Outsourcing Guides
South Africa’s diverse workforce can be a rich source of affordable talent in all industries including developers.
The world of business process outsourcing is changing rapidly. Technology is evolving and opening up new ways for businesses and workers to interact. What once was seen as an option for low skilled employment such as call centre staff, is now spreading into other sectors, thanks to the emergence of new BPO hubs in countries such as South Africa. Here a diverse workforce, with a good command of English, backed up by state of the art technologies offers opportunities across all areas. Today’s it’s possible for any business of any size to outsource just about any function across their business operations and one of the most popular is web development.
Hiring web developers in South Africa
South Africa’s economy has progressed rapidly in the last ten years. A growth focused government has worked hard to build infrastructure, improve education levels and attract foreign investment.
The number of people in further education is growing and most cities now have state of the art digital infrastructure with super fact broadband connecting businesses with the rest of the world.
South Africa’s workforce today is young, talented, diverse and eager to work. Unfortunately, in a developing economy there has not always been enough jobs to go around which sees much of the country’s brightest young talent seeking employment opportunities overseas.
The government has sought to stem this flow and sees the business process outsourcing sector as being a perfect tool to bring good quality jobs into the South African economy. To that end the country has worked hard to establish itself as a rising hub in the BPO sector with a proposition based on quality, affordability and reliability.
South Africa is perfectly placed to provide international businesses with a fresh approach to outsourcing. English is widely spoken with a clear accent that is easy to understand. Labour costs have a significant discount compared to Western economies with costs further reduced by government incentives for companies hiring South African talent.
The results have been shining through with the BPO sector growing rapidly as western businesses see to outsource multiple operations into the country. While low cost outsourcing hubs such as India continue to struggle with poor levels of customer acceptance, negative press and rising incidents of BPO fraud, South Africa offers something new – a chance to reduce costs without harming quality.
A deeper talent pool opens up outsourcing to more professions including web developers.
Web developer costs
In the age of digital transformation even the smallest companies are now expected to have complex and sophisticated web presences. Customers want increasingly advanced omnichannel service options with the ability to interact dynamically with brands and service providers.
Websites are also harvesting huge amounts of data which can be used to drive more fulfilling and profitable customer experiences. However, embracing this new high–tech age is easier said than done. Developer costs are soaring as businesses feel pressured to dramatically upscale their operations just to keep up with their competitors and the growing expectations of their customers.
Developers are in short supply and their services come at a premium. Not every business will find it easy to find and then pay for people with the skills they need. Development agencies command high fees to provide ongoing services which in many cases are beyond the reach of SMEs.
To close this digital gap many businesses are now actively looking to outsource developer functions in a bid to optimise their costs. In doing this much depends on the choice of country.
While traditionally outsourcing was all about finding the lowest cost professionals, when looking for developers the emphasis has to be on quality. Businesses have been stung in the past by overseas development agencies which provide services that are cheap, basic and not up to standard. Botched developments on this kind can end up costing a company enormously in terms of output, customer satisfaction and reputation.
Common risks include:
• Poorly trained ‘cheap’ developers.
• Low quality results with systems full of bugs.
• Cyber risks through poor cyber security regulations.
• A lack of engagement and collaboration when fulfilling the brief.
• Delays caused by time zone differences
South Africa’s BPO sector has forged a niche for itself by providing a blended BPO model which combines labour savings while maintaining quality.
It’s location and the nature of its workforce make it well positioned to meet the needs of clients in the West. It’s well placed for the European, African and Middle Eastern markets with at most only a few hours’ time difference allowing it to match up with the working days of hiring companies.
Fast communication mean collaboration can be free flowing with amendments completed on the same day. Video conferencing allows for face–to–face meetings while cloud computing enables agile file sharing. From a collaboration perspective there should be no difference working with developers based in Cape Town or London.
Most South Africans also speak English fluently with a clear and easy to understand accent reducing the risk of communication difficulties.
The BPO sector also prides itself on a reputation for quality and reliability. It achieves this by maintaining state of the art technology and best in class cyber security measures to reduce the risks of data loss. BPO companies adhere to best–in–class governance procedures with robust protections against fraud.
Finding developers in South Africa
The way you source and work with developers in South Africa will depend on your business needs. A good first stop could be to hire individual developers on a freelance basis. They can be available on a project–by–project basis as and when you need them.
For more regular requirements you may want to outsource work to a web development agency which can handle all your development needs. They will have a team of highly skilled developers backed by the latest state of the art technology to collaborate with your domestic-based team on all development projects. Forging a long–lasting relationship in this way can foster an ongoing relationship in which the developers get to know and understand your brand.
Alternatively, you might want to recruit and manage your own outsourced team directly. To do this you will either need a legal entity within South Africa to serve as the employer or hire a locally based company such as an Employer of Record which can serve as the legal employer for all your South African based staff. This is a cost–effective way to access South African talent without having to become their direct employer.
Developers in South Africa have a reputation for quality and reliability. An upwardly mobile workforce is keen for new projects. Outsourcing developers to South Africa represents a chance to save money, and ensure high quality, all at the same time.
