sought after talents having expertise with these technologies or go for outsourcing the project from a company with proven expertise in the field. On the other hand, flexibility and ease of outsourcing development team have become easier than ever before.

12. Do you feel that a client of an outsourcer should have unrestricted access to agents/reps working on their behalf and why do you believe this?

Yes, we at Cmarix have a strong conviction on the power of transparency on the development process and hence we allow unrestricted and uninterrupted access to the clients on our development processes. Our clients can freely keep in touch with the developers and project managers to see how the project progresses and come with relevant iterations where needed.

13. What industry sectors tend to outsource more than others (e.g. financial services, utilities etc)

Certain industry niches tend to hire more than others because of the nature of their business. IT companies often outsource various development services from offshore development companies. Some of the top industries hirings outsource developers include automobile, logistics, manufacturing, finance, retail and many others.

14. What management and motivation challenges do outsourcing companies face with their staff?

When it comes to outsourcing the business tasks, the outsourcing service providers often find it difficult to keep the morale of their employees high. It is important to tell the outsourcing developers to give their best only to create a great portfolio for the individual and complete track records.

15. How can outsourcers and clients ensure a fair partnership agreement?

These days outsourcing companies and client firms sign Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) to maintain complete secrecy of the project. On the other hand, both firms need to come with a balanced agreement taking care of the interests of both parties.

16. What are the main advantages of using brokers when considering outsourcing some, or all, of your contact center functions?

The key advantages of using brokers for outsourcing jobs is to gain the most competitive rates, accessing and comparing the best talents for a project and getting onboard the best option. With the experienced broker firms to help find out the best outsourcing company in a niche, the professional broker services play an invaluable role.

17. What is the role of service standards when outsourcing?

When outsourcing services for your company, the most important service standards that you should consider include the following:

● Streamlined communication through multiple channels ● Fixed accountability for communication through a project manager ● Optimum transparency with the scope of iteration throughout the development ● Following industry best practices and protocols ● Adhering to strict project deadlines.

18. What role do associations play in helping companies select and use outsourcing services?

Industry associations can play a great role in helping businesses getting in touch with top outsourcing companies with the required expertise for the project. Since industry associations in the respective regions have detailed knowledge about companies and their key strengths and weaknesses, they always help companies to find the best talents for their development job.

19. Have you seen any trends in your area on the type of outsourcing companies that have established themselves in your area and what would you attribute this to?

As for the latest outsourcing trend that really stood out for some time is the popularity of Software as a Service (SaaS) platforms. In the years to come, this service-based architecture will continue to get popular and many outsourcing companies instead of offering one-time development services will focus more on providing software-based service architecture to address business needs.