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IT Outsourcing: A Complete Guide To Outsourcing Software Engineers

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Companies choose to outsource software engineers for a number of reasons. Sometimes it’s to reduce costs. Other times it’s to access skills and expertise that are not available through your in-house team.

A crucial part of software engineering outsourcing is trusting the team you’ve chosen. You will need to trust their expertise, their abilities, and their interest and involvement in the project.

Working with an outsourced software engineering team is associated with a number of risks that can negatively affect the delivery of your project. And when you’re not familiar with the ins and outs of outsourcing, you won’t make the best decisions for your business.

But once you learn how to mitigate or avoid these risks as well as become well-acquainted with outsourcing in general, you can benefit from productive collaboration with a remote team. If this is your goal, keep reading.

What Is IT Outsourcing?

Outsourcing occurs when a business uses an outside supplier to obtain goods or resources, rather than relying on internal support.

Many branches of outsourcing, like call centers, focus on reducing costs for big businesses. As a result, this is usually the impression people get of outsourcing in general. But small and medium-sized companies in the tech industry often outsource software engineers to gain an extra set of skills.

IT outsourcing is a flexible and cost-efficient way for your business to meet its technological needs without investing too much time and resources into hiring an in-house team.

IT outsourcing can also be a convenience for your internal employees. Often their time might be better spent on tasks unrelated to IT or software.

What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Outsourcing?

There are gains and losses on either side of outsourcing. Pay close attention to the advantages and disadvantages of IT outsourcing.

Advantages of IT Outsourcing

Many of the advantages of outsourcing highlight its convenience and practicality for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). The principal advantages of IT outsourcing are explained here.

▶ Lower Costs

Cost reduction is likely the number one reason for outsourcing. Smaller companies especially often do not have the infrastructure, resources, and budget to come up with their own IT solutions.

Taking care of their needs externally makes things simpler and cheaper. Offshore countries typically have lower costs of living as well. Thus the overall price for outsourcing will be lower than outsourcing locally.

▶ Risk Mitigation

IT outsourcing can get you guaranteed talent. Hiring talent yourself means you will be closer to the process. But it can also be a risk if you’re not highly familiar with the technical skills that you should be looking for in a candidate.

When it comes to actual development too, an outsourcing agency is usually well-equipped with the tools and resources necessary to meet your needs. They have an abundance of experience meeting similar needs through their work.

And considering that an outsourcing agency’s primary objective is to meet your project requirements within your budget and timeline, you can maintain some sense of certainty that your IT needs will be fulfilled successfully.

Disadvantages of IT Outsourcing

The disadvantages of outsourcing generally involve a cognitive dissonance between the two parties working together — the internal managers and external team. This disconnect can be the result of both physical and cultural circumstances.

▶ Ineffective Communication

For a variety of reasons, IT outsourcing can lead to overall ineffective communication. Offshoring can mean difficulties in communication when it comes to language barriers and cultural differences.

To work around this issue, many companies choose nearshore outsourcing as neighboring countries tend to share languages and cultural traditions.

You’ll learn more about nearshore outsourcing and different types of outsourcing down below in a separate section of this piece.

▶ Idea Synchrony

Since you’re not sourcing your hires internally, there can be some lack of engagement between the IT team and business managers. They may not understand the full context of your vision or project.

That said, some outsourcing agencies make the extra effort to integrate with your internal team, closely and with intention, so they can understand your project just as well as you do.

If this is the type of IT outsourcing you’re going for, then it’s important to research the potential outsourcing agencies you will use carefully before working with them.

When Is IT Outsourcing Recommended?

IT outsourcing is a good recommendation for businesses, particularly SMBs, who want to save costs without sacrificing quality.

While there is no doubt that tech-oriented companies want a high-tier of quality, sometimes they simply don’t have the means to supply it, whether that is from a shortage of intel or resources.

IT outsourcing is an inexpensive solution that guarantees that skilled IT professionals or software engineers will work on your project.

With IT outsourcing, you’ll find a trusted software development partner to address bottlenecks or give your next software development project a head start.

How To Outsource Software Engineers

There are multiple paths you can take for outsourcing IT talent. Understanding these paths in-depth will prove to be beneficial if you choose to outsource software engineers.

Let’s take a deeper look at a few of your options. You will have the chance to identify the pros and cons of each option and decide what feels like the best fit for your business..

Freelancer Platformers

Freelancer platforms can be a practical solution if you’re on a tight budget and looking to get something done in a short time frame.

The gig economy is thriving at the moment with websites like Upwork and Fiverr giving businesses the opportunity to hire freelance software engineers with ease.

The quality of talent on these websites varies greatly, as do the tools provided to you for managing your temporary hires.

Many websites offer integrated tools for operations such as payment processing and hours tracking. These features make freelancer platforms a viable solution for handling small technical undertakings.

On the other hand, these platforms have a reputation for delivering mixed results. And if you have a large project, you should consider other options.

Project Outsourcing

Sometimes it makes sense to hand over an entire project to an outside firm. This could be because your team lacks the skills required as a whole, or maybe you don’t have a team of software engineers ready to go and you want to build something in a timely manner.

Project outsourcing is a fairly hands-off approach, which can be good or bad depending on your needs as a company.

Taking this less-involved approach to software development reduces massive amounts of training and realignment internally, effectively saving time for you to focus on other matters.

You can think of this approach as the “plug-and-play” method of getting a project done because it removes a lot of the overhead costs and administration that comes with integrating a new staff member into your team.

Payments, relations with individual contractors, and training are the concerns of the hired firm, not you. This option is accessible and removes a lot of management from projects.

But the lack of oversight and management with entire outsourced teams can be a negative for those who like a lot of control over their projects. And you’ll still take on the responsibility of making sure the firm you hire delivers quality results.

Staff Augmentation

This is a trend in software development that has become more prevalent in recent years. Staff augmentation means adding one or more staff members to your team on a contractual basis.

The difference between this method and outsourcing your entire project is that with staff augmentation you can integrate the outsourced talent into your company and manage them directly.

One reason staff augmentation has become quite popular recently is that it is a flexible way to add and reduce staff as needed.

Some projects require a different amount of human resources at different points of time. Staff augmentation allows you to meet these demands in a way that is much more reasonable than hiring and firing in-house staff on a per-project basis.

A lot of companies find staff augmentation easier than outsourcing entire projects because of the control they have over the process. It’s a familiar procedure for anybody who is already used to hiring in-house staff, except outsourced staff is only temporary.

There are firms that exist to provide staff augmentation services, offering developers for your project on a contractual basis. Imagine IT outsourcing as a library of software resources for you to use as needed.

A notable advantage of staff augmentation is the level of control you’ll be able to have regarding your own project and the people working on it.

The principal disadvantage of staff augmentation is the ongoing need to onboard contracted staff when you’d much rather put that time towards development.

Of course, as staff augmentation becomes more widespread the industry will implement streamlined ways of prioritizing the technological needs of businesses like yours.

The Different Types of IT Outsourcing

Typically the outsourcing industry is categorized in terms of proximity and location. There are three main types of outsourcing you should be familiar with: offshore, nearshore, and onshore outsourcing.

OffShore

Offshore outsourcing is a general term for whenever you hire external parties in a different country than your own to help with business operations.

Geographically, offshoring can also reference a more specific understanding that the country where you’re offshoring to is situated significantly far from your own.

For example, offshore development could delineate a similar distance profile as a United States company outsourcing to India or China.

Nearshore

Nearshore outsourcing can categorically be a type of offshoring as the country your outsourcing to is still not your own in nearshore outsourcing.

However, the term does imply that the country you're outsourcing to is somewhat near your own and that there aren’t significant time zone differences.

Onshore

Onshore outsourcing would indicate that you are outsourcing to an external third party but though this provider isn’t within your own company they do exist within your own country.

Also called domestic outsourcing, this can guarantee that there are little to no language barriers or cultural discrepancies.

The Geography of IT Outsourcing

Geography influences the service price and talent of a given outsourcing provider. The customary market positions are shifting, revealing the new competitive countries in the sight.

You can decide whether to outsource engineers onshore, nearshore, or offshore. These locational categories will also determine how exactly you go about managing your project.

Because of the high costs of domestic developers, companies often search for technical help in foreign countries offshore.

Asian countries like China and Indian are especially popular in the outsourcing world and after so many years leading the market, the talent in this region is considered to be particularly reliable and high-grade.

New markets are also emerging in Western countries like Hungary, Bulgaria, and even in Latin American countries like Brazil and Costa Rica. For the latter, the term nearshore comes in handy.

Nearshore locations are within two to four time zones of the central location of your business. This closeness in distance can alleviate communication and collaboration concerns. But you’ll still be saving money in the end.

Of course, you can always hire onshore developers in your own country, but this will likely lead to higher costs. The benefits would be low communication barriers, a predictable level of service, and perhaps even a location that would allow for in-person meetings.

When deciding where to find your IT outsourcing provider, it’s important to know the exact requirements of your project, the allocated budget, and the time frame allotted for completion.

Don’t hesitate to look into countries that are less popular. You might find hidden talents at an attractive price.

6 Software Engineering Outsourcing Risks and How To Avoid Them

Knowing the risks of outsourcing software engineers can better help you understand what your needs are at what fits best for your particular business.

Much of the time these risks align with what you would experience with an in-house team. Here are some common problems that arise when outsourcing developers.

Unrealistic Expectations

Unrealistic expectations happen all the time. You expect the project to be delivered yesterday or the engineering team expects to have more time for development.

Setting clear expectations for the project and communicating progress is the best way to avoid misunderstandings.

Conducting meetings in person or over video chat can really help everyone on the team communicate and deliver the project according to the client’s expectations.

Poor Commmunication

On more or less the same note, communication still remains one of the biggest problems when outsourcing. Not only is it important that the team has a means of communication, but they should know how to communicate effectively as well.

Every project requires clear guidelines. This is even more vital for remote teams because you won’t be able to communicate your needs on-site in a face-to-face discussion.

Hidden Costs

There are many ways in which you can overpay for a project. Ironically, this can sometimes be due to striving for the lowest price possible.

Low-quality service, issues over source code ownership, poor documentation, and lack of transparency during development are some examples of the problems you may face.

If you do not pay close attention to a company’s estimates and how you distribute your budget in the terms and conditions of your business relationship, be prepared for some unwelcome surprises.

Inadequate Technical SKills

The team can consist of skilled experts, but if the technical architecture and the framework of your project do not match, you won’t be able to make that collaboration work.

Proof of previous work skills and experiences in similar projects can ensure that the team that you are hiring is a good match for your project. References can also help you identify if potential hires are a good fit for your project.

Poor Project Management

Project management is key to carrying out development projects. Good project management entails that business needs are addressed on schedule and within budget.

Providing the team with clear instructions and guidelines, offering regular feedback, and ensuring that tasks and resources are distributed correctly are only a few of the responsibilities of a project manager.

Poor leadership can result in the failure of the project, so it is crucial to ensure that the person in charge is capable of taking responsibility for a complex software engineering project.

Intellectual Property

Even if your idea is not unique or innovative, you should protect it. Using safe data processing methods and having engineers sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) or confidentiality agreement (CA) is the first step in protecting your intellectual property. But every situation requires a different approach and solution.

Finding a reliable software development partner will help you to eliminate most of the risks related to intellectual property matters. You should also avoid doing anything that can result in legal consequences.

Remember that the development project is a collaborative process and as such both parties need to be involved and responsible for the outcome.

The Current State of IT Outsourcing

IT outsourcing as an industry is experiencing healthy growth and is predicted to grow by 4.42% between 2018 and 2022.

Economic instability due to changes in the global political sphere such as Brexit and the Trump administration likely affected these numbers, dropping them lower than usual. Regardless, the global software outsourcing market is still on the rise.

There is still a certain stigma associated with the idea of outsourcing. Even though the majority of the companies use outsourcing services, they prefer not to mention it. But with the growing need for transformation and innovation, businesses need to have reliable partners to fuel their growth.

The nature of IT outsourcing is changing. Where once the price was the deciding factor, value has come to the forefront. Companies are seeking proactive partnerships in turn for detached third-party service providers. Strategic partnerships now matter more than ever.

Successful collaborations are based on quality supplier and client relationships. Customer-oriented outsourcing suppliers with tech-savvy specialists thrive the most in this climate. Their number one priority is providing value to their clients.

India and China are still leading the market for business outsourcing. China alone has 1.3 billion consumers utilizing their talent. And needless to say, flexibility and low costs continue to be important factors for many companies.

As far as what IT outsourcing needs are the most represented, you’ll find that software development outsourcing is the most popular type of IT outsourcing, followed by website/e-commerce and hosted applications.

The Future of IT Outsourcing

Just like any other industry, IT outsourcing will look different over time. You can be sure that some of its distinguishing traits will change or completely disappear in the next decade.

The following trends dictate the direction IT outsourcing is heading for the future. What can you expect to see in the years to come?

Partnerships

A transition from a third-party provider to a partner and collaborator is not a distinctively new development for the IT outsourcing industry but it is certainly driving change in the industry.

Companies are looking for reliable and engaged IT partners that can give new perspectives and share expertise where in-house teams are lacking.

An involvement that goes beyond simply following the instructions and offers informed opinions, active participation, and mutual ownership in projects provides value beyond just the service. This is the collaborative model taking over the IT outsourcing industry.

For this reason, features other than low costs are becoming the deciding factors in how businesses choose to outsource their IT needs.

Team Modelling

A dedicated team model is relatively new in the outsourcing industry. However, in this outsourcing model, the outsourcing service provider and the client agree on the workload and timeframe of the project. Then the provider solely focuses on one project.

This approach allows team members to deliver projects in a shorter time period and with fewer errors. These models eliminate the need for multitasking and a team works on one project at a time.

Trio, for instance, offers Engineering Team Allocation (ETA), supplying client needs in the form of software development talent.

Whether it’s only one developer or a team of software engineers, Trio knows how to seamlessly incorporate developers into your project without interrupting your regular business processes.

This project-based approach can tune businesses into many advantages including flexibility, team scalability, and cost-efficiency.

Technological Optimization

In the past outsourcing wasn’t a synonym for innovation. On the contrary, it was a way to reduce costs by delegating repetitive, time-consuming business processes.

Now emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, intelligent automation, and machine learning can do that and so much more.

You might not live long enough to see machines express feelings and emotions. And yet, you’ve already witnessed them becoming a part of your daily life.

Take chatbots, for example. They replace booking agents, customer support, call centers, etc. The industry for this type of technology is growing at an alarming rate. Though it may be a threat to some jobs, it also creates new jobs and possibilities in different fields.

To accommodate, businesses must re-evaluate their processes. A successful business will upgrade its operations to become more effective and efficient.

Outsourcing Smaller Projects

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) will play a bigger role in IT outsourcing. Before outsourcing was a privilege reserved for big companies. Now it’s the common tongue.

Niche providers are looking to establish long-term relationships with clients while offering specific services that perfectly fit the demand of small and medium-sized enterprises.

IT service providers take on a large number of smaller projects in order to be more competitive and generate revenue.

Bigger contracts take much more time to be set up and are much harder to find. In turn, smaller projects provide flexibility and can often lead to larger jobs afterward.

Focusing on narrow niches also leads to multisourcing where companies use several IT outsourcing providers for specific jobs or tasks. This helps businesses optimize costs and choose the best providers among niche experts for a long-term commitment.

For small companies, outsourcing is a competitive advantage, granting them access to more expensive and advanced technological solutions. There is a low barrier for implementation and maintenance. Ergo, SMBs can compete with larger and more established companies with little startup costs.

In other words, outsourcing is essential for SMBs to realize their potential for growth sooner rather than later.

New Market Growth

As mentioned, countries in South America and Eastern Europe have begun to enter the international outsourcing arena. From their prowess, it is clear they have strong intentions to knock India and China off the pedestal.

Geographical proximity, high English fluency, and outstanding technical knowledge are valuable skills in the offshore development market. Therefore developers from the above regions are appealing candidates for software development projects in international companies.

Economic conditions are something to consider as well. Global businesses seek out stable economies that are actively supporting technological development.

Does IT Outsourcing Sound Like Something That Could Work For Your Business?

Does software engineering outsourcing sound like something that could work for your business? If so, consider Trio as your partner for on-demand software development.

Trio onboards remote teams of software engineering experts onto your projects without disrupting normal business procedures. We stress the importance of customer satisfaction, delivering your projects efficiently and with high quality no matter the complexity.

Contact us to get a personalized quote for your project!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is IT outsourcing?

Outsourcing occurs when a business uses an outside supplier to obtain goods or resources, rather than relying on internal support.

What are the different types of outsourcing?

The different types of IT outsourcing are offshore, nearshore, and onshore.

How do I outsource software engineers?

You can outsource software engineers by taking advantage of freelancer platforms, outsourcing your project, or augmenting your staff.

Daniel Alcanja

Daniel is a software engineer and co-founder of Trio, a successful startup empowering remote senior software engineers and partnering with companies to solve everyday problems through technology. With over two decades of experience in the industry, Daniel is a dynamic and strategic leader committed to driving growth and positive change.

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What Is a C developer?

C developers are closely familiar with the fundamentals of systems programming. They develop code that integrates into base computer systems. Embedded systems, operating systems, and kernel modules all rely on systems programmers like C developers.

C++ is nearly a superset of C. Save a few minor details, the two languages are very similar. Expert C developers may learn C++ as well to increase their effectiveness.

Other languages in the repertoire of C developers might be higher-level languages and frameworks that work well with C like Java, Node.js, and Python.

As systems programmers, C developers have strong problem-solving skills and use structural programming to write clean, reusable code.

Why Use C?

The first and foremost justification for using C would be if you wanted to build an operating system. After all, in the 1970s, C was the vessel in which UNIX was re-designed. But despite the goal-oriented origins of the C language, various elements of its development make it a fitting language to use for an array of needs.

Middle-level

There are only a handful of middle-level languages. And if you were to pick them out, you’d probably come up with Java and C++ in addition to C, and there’s even some dissent there.

Either way, the general consensus is that C is a middle-level language. Because of this, C is one of the best languages for building both systems and applications. Therefore its usage is by definition flexible.

Structured

As a programming paradigm, structured programming allows developers to make complex programs by compartmentalizing their codes into simpler structures via task-oriented functions. Some examples of structural programming in action are if-else statements and for-loops.

Though many languages make use of this type of programming, C may very well be the oldest structural programming language that still maintains its popularity. This is because C is reliable.

Portable

Portability describes how compatible certain computer programming languages are in diverse environments. In the case of C, the language plays a major part in Windows, UNIX, and Linux operating systems, demonstrating its portable nature.

General

C is general-purpose. In effect, no matter what you want to develop, C is there for you – for games, graphics, applications, and more.

Advantages of Using C

C is equipped with a number of supportive features to develop keeping high-level functionality in mind. As the intent of C was to develop operating systems, its features must be fully comprehensive and performant.

Case-Sensitive

C is case sensitive. Lowercase and uppercase letters are differentiated. This can make certain elements of coding far less confusing and more direct. It’s also easier to parse through case-sensitive code.

Dynamic Library

The library C offers is rich with built-in features and is furnished with dynamic memory allocation. What’s more, C has much less library functions than other languages but just as many functions, simplifying their deployment.

Keyword Simplicity

In computer programming, keywords are the smallest building blocks of programming that work as gateways to writing complex code.

Keywords like if, else, and return may be familiar to you. The C language only has 32 keywords, overall only a small number to remember and eventually master.

Embedded Usage

C is the go-to language for developing embedded systems, Embedded systems contain hardware and/or software designed for specific functions. Digital cameras and robots are good examples of embedded systems.

Developers use C for embedded systems because it is flexible. The high-level abstraction of C combined with its low-level alliances make it a great language for this sort of development.

Companies That Use C

IBM
Nokia
Samsung
VMWare
Huawei
Microsoft Windows

Reasons to Hire a C Developer

It’s fairly common for businesses to go the mobile app route in contemporary software development. They’ll cross out a couple of months on their calendar, get a grasp of Java or Swift – for Android or Apple respectively – and be on their way.

App development is an accomplishment no matter how you do it. But when things become commonplace and you follow the lead of your competitors, it becomes difficult for your business to stand out.

If you wish to stay competitive, your business needs to be challenged. Rather than putting an app on the app store, why not develop an entire software.

Adobe, most Google applications, and the entire Linux operating system was built with C. These are software systems that have topped the technology sector and have garnered worldwide familiarity and usage.

Most popular C programs aren’t simply apps, they’re relevant components of daily work and life for millions of users. Depending on the developers you hire, you’ll have the resources you need to do the same.

It starts with a good idea, and the right developers to manifest it. Hire a C developer.

Hire a C Developer

C is well over 30 years old. With languages being built every other fortnight, it’s hard to keep up with the competition. But somehow C has managed all the while.

Of course, old age does come with consequences. The market favors young people who favor young languages. This doesn’t make C less trustworthy or useful, but it is a little tougher to find the professionals you’ll need to program in C.

Trust the process, trust your research. Trio also has resources to help you. Take a look.

How do you hire a C developer?

For those who wish to take the high road and hire C developers on your own, we’re still here to help.

Hiring a developer on your own is a very focused and hands-on process that requires considerable knowledge about software development in general.

The last thing you want to do is trust your hiring process to someone with no technical ability. If you are a non-technical manager looking to learn a thing or two, we have a great resource here for you to learn more about the hiring process in detail.

Otherwise, we’d recommend you contact Trio for consulting and developer allocation.

What should you look for in a C developer?

C developers at a high-level should demonstrate the following skills:

Proficiency in C and preferably in C++ as well
Knowledge of high-level languages that are often integrated with C such as Java, Python, Go, or Node.js
Abstract critical thinking and problem-solving aptitude
Ability to write and implement algorithms and data structures

How much do developers cost in the U.S.?

ZipRecruiter data reports that the average yearly salary of a C developer is $117,673 On the higher end, C developers can make as much as $155,500 per year. But C developers can also make as little as $67,500 annually.

How much do developers cost in South America?

Due to economic differences between the United States and South America as a whole, the cost of offshoring software development is significantly lower than hiring full-time with U.S talent. For Senior C Developers in South America, the average salary is currently around $100,000 whereas a mid-level developer costs around $76,000.

How much do developers cost in Ukraine / Eastern Europe?

Eastern Europe shares very similar rates to South America, again due to the economic differences. When looking at salaries in Eastern Europe, data shows that a Senior C Developer costs around $100,000 on average.

Hourly Rates for Developers

Another way to look at developer costs is through hourly rates. While salaries are good to understand for hiring developers for full-time and long-term, you might just need a developer for a period of 3-6 months or 6-12 months. In these types of situations, it’s best to calculate your costs based on the hourly rates of a developer.

Below is a table that lists the various hourly rates of developers in different locations based on their job title.

Why Hire a C Developer?

Trio C developers are pre-vetted, interviewed, and then trained further to become true software professionals, capable of adapting to situations that are both within and outside of the scope of their general expertise.

At Trio, we hold our developers to a higher standard. Much like how elite special forces units recruit only the best from main branches of the military, we recruit developers who either show amazing potential or demonstrate exceptional skill. We then take their talents and sharpen them even further.

Another benefit of hiring a Trio developer is that you won’t incur the costs of hiring, which can add up to be around 30% of a developer’s salary on average, as well as overhead costs associated with full-time employment.

By working with Trio, you can enjoy a highly experienced full-time developer for a fraction of the cost, along with the added project management assistance.

To learn more, tell us about your project and we’ll get you started.

C Resources

Daniel Alcanja •

6 min read

The Ultimate Flutter Hiring Guide for 2023 Success

Introduction

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the prospect of hiring a Flutter Developer? Perhaps this particular technology is not your area of expertise and are you are unsure how to structure your hiring process. Fear not, as we are here to help you navigate this process and find a skilled Software Engineer who can add value to your business.

By leveraging our expertise in hiring high-level developers, we can help you evaluate technical talent and strengthening your engineering team. With our guidance and support, you can confidently conduct a hiring process with Flutter Developers and enhance the performance of your Engineering Team.

We would like to thank you for taking the time to visit us today. We hope that you will find the information provided to be both helpful and informative. Please stay with us and read on as we share some valuable tips that we believe you will find useful in your daily life.

What’s a Flutter Developer?

A Flutter developer is a software engineer who has proficiency with the Flutter framework to develop mobile, web, and desktop applications. By association, Flutter developers have fluency in writing code using the Dart programming language and are therefore Dart developers as well.

Flutter developers can be web or mobile app developers. As such, they may have prior experience and expertise in other frameworks and languages like JavaScript or Ionic. Some Flutter developers may only be familiar with Flutter.

The Flutter framework is intentionally and wholeheartedly tied to UI design. Widgets are one of its defining characteristics. They must have comparable skill in optimizing graphical interactions for the user.

The role of this type of developer is crucial in the software development industry. The responsibilities of a Flutter developer may vary depending on the project requirements, but some common tasks include:

Developing and maintaining applications;
Developing and implementing custom widgets and UI components;
Integrating third-party libraries and APIs;
Ensuring the application's performance, quality, and responsiveness;
Collaborating with cross-functional teams, including designers, product managers, and other developers;
Participating in the development process from design to deployment and maintenance.
Working with cross-platform frameworks.
Debug and test Flutter code, using tools such as the Flutter DevTools, unit testing, and integration testing.
Use version control tools such as Git, SVN, or Mercurial to manage their codebase.

What you can build using Flutter

Flutter is a versatile and powerful framework for building mobile applications for Android, iOS, and other platforms. With Flutter, developers can build a wide range of applications, including but not limited to:

Social media applications: Flutter is a versatile platform for building social media apps that can include a range of features, such as instant messaging, push notifications, and media sharing capabilities.
Business applications: Flutter is a great option for creating business apps that require robust functionality, such as CRM, inventory management, and project management tools.
E-commerce applications: Flutter is a great option for creating e-commerce apps that offer features such as a product catalog, shopping cart, payment gateway integration, and more.
Educational applications: Flutter enables developers to create educational applications such as e-learning platforms, online courses, and interactive learning tools, all while providing a user-friendly experience.
Gaming applications: Flutter is also capable of building games with 2D and 3D graphics, animations, sound effects, and other exciting features.

In general, Flutter offers developers the versatility and features to create a variety of mobile apps for various industries and purposes.

Companies that use Flutter

The New York Times
Square
Google
eBay
BMW
Alibaba

Which are the soft skills a Flutter Developer should have?

As you need to hire a Developer who can perfectly unfold within your team and company taking into account just technical skills would not be enough, and this is when soft skills play a big role. So now let’s dive into some basic soft skills good developers should have.

Some essential soft skills for a Flutter Developer should include:

Communication: Being able to communicate effectively, especially in remote and asynchronous environments, is a real necessity for any professional nowadays. Communication skills are always in high demand, whether it's through describing ideas, discussing approaches, giving presentations, providing status updates, giving feedback, asking questions, or voicing concerns. The ability to communicate ideas clearly and to understand communicated ideas is of critical importance to ensure a well-aligned, agile team.
Team Work: Individuals should demonstrate adaptability to various projects and environments. However, it is extremely important for them to value working within a team that allows for easy navigation, knowledge sharing, idea contribution, and learning from other team members. They should also be able to provide and receive feedback, pass on information, ask questions, and offer help when needed.
Collaboration: Every project involves multiple people, and team members must be able to work with one another effectively. Collaboration is the combination of all of the above qualities in order to effect positive change and move the project and company forward.
Adaptability: The ability to adapt to new circumstances, situations, scenarios, and environments is vital for professionals to cope with changes, challenges, fast-paced environments, uncertainty, and lack of predictability. It enables them to be more creative and resilient, providing solutions and new strategies whenever any shifts occur.

Hiring Process for a Flutter Developer

To hire technical talent who is the best fit for your company and project, you should ensure that your hiring process is aligned with your needs. This will provide you with useful and valuable information to help you make an informed decision before extending an offer letter to a developer.

We have listed below some steps that can be implemented in your hiring process to help you ace it and bring on board the right developer for your business.

Main Steps in the Hiring Process

Job Description

A great process starts with a well-written job description. It should contain important information, such as a brief description of the company and project, the main responsibilities of the professional, the seniority needed for the role, technical requirements, desired soft skills, salary, and perks.

An appealing and accurate job description can better attract targeted candidates, providing you with a more qualified list of applicants. It's important to remember that you don't want to get attention of all software engineers available in the market, but rather the ones that are aligned with your company's culture and the specific role.

Sourcing

Unlike other fields, the technical industry has its own unique challenges when it comes to attracting candidates. Simply posting job openings on job boards may not be sufficient to generate a substantial pool of qualified applicants. Therefore, it is important to proactively source candidates from a variety of channels, rather than solely relying on applicants to respond to job postings. Some of the sources that tech recruiters use to find candidates include GitHub, GitLab, LinkedIn, Telegram, Discord servers, and consultancy companies.

To use some of the aforementioned platforms, your team should know how to apply Boolean search to filter only candidates that align with your vacancy.

Screening

After gathering a sufficient number of applicants, you will begin screening candidates to determine their suitability for the position. During this part of the process, you may review resumes, portfolios, cover letters, and repositories to ensure that you only got to candidates who meet the minimum requirements for the role.

Among the relevant skillset for the vacancy, recruiters and hiring managers typically look for experiences, seniority, certifications, fluency in some specific language, educational background, certain projects or business, main technologies used, location and candidates’ salary expectations.

Screening can be done manually, through a specific platform or an Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Choosing the best option for your needs will depend on the company's budget. A robust ATS with integrations with other tools and the ability to filter candidates by their expertise is ideal because it saves a lot of time and resources.

Interview

This is one of the most important steps of the hiring process for developers. It’ll allow you to fully understand if the talent is really aligned to the company and project. A good interview can extract valuable information from candidates that will make it possible for you to decide whether they will continue in the process or not. For that, it’s essential to have good questions to gather answers regarding technical and soft skills.

During an interview, you can ask various types of questions, such as behavioral, situational, competency-based, fact-based, skill-based, and technical questions, among others.

It’s also important that you present the company to the candidate, letting them know more about your culture, working environment, way of working and anything else that defines your company.

Technical Validation

After making sure the developers align to the skillset the role requires, you will need to check their technical abilities to ensure it meets the project’s expectations. Knowing exactly what’s the technical level that the candidates should have can help you design the type of technical validation that best adapts to your needs.

To technically validate candidates you can use technical interviews, technical tests/assessments, pair programming, project executions, live coding, work portfolio/GitHub reviews and team interviews, among others.

If you don't feel prepared to conduct technical interviews with developers because you're unsure of what questions to ask or how to evaluate their answers, you can try Genie, Trio's AI-powered interview question generator.

Hire a Flutter Developer with Trio

Trio Flutter developers are pre-vetted, interviewed, and then trained further to become true software professionals, capable of adapting to situations that are both within and outside of the scope of their general expertise.

We offer flexibility in terms of project requirements and team size adjusting it according to the project's needs. This allows our partners to scale up their project requirements as needed.

Moreover, we are committed to delivering high-quality apps within a reasonable time frame, with a proven track record of delivering projects on time and within budget without compromising on quality. A Trio developer is that you won’t incur the costs of hiring, which can add up to be around 30% of a developer’s salary on average, as well as overhead costs associated with full-time employment. All in all, by working with Trio, you can enjoy a highly experienced full-time developer for a fraction of the cost, along with the added project management assistance.

Last but not least, we value excellent communication and support throughout the project's life cycle. This ensures that our partners’ requirements are understood, and the project is delivered as per their expectations.

How much do flutter developers cost?

The cost of hiring a Flutter Developer can vary depending on the size of the company, their budget and also the seniority of the role. It is advisable to ask candidates about their salary expectations and compare them to your own budget. This helps to avoid putting candidates through the entire hiring process only to find out you cannot meet their expectations. It is important to be transparent throughout the hiring process.

It is also essential to consider that the cost of hiring software engineers in Latin America is significantly lower compared to American or Canadian professionals.

While hiring developers in Ukraine or Eastern Europe may also yield cost savings, the time zone difference may present challenges depending on the team's availability for collaboration. In such cases, hiring developers from Latin America proves to be a viable alternative as they can readily adapt to the Eastern or Pacific Time Zone.

At Glassdoor you can run some searches about the paid salary for Flutter Developers accordingly to their region.

We hope this guide can assist you in structuring your hiring process. However, keep in mind that you do not have to do it alone, as Trio is here to add value to your business by providing vetted and experienced talent that can easily meet your requirements and navigate across various business and project types. Additionally, Trio simplifies the hiring process by providing valuable insights into candidates' salary expectations, allowing you to make informed decisions about who to hire. Overall, if you require a senior Flutter developer, Trio is an excellent resource to consider.

Camila Rodrigues •

7 min read

The Ultimate Guide to Engineering Manager One-on-Ones

Structured one-on-one meetings are like following a recipe, they provide managers with the opportunity to connect with your team members, understand their goals and challenges, provide feedback and guidance, and ensure all the necessary ingredients are in place so that everyone is aligned and working towards a common goal. In this guide, we'll explore some best practices for engineering managers hosting one-on-ones with team members.

7 benefits of one-on-one meetings

You can use one-on-one meetings for a variety of reasons, including:

Connecting with team members

Creating a supportive space for discussion can foster a team culture of open communication and feedback. One-on-ones provide managers an opportunity to get to know team members as a person and teammates.

Helping employees achieve their goals

Identifying goals and action items for your employees is an important part of supporting their growth and development. Here are some steps to help you identify goals and action items for your team members:

Discuss aspirations: Ask about career aspirations and what your employees would like to achieve in their role. This can help identify areas where they are motivated to develop their experience.
Identify areas for improvement: Review performance and identify areas where employees can improve their skills or knowledge. This can include technical, soft, or management skills.
Establish accountability: Determine who will be responsible for each action item and set deadlines for completion. This can help ensure that progress is being made and that goals are being achieved.
Set SMART goals: Work with your employee to set SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) goals that align with their aspirations and areas for improvement. These goals should be challenging yet achievable and provide a clear direction for their development.
Create action items: Identify specific actions individuals can take to achieve their goals. These should be practical, realistic, and aligned with the employee’s skills. Some examples include:
Attending a training course or workshop
Shadowing a senior team member on a project to gain more experience and exposure to new skills and techniques.
Setting up regular 1:1 meetings with a mentor or coach to receive feedback
Taking on a leadership role in a project
Collaborating with another team on a project to gain experience in cross-functional team dynamics.
Writing a technical blog post
Contributing to an open-source project

Sharing performance feedback

Providing constructive feedback to your peers as an engineering manager is an important aspect of building a strong and effective team. Here are some tips on how to provide constructive feedback to your team:

Be specific: Provide examples to support your feedback. This will help your team members understand what they did well or what they need to improve on.

Example: "I noticed during the last team meeting that you interrupted others while they were speaking. I love that you're excited about this topic, but try to let others finish their thoughts before sharing your own ideas."

Be objective: Don’t making personal attacks or being overly critical. Focus on the facts and be objective in your feedback.

Use a positive tone: Frame your feedback in a positive way, emphasizing the things your team members did well and offer suggestions for improvement.

Example: "You did a great job presenting during the last client meeting. However, I think it would be even more effective if you could use more visual aids to support your points."

Focus on behavior: Focus on the behavior or actions that you are providing feedback on, rather than on the person.

Example: "During the last sprint, there were a few instances where your communication with the team could have been clearer. Let's work on improving our communication going forward to avoid any misunderstandings."

Offer solutions: Provide specific solutions or suggestions for improvement. This can help your team members understand how they can improve and feel more motivated to make changes. If you have a solution or action plan right away, that’s OK. You both can take time to brainstorm possibilities.

Example: "I noticed that you've been struggling with a particular coding challenge. Perhaps some training sessions or taking an online course to improve your skills in that area might help. What do you think?"

Follow up: Check in with your team member after providing feedback to ensure that they understand the feedback and are making progress towards improvement.

Example: "Thanks for taking my feedback on board. Let's check in next week to see how things are going and discuss any further"

Addressing concerns or issues

Giving your team a safe environment to discuss concerns or issues allows managers to identify and resolve hiccups before they escalate and become bigger problems.

Prioritizing career development

Helping employees identify areas for growth and development, as well as provide guidance on how to achieve their career goals is essential for long-term success.

Aligning team members Bringing team members together

Carving out time on a regular basis (i.e. monthly) to review team objectives, discuss progress, and identify areas for improvement is key to making sure your team is working toward the same goals.

Offering recognition and rewards

Recognizing and rewarding team members for their hard work and achievements can boost morale and motivation. Regularly acknowledging successes, offering praise, and discussing rewards creates an environment in which everyone feels trust, safety, accountability, and equity.

How to prepare for one-on-one meetings

Be consistent but flexible

To create consistent and open communication, establish a regular cadence (weekly or bi-weekly) for one-on-one meetings with each team member. However, leaving room to adjust as needed is crucial. For instance, if a team member is struggling with a particular issue or project, you may decide to increase the frequency of your one-on-one meetings to provide additional support and guidance.

Give ample time

The length of one-on-one meetings between a manager and a team member can vary depending on the needs and goals of the team member and the availability of the manager. However, a typical length for a one-on-one meeting is between 30 to 60 minutes. It's important to note that the length of the meeting should not be the primary focus, but rather the quality of the conversation and the outcomes achieved. The meeting should allow sufficient time to cover the key topics on the agenda and provide an opportunity for open and productive communication between the manager and team member. The one-on-one meeting should be focused on the team member's goals, challenges, and development. Give the team members ample time to speak and share their thoughts, ideas, and concerns.

Provide an agenda

Before your one-on-one meetings, take some time to review the team member’s recent work. This will help you identify any areas where the team member needs additional support or guidance. Use this information to create and share an agenda 24 hours prior to the meeting that outlines the topics you want to discuss. Here's a sample agenda:

Topic	Summary	Time
Check-in	Begin the meeting by asking how the team member is doing and if there are any updates or concerns they would like to discuss.	5 mins
Progress and accomplishments	Review the team member's progress on current projects and discuss any accomplishments since the last one-on-one meeting	10 mins
Challenges and obstacles	Discuss any challenges or obstacles the team member is facing and work together to identify potential solutions.	10 mins
Feedback	Provide feedback on the team member's performance, including strengths and areas for improvement. Encourage the team member to provide feedback on your performance as well.	10 mins
Goals and development	Set goals for the team member, both short-term and long-term, and identify actionable steps to achieve them. Discuss opportunities for growth and development within the team or organization.	15 mins
Action items and follow-up	Recap the key takeaways from the meeting and identify any action items and next steps. Follow up on action items in the next one-on-one meeting.	5 mins
Wrap-up	End the meeting by thanking the team member for their time and contributions, and reiterate your support for their success.	2 mins

Questions to ask yourself before your next one-on-one

Career desires	What does each team member see as their next role?
	Does each team member have a career plan, or are they seeking guidance?
	What are their aspirations for their next role and how can we help them get there?
Team skills	Who are your high performing team members?
	Which key skills does each team member own?
	What do they enjoy doing the most?
	Which projects did they excel at?
	What is their main area for improvement? How can I help them improve?
	Who works in a close capacity, and which team members rarely speak with one another?
Strategic team alignment	Does everyone on the team feel on the same page?
	How is team communication?
	Are there frequent fire drills, and how are fire drills handled?
	Is anyone carrying significantly more weight?
	How are they feeling about their workload?
	What obstacles are they running into with their current work projects?
	What makes their job harder?
	Is there anything I can do to be more helpful leaders to them?
	Do team members know the strategy for the quarter and year?

Questions to ask during one-on-one meetings

By asking the right questions during one-on-one meetings, you can encourage your team to share thoughts and ideas and support development and career growth.

Here are some questions to ask:

Type	Use case	Example
Open-ended questions	Use open-ended questions that encourage team members to share their thoughts and ideas in detail.	"What's been challenging for you lately?" or "What do you think could be improved on this project?
Clarifying questions	Ask clarification questions to ensure you fully understand your team members’ perspective.	Example: "Can you explain what you mean by that?" or "Can you give me an example of what you're referring to?"
Follow-up questions	Ask follow-up questions to explore a topic in more detail.	"How did that make you feel?" or "What do you think we could do differently next time?"
Goal-oriented questions	Ask goal-oriented questions that help your team members focus on their development and career aspirations.	"What are your career goals in the next 12 months?" or "What skills do you want to develop in your role?"

End the one-on-one meeting on a positive note, acknowledging the team member's progress and accomplishments. Provide clear expectations for the next meeting.

How to handle difficult conversations

Listen

Actively listen to your team member's concerns and show genuine interest in their perspective. This can help build trust and encourage more open and honest communication.

Stay calm

Keep the conversation focused on the issue at hand and avoid getting emotional.

Focus on solutions

Brainstorm ideas together and come up with a plan for moving forward.

5 reasons why taking notes matters

It’s important to capture key points and action items, but also to be present and engaged in the conversation. Your notes don’t need to be a transcript, rather use a consistent format or template to recap the conversation. You can use a shared document or note-taking app, to keep your notes organized and easily accessible. Here are five reasons why meeting notes are essential to success.

Document progress: Taking notes can help you document the progress of your team members and keep track of their goals, accomplishments, and areas for improvement.
Prepare for future meetings: Notes can be used to prepare for future one-on-one meetings and ensure that you are following up on action items and addressing any ongoing concerns.
Identify patterns: By taking notes on common themes or issues that arise during one-on-one meetings, you can identify patterns or trends that may require further attention.
"John expressed some concerns about workload and time management.
Provide feedback: Notes can be used to provide feedback on the team member's performance and identify areas for improvement. "Steve has been struggling to meet deadlines lately. Let's work together to identify any obstacles and come up with a plan to improve."
Demonstrate active listening: Taking notes can demonstrate to your team member that you are actively listening and engaged in the conversation.

4 tools to enhance your one-on-one meetings

There are many tools available for capturing one-on-one meeting notes and actions as an engineering manager. Here are some we’ve found helpful:

Note-taking apps: Apps like Evernote, OneNote, and Google Keep are popular for taking notes during one-on-one meetings. These apps allow you to create notes, tag them for easy organization, and share them with others.
Task management tools: Tools like Trello, Asana, and Monday.com can be used to track action items and deadlines discussed during one-on-one meetings. You can assign tasks to team members, set due dates, and track progress.
Communication platforms: Platforms like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Chat can be used to record notes and actions during one-on-one meetings in a dedicated channel or chat. This allows you to easily reference past discussions and keep all related information in one place.
Dedicated software: There are many dedicated software solutions available specifically for one-on-one meeting management. Examples include Lattice, 15Five, and Reflektive.

By prioritizing regular check-ins with your team, you can improve communication, foster stronger relationships, and ultimately drive better business outcomes. If you're looking to take your staff augmentation efforts to the next level, Trio can help!
With our experienced team and comprehensive solutions, we can provide the support and expertise you need to achieve your goals.
Visit our website today to learn more.