Today, approximately 40% of large companies spend over 25% of their project budgets directly on QA. These funds are directed towards both the product testing processes and maintaining the staff of relevant specialists.
- But what if we told you this expense could be reduced without losing productivity and efficiency? For instance, simply by hiring an offshore QA team.
From this material, you will learn about the benefits of such a collaboration model and the specifics of QA team management. Plus, you’ll learn about the pitfalls that can be completely avoided.
Advantages of Offshore QA and Comparison with Other Outsourcing Models
Offshore QA testing is an optimal service model for businesses of any scale. Even tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon have conducted mass layoffs and delegated part of their projects to external contractors over the past year.
However, for each type of company, offshore QA provides different advantages, such as:
- Startups. This is the best way to minimize staffing costs and reduce the cost of bringing a product to market.
- Small Business. This is an opportunity to save on project costs and reinvest funds into further development.
- Medium Business. This is a chance to optimize costs and differentiate efforts across several projects.
- Large Business. This is a way to outsource projects and focus on their management fully.
By partnering with an offshore QA facility, any business gains advantages such as those listed below.
Cost-Effectiveness
Offshore QA testing is usually more cost-effective than in-house operations. That’s because you are not limited to the region you work with, which allows you to flexibly adjust your QA budget.
- For example, if you are based in the USA, the services of testers from Eastern Europe or Asia will cost you significantly less than the equivalent work of specialists from your own country or neighboring regions.
Yes, you can appeal to time differences and the complexity of management, but with the right strategy, these nuances are leveled out, as you will see if you read the material in the relevant section.
Access to a Wider Talent Pool
There are also IT specialists outside your region, including testers with significant offshore QA expertise. Often, offshore outsourcing can be a solution that gives you access to scarce professions and narrow skills.
- For example, if your project requires a Senior-level Selenium expert, you will find in a remote region.
This is a conditional example, but in practice, you can hire qualified automation engineers, AI implementation and testing specialists, and other personnel that your project needs.
A QA company has specialists in many areas and with experience in various fields, so you don’t need to hire engineers separately. You can usually get access to all of them just by working with one company. In addition, if you need to replace an engineer (in case of a mismatch in values), the contractor can easily do so. Or, if the project expands and additional engineers are needed, the QA company can provide them as well.
Potential for Uninterrupted Work Cycles Due to Time Zone Differences
Offshore QA is one of the best models for setting up your project management processes, as modern teams like Utor can easily adapt to your needs and development cycles.
- With the integration of workspaces and flexible scheduling, your QA partner can deliver a high-quality SDLC and meet your goals on time.
By the way, this is true not only for offshore but also for other outsourcing models. It is a common characteristic, though there are significant differences, which we will discuss further.
Focus on Core Development. Offloading QA tasks allows your in-house development team to focus on core functionality and features. This can improve overall development efficiency and productivity.
Scalability. Offshore teams can easily scale up or down depending on your project requirements. This allows for greater flexibility in managing your testing resources.
Offshore vs. Onshore vs. Nearshore
Sometimes it makes sense to consider not only offshore QA teams but also other, less remote options. However, it is important to take into account the differences between these outsourcing models to choose the optimal one for the needs of your project and its budget.
| Offshore | Nearshore | Onshore | |
| Quality of Services | High, but depends on the team and their work ethic | High and depends on the region you are collaborating with | Situational and depends on the country where you develop the product |
| Management | Adaptive, so optimal collaboration models need to be built | Sufficiently controlled given the expertise of the contractors | Full control over the project |
| Challenges | Relative management, risk of encountering amateurs | Not a very clear balance of price/quality | High service costs and limited choice of contractors |
| Potential | Access to any talents and skill levels in the QA market | A compromise for those who can’t decide between Offshore and Onshore | Possibly the highest quality of services and full team control |
| Cost | Affordable even for small startups | Balanced, though it depends on the region | High, but depends on the economic situation in the country |
Summary:
- Offshore is suitable for all types of businesses and is the optimal choice for reducing product costs, delegating part of the work, etc.
- Nearshore is balanced and optimal for countries bordering somewhat poorer regions (cost reduction).
- Onshore is ideal only when you are working on a large-scale project and want to fully control it.
While offshore may seem like the optimal outsourcing model, you should be aware of its dark side, which you will have to either tolerate or try to compensate for.
Challenges and Considerations
Most problems with offshore quality assurance arise from a lack of understanding by hiring managers of the specifics of managing remote teams, or of QA processes in general.
- That’s why we’ve prepared this short overview of typical challenges, in which we will also discuss methods of mitigating them.
Overall, the problems can be classified into four categories:
- Communication.
- Time zone differences.
- Cultural variations.
- Vendor selection.
- Cost and budget constraints. Worrying about the cost of the service and justifying its ROI within the company’s budget.
- Lack of prior experience. Hesitation due to unfamiliarity with the process of outsourcing QA and choosing the right provider.
However, each of these is neither critical nor irreparable, as you will see below.
Communication
Your partner should provide a dedicated manager responsible for communication. Also, the schedule (daily, weekly, monthly, etc.) and the style of the meetings should be convenient for the client.
Pay attention to how your potential QA partner reacts to your questions. Are the answers clear, detailed, and accurate? Grammar and literacy may not seem like the most important things. Still, they indicate the level of education and respect.
For example, at Utor, when providing offshore software testing services, we actively communicate with the rest of the project team, prioritize all identified bugs, and report on completed tasks and achieved goals.
Time Zone Differences
If the time difference is more than 8 hours, then yes, project management can be a problem. This particularly applies to the mismatch of working schedules between the in-house team and the offshore QA team.
- And this is indeed a challenge, especially if neither side wants to change their schedule. However, no one claims that the situation is hopeless.
There are several ways to solve this challenge: synchronize the teams’ uptime according to an average schedule, simply submit bug reports in a timely manner, control changes, etc.
Cultural Variations
Of course, no one forces you to befriend the offshore QA facility, but you must form healthy working relationships and take into account the culture of the team doing the work for you.
- This includes religion, regional peculiarities, and the corporate culture of the contractor.
For example, for Arabs, Friday is always a day off, and the workweek starts on Sunday. So, consider such circumstances when planning both cooperation and communication.
Vendor Selection
The biggest problem with offshore QA testing and other remote processes is the professionalism of the contractor. We do not recommend avoiding new bright talents, but we do urge you to evaluate candidates responsibly.
- In particular, pay attention to the experience of the specialists, their qualifications, and skill levels. It would also be useful to assess reviews from their previous clients and possibly their portfolio.
Also, check the team’s rating on platforms such as Clutch, GoodFirms, etc. It is an indicator of the team’s expertise and reliability.
Best Practices for Success
Offshore QA expertise alone will not be enough to build quality cooperation. The collaboration process, especially remote, requires effort from both sides. Only this guarantees that you will achieve your established goals.
- To improve your experience, we have prepared the next section of this material. Here you will learn about the best practices and methodologies for managing offshore QA teams.
You will also understand the basics of how to quickly and effectively mitigate potential challenges and optimize collaboration processes.
Strategies for Managing and Collaborating with an Offshore QA Team
Let’s move on to practice, the three pillars of effective management of offshore QA performers, namely:
- Effective communication channels.
- Clear project management.
- Integration with existing workflows.
- Set the project quality goals to define a reliable testing strategy.
- Set realistic metrics and goals for testing.
Here’s a brief overview of these strategies.
Effective Communication Channels
Firstly, you need to establish quality and broad communication channels. Appoint a specialist responsible for QA process control who has direct contact with the contractor team leader.
It is a good practice of the contractor (i.e., Utor) to connect an AM manager who will resolve all disputes between engineers and the client’s team. That is, AM is an intermediary who will take over communication with the client. And then communication with the engineers. The client doesn’t have to solve the problems themselves, AM will do it.
- Also, ensure that the contractors are present at periodic meetings, at least in the management, team leads, and lead engineers.
Additionally, set up a process for collecting, analyzing, and discussing bug reports, periodic reports on identified issues, and their resolutions.
Clear Project Management
Ensure quality project and contractor team management. Perform the following preparatory actions:
- Appoint a company representative responsible for coordination.
- Agree with the contractor on the frequency and detail of communications.
- Deploy shared task lists, progress tracking panels, etc.
Also, include contractor representatives in regular meetings and invite team members to discuss current challenges and results.
Integration with Existing Workflows
In addition to communications, you will need a shared workspace. One option is to deploy a cloud work environment with appropriate access levels. This immediately solves two problems:
- Ensures CI/CD for the project.
- Protects sensitive data from external influences.
This way, you can work in a single space, control the contractor’s actions, and monitor the work process in real-time.
Conclusion
Yes, the offshore QA model has its drawbacks and can be a risky investment if you are not confident in your partner. However, with the Utor team, you can effectively build your quality assurance processes and achieve the desired results in a short time.
Want to improve product quality, automate testing, or ensure your solution meets established standards? Contact a Utor manager for a consultation and start collaborating!
FAQ
What is offshore testing?
Offshore testing is a way to achieve the set project goal and ensure its quality at the optimal budget cost.
What is QA in deployment?
QA in deployment is the process of determining whether the product and its technical state, and behavior logic, meet the established standards, project needs, and audience expectations.
What is QA release testing?
QA release testing prevents reputational and financial losses by performing a final check of the product before its release and launch on the relevant platforms.
How do you manage a QA team?
We use modern proven methodologies like Agile and build processes to ensure you get the expected result without unnecessary risks. Want to know more? Contact a Utor manager.
