Maryland-based Inflection Point Systems, a software development firm, looks closer to home―choosing to outsource to Monterey, Mexico, where around 65 people are working on projects, said Gerardo Montemayor, Inflection Point’s CTO. Montemayor pegs the cost differential at 50% and, he stresses, in Mexico his operation has lower turnover (“single digit”) than is typical among U.S. software developers.
In every case, however, these pioneering U.S. companies stress that the key to creating a high-performing far offshore unit: work with a good, trustworthy partner.
One issue in going to an exotic location: it’s not easy to scale up staff swiftly. In Hanoi, for instance, Moss thinks the human resources are there for him to bump up to perhaps 200 software engineers. “After that, it gets questionable.” Similar caps apply to all the newly emerging outsourcing hotbeds, from Chile to Pakistan. Only India has what appears to be inexhaustible human resources.
One last advantage to looking to off beat locales―it’s very sexy, said Zemoga’s Edgerton. “It certainly is sexy to say, our site was built in Colombia,” he laughs. Ditto for Hanoi or Mexico. Once upon a time, yes, Bangalore was cool, but now the exotica stakes are ramped up and if you want the admiration of peers, go to a location that hasn’t been featured in Travel & Leisure Magazine … Yet.
As a busy freelance writer for more than 30 years, Rob McGarveyhas written over 1500 articles for many of the nation’s leading publications―from Reader’s Digest to Playboy and from the NY Times to Harvard Business Review. McGarvey covers CEOs, business, high tech, human resources, real estate, and the energy sector. A particular specialty is advertorial sections for many top outlets including the New York Times, Crain’s New York, and Fortune Magazine.