Website development abroad - from curse to blessing

The offers of foreign providers are diversified: Some use Photoshop files to create ready-made HTML/CSS templates so that all you need to do is integrate the dynamic elements. Others specialize in complete web projects and provide entire teams of developers.

The advantages of outsourcing to a company abroad are obvious: production is cheaper and resources are more freely scalable. Nevertheless, the disadvantages must be taken into account: The task is often not understood and interpreted in the same way due to differences in language skills and quality perceptions. As most outsourcing projects are carried out in English, unequal language skills often lead to misunderstandings when interpreting the task. Queries are not easy, e.g. due to the time difference, direct contact with the developers is rarely possible and often impossible after the project has been completed. As a result, a project often ends in a fiasco for inexperienced companies. If you don't have experience in defining requirements, change management and evaluating the results, it's better to keep your hands off it.

Awarding a project to a partner abroad requires strong project management: the "employees" abroad must be closely managed. For smaller projects, regular coordination by phone or email is sufficient, but for larger projects, the project manager's workload increases exponentially. Personal meetings on site are often necessary. A manageable project such as a landing page can be produced abroad without any great risk. With increasing complexity, however, the risk increases that the project may stray from the actual goal due to the factors mentioned above or that requirements - which we take for granted - are implemented differently than expected and the project ends in frustration. Before awarding a project abroad, the following points, among others, should be checked in order to avoid major problems:

- How important is communication in German?
- Is direct cooperation with the programmers necessary, or is contact with the contractor's project manager sufficient?
- Can the project be specified in sufficient detail in the developer's language?
- Are you prepared to subordinate yourself to your partner's development process?
- Will the end product be developed further and by whom?

Working with a service provider abroad will only pay off over time. It is therefore advisable to proceed step by step in order to gain trust and experience. By bringing quality and technology awareness closer together, a solid basis for successful cooperation is formed over time. If you want to commission a project abroad in a hurry, it will ultimately be cheaper if you implement it with a local partner.

Stefan Bruggmann