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Software Development in Romania
Learn how you can benefit from doing your software development projects in Romania
and how to choose your development partner.
Software Development in Romania, a Great Choice for Organizations
This article should help you decide if Romania is a wise choice for your next software development project. Thus, we highlight key points from several articles to give you the big picture. Furthermore, we explore offshore and nearshore software development and software development outsourcing in general. Let us start with a preview of the main topics we will be touching on.
Offshore Software Development in Romania
You will learn from this article what makes Romanian IT companies strong candidates for offshore software development. The skills and proactive attitude of the Romanian engineers rank highest. Next comes the strong digital infrastructure of Romania. The linguistic abilities of the software developers also matter. Last, the country’s economic outlook sets the stage for great long-term collaborations.
Nearshore Software Development in Romania
Unlike offshoring, nearshoring software development projects suits companies looking for IT partners in neighboring countries. Thus, US-based organizations prefer South America, while companies in Western Europe turn to their East. In this region, Romania ranks high by talent pool size and software engineering skills. We captured here the main features of and reasons behind nearshore software development.
Software Development Outsourcing in Romania
This article provides insights into why and when outsourcing is justified. Furthermore, it explains what drives organizations to outsource software development projects. Of these, we touch costs, product quality, project management, and flexibility in team scaling. The article also focuses on cultural affinity in software outsourcing. Last, it compares Romania with several other popular destinations for outsourcing.
Software Development in Romania in a Nutshell
As explained in the articles referred above, the reasons behind software outsourcing are diverse and, at the same time, similar. First, organizations seek help with software development when they lack the talent, money, or experience to do it in-house.
Furthermore, having to launch a product in record time forces companies to rely on temporary staff from external providers. Last, some organizations have no in-house development capacity and prefer not to build it at all. In all these cases, remote software development comes to the rescue.
Thus, onshore, nearshore, or offshore, outsourcing can save the day. The location of your software development partner will depend on aspects like the project size, time to market, and budget. Besides, your company’s experience with software development will also influence the choice.
In short, Romania can deliver in all three remote models.
Leverage the full power of technology. Choose your partner for software development in Romania.
Software Outsourcing Ensures Access to Specialists
Romania has long ranked among the top destination for remote software development. Companies looking for IT partners in Romania will find here talented and driven specialists. Besides, they will quickly fill roles in all the mainstream technologies and many niche areas. As Romania’s curriculum in high school focuses on sciences, college graduates excel in informatics. Therefore, by choosing your IT partner in Romania, you will find specialists that will most likely outperform those in your area. While they are far fewer than their Indian counterparts, 120,000 software engineers still mean a lot. Besides, there is a constant influx of engineers that refreshes the talent pool. In short, you can easily find specialists with the right mix of technical, communication, and business know-how in Romania.
Software Development in Romania Shortens Time to Market
Staffing your development team only with local engineers can be both time-consuming and costly. Furthermore, there is no guarantee you will find people with the right skills and experience. Thus, you may either outsource or accept delays, low product quality, and high costs. As we have already discussed your possible outsourcing destinations in other articles, we will focus now on Romania. With over 120,000 software engineers, Romania is perfect for staffing a medium-sized project. Such a project does not require up or down-scaling with hundreds of people per month. Our clients said it took them at least three times less to find a specialist in Romania than in their area. This saving alone reduced time to market for their projects a lot. Furthermore, doing the onboarding, training, and team management for them further accelerated the projects.
Software Outsourcing Adds Focus to Your Core Processes
Developing your software product in-house takes a lot of time. First, you invest in recruitment, training, data security, and certifications. Then, you create and enhance processes to support product development. Last, you maintain a competitive work environment both at the office and remotely. Given the increasing popularity of the hybrid model, these efforts make little sense. Why not transfer the entire product development to the right development partner? Thus, research and online meetings will tell you if you can find that partner in Romania. Remote software development will let you focus on product vision, research, and sales. All these activities help you develop an innovative solution and a strong presence in the market. Understanding the needs of your potential market will help you find and exploit profitable niches. By relying on a remote partner, you can make the most of your investment.
Software Development in Romania Can Increase Product Quality
Unless your company is a well-established software house, its in-house expertise will be limited. Without the experience of running multiple software projects, you will have a hard time filling all the roles for the new one. Furthermore, your company will lack the processes and routines required to produce a top-quality solution. It will also lack the breadth of expertise that would allow your engineers to get help from their colleagues. In short, turning to a Romanian software development company can significantly impact the quality of your software product. If you choose wisely, the know-how of your Romanian IT partner will exceed yours by far. Thus, you will no longer need support from expensive consultants whenever your in-house staff gets stuck. Besides, you will take advantage of the proven processes and routines the IT partner has already applied to countless projects. Unsurprisingly, you will also enjoy top-quality code at mind-boggling speeds.
How to Choose Your Romanian Software Development Partner
The high number of good software companies in Romania can make your selection process seem more daunting than it should. Above all, a wrong choice means missed deadlines, a waste of money, and even an app that doesn’t work properly. What can you do to avoid such a situation? We will walk you through a few simple steps to help you identify the perfect match for your project.
Leverage the full power of technology. Choose your partner for software development in Romania.
12 Steps to Uncovering the Right IT Partner in Romania
Here are the twelve steps we recommend you take to identify the right software development company in Romania:
- Shape your product vision.
- Outline the product plan.
- Shortlist software development companies.
- Check previous experience and project portfolio.
- Pick the technology stack for your project.
- Check the presence in the IT community and certificates.
- Make sure the software provider understands your market.
- Get insights into the company’s structure and management.
- Check the provider’s communication process and skills.
- Assess the provider’s experience in Agile development.
- Examine the provider’s certifications and data security process.
- Learn about the post-deployment support options.
Shaping Your Product Vision
Before looking for a development partner, you must know what you wish to build. To shape the product, figure out why you want to create it. The vision provides an ongoing purpose for the product in a dynamic world and motivates the product stakeholders when things don’t go as planned. In short, define the vision by asking yourself what makes you care about the product and how it will contribute to a better future. Above all, the vision will help you choose the right product strategy and guide all the people involved in creating, marketing, selling, and supporting it. Apple’s vision statement is an excellent example to follow: “to bring the best user experience to its customers through its innovative hardware, software, and services”. It clearly states the driving force behind the company’s products. To define your product’s vision, you can use Roman Pichler’s Product Vision Board.
Outlining the Product Plan
When you know what you wish to achieve with the product and understand your customers and market, move on to product planning. Simply put, planning means defining the path to the goal. The product plan is a roadmap that outlines the product, its budget, timelines, resources, and activities. For an existing product, the roadmap lists the features and updates you intend to roll out in the future. The plan also summarizes the goals and objectives for the software development partner. While having the entire strategy laid out before looking for development partners is unrealistic, you will still need a decent plan. You will have specific goals for different parts of the product team. For example, software developers like to see the goals presented in diagrams and workflows, while your sales team needs clear success metrics like revenue increase and market penetration.
Leverage the full power of technology. Choose your partner for software development in Romania.
Shortlisting Software Development Companies from Romania
Shortlisting your potential partner in software development includes basic research, technical research, and virtual meetings. In the first stage, you identify prospective partners in Romania on Google, Clutch, and GoodFirms, where you can find verified reviews. Unlike those, the testimonials on the company’s websites may be a bit doctored. Next, you will dig a bit deeper into expertise and portfolio. The more similar the company’s projects are to yours, the higher the chances for a close match.
Furthermore, assess the social media pages of the prospective partners. Look at the topics posted, post frequency, and relevance to your project. Next, look at the technical side of the vendor. Technologies, programming languages, frameworks, project management tools, libraries they use, and GitHub commits are all worth considering. The last step is a virtual meeting with the provider, which lets you assess their communication skills and tools.
Check Previous Experience with Similar Projects
Checking a few project descriptions and case studies on the company website is the first step in looking for a match. In addition, you must speak with software engineers involved in those projects and get from them as much relevant information as possible. Of course, getting a trial account for a solution that resembles your product would help a lot. Thoroughly testing it will reveal important aspects like its usability, look and feel, and features. First-hand experience with a product coded by your potential partner in software development is priceless. Some of your product’s features may end up like the ones you tested. The usability and look and feel tell you much about the know-how and experience of the provider. Finally, talk to a few current and former customers of the prospective partner. The honest opinion of a client gives you the confidence to move on to the next step.
Picking the Technology Stack for Your Software Project
Understanding what technologies your potential partners in software development prefer is another vital aspect of your search. Thus, some companies master technologies that are not appropriate for your project. You need a provider that keeps up with the latest technological advancement. Such a company shall honestly look for the best solution. Ideally, shortlist companies with extensive experience in the technology stack you plan on using for your project. For example, if the solution includes artificial intelligence, look for a company specialized in Python. If you do not have the right expertise in-house, rely on an experienced consultancy firm to decide what technologies suit your project. Skipping this step can prove costly, as the software development partner may recommend what’s best only for them. Furthermore, avoid small know-it-all companies, as not even large companies are experts on all the technologies under the Sun.
Checking the Presence in the IT Community and Certificates
Comprehensive research on the potential IT partner can capture important details for your selection process. For example, strong involvement in the local IT community suggests interest in lifelong learning and sharing. Similarly, attending and speaking at global IT conferences indicates the desire to keep up with the latest trends and developments. It is also worth tracking if the software development company organizes online events like workshops and webinars. Furthermore, you can look for its contributions to the open-source community, ebooks, and blog posts. These activities suggest a modern, future-oriented approach that would greatly benefit your project. Besides, certifications are good indicators of the partner’s skills and processes. Look for company-level and individual-level certifications, like Microsoft Gold and SCRUM Master. The more certificates the company and its specialists have, the higher your chances of developing a great software product.
Leverage the full power of technology. Choose your partner for software development in Romania.
Does the Software Development Company Understand your Market?
To help you launch a successful product, your partner in software development should understand your market. Thus, it would be ideal to find a company that has implemented solutions for the market segments you are targeting. Your second-best alternative is a provider familiar with the features you need for your software. Instead, you may also consider a company with a broad customer portfolio spanning many industries and areas of applications. Such a provider can use its vast know-how to find the best ideas for your product. Of course, a software house with no previous contact with your target market may seem far from ideal. Surprisingly, this may be false. Simply put, software applications follow patterns that have little to do with the industry to which they apply. Thus, a booking app’s screen elements and action flows may look like those of a hospital management system.
Getting Insights Into the Company's Structure and Management
The type of organizational structure you need from your partner depends on your product’s time to market and the team size. The tighter the time is, the more flexible and agile the partner should be. Does this mean you should look for a small firm operating in an adhocratic structure? Not necessarily. Large bureaucracies that give enough independence to key project team members may suit you. In short, such companies use well-honed development processes. They can also react slowly to changes in the market. On the other hand, consider the project size. How big a team do you need from the software development partner? The bigger the team, the higher the risk of a complex hierarchy and low reaction time. While a structured approach in software development is good, too much of it can slow progress. To avoid surprises, request client references about the company’s structure, management, and team dynamics.
Checking the Provider's Communication Process and Skills
Romanian programmers speak English fluently and communicate clearly and to the point. Furthermore, some Romanian IT professionals also speak German and French. These linguistic and communication skills may benefit your project. In short, building a successful relationship with your provider depends on frequent and quality communication. To ensure your project is in good hands, start by answering a few questions. Does the software development company make itself available to your team and adjust its communication processes and tools to your specs? Do they have a reliable Polycom system? Are they using the most popular chat systems, conference solutions, and GPRS-based mobile chat? Furthermore, you can ask the provider how often they schedule meetings in their Agile projects and how they run those meetings. You can even request a demo meeting in which you may play the role of an existing client.
Assessing the Provider's Experience in Agile Development
Software development methodologies and frameworks based on iterative delivery and aimed at reacting to rapid change are known as Agile. In short, such methodologies encourage feedback and focus on the user. A product designed and implemented in the Agile approach usually presents low risks and high business value. Furthermore, it will help you quickly seize market opportunities and reduce development costs. The Agile methodology certainly reduces time to market as it accelerates development. A partner with solid experience in Agile should master SCRUM, Lean, CI/CD, Kanban, and the Spotify Squad Model. They should help you understand and acquire the Agile mindset and implement Agile methodologies and frameworks. Furthermore, the software development company will define your Agile development processes for scalability and efficiency. Last, they should determine the indicators and success metrics to assess the outcomes of the Agile development process.
Leverage the full power of technology. Choose your partner for software development in Romania.
Examine the Provider's Certifications and Data Security Process
The pandemic led to a 300% increase in cybercrime, causing concern to software development companies worldwide. Furthermore, a large proportion of the staff at such companies works from home offices. Their spaces may be unsafe and unknown to IT security personnel. Industries like FinTech and Healthcare are the primary targets for hackers. Living proof to this statement is that “9,710,520 healthcare records were accessed” illegally in September 2020 alone. Considering this, what measures can you take to protect your data? First, check if the company’s processes live up to the best practices. Then, ask about the ISO-27001 certification for information security management and technology certifications like Microsoft Gold. Such certifications indicate high standard processes. Besides certificates, rely on unbiased insight from online ratings, reviews, and accreditations from third parties like Forrester or Gartner. Last, find out if clients are satisfied with the data protection ensured by the company.
Learn About the Post-Deployment Support and Maintenance Options
Any decent software development company offers post-development support like regular maintenance and backups. In the team extension model, paid maintenance for three to six months after the final deployment is common. Conversely, providers usually offer a free warranty for twenty-four calendar months for each deliverable and the entire project for fixed-price projects. Of course, such a warranty only covers bug fixing. You must include maintenance and support in the initial services contract if you need them. After-development support is crucial for your product, so screen out software companies that do not offer this service. Developing it is far from enough to make it a hit if your product is a mobile app. You must also have it listed on the Android and iOS stores and promote it. Thus, look for a partner that helps you list the app and provides ongoing maintenance services.
PRO TIPS for Choosing a Software Development Company in Romania
- Shortlist development companies of the right size. The big ones allocate the best resources to the biggest clients. The small ones might be unable to do the job.
- Always sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement before disclosing confidential information.
- Learn about the company’s structure and organizational model. If you need breakneck speed, an adhocratic style might be appropriate.
- Learn about the company’s business logic, communication channels, and security procedures.
- Ask a few clients of each company how it delivered their projects.
- Pay attention to their work ethic. If the company responds politely and calmly to your questions and gives you straight answers, you may continue.
- Sign a comprehensive contract before starting the first project. Include indemnification, liabilities, confidentiality, personal data protection, and IP.
- Test the relationship with a small project. If things go the way you envisioned, move on.
Conclusions
This article introduced you to offshore, nearshore, and onshore software development. Furthermore, it presented compelling reasons to choose Romania for your next software project. Working with a development company from Romania ensures access to highly skilled specialists, short time to market, and increased product quality. Then, the article presented a 12-step approach to finding the right development partner in Romania. Going through all these steps increases your chances to identify the provider that best suits your needs. Last, we provided you with pro tips so that you do not miss something important along the way. With all these measures in place, chances are high you will find an excellent software development company in Romania.
How can ZYNK Help Us With Software Development Projects?
To help you find out if ZYNK is the right choice for you, we will answer next a few important questions about our software development services.
What software development services does ZYNK provide?
Our software development services are full stack. Thus, we can prepare estimates, set up the teams, and create product roadmaps. Besides, we help with business analysis, market research, feature definition, and prioritization. We can also analyze products like yours and find ways to beat them. In short, our services include everything from the strategy phase to the continuous improvement of the product. If setting the goals for the product is too challenging for you, we can make the task seem effortless. Developing buyer personas and mapping their buyer journey is equally easy for us. As for the technical side, we cover it entirely, from business analysis to testing and support.
What software development methodologies does ZYNK use?
ZYNK is familiar with all the main software development models. Thus, we will choose the methodology that suits your project best. While we favor the iterative approaches and embrace Lean practices, all the methodologies have strengths and weaknesses. In short, no model fits all projects. The type, size, and complexity of the project can justify using a linear or an Agile methodology. Despite its repeated failures on large-scale projects, the Waterfall model can still work well for smaller solutions with clear goals and well-defined, comprehensive requirements.
How does your typical software development process look like?
As mentioned before, no process fits all projects. With clients operating in different industries and markets, we must often adjust even our most effective routines. However, most of our projects will include a few basic elements. First, we rely on probabilistic forecasting and one- or two-week iterations. Next, we plan and review the iterations. We also do product increment planning and discovery. Continuous integration and delivery and secure coding are also present in our projects. Finally, we always recommend our clients to start with a proof of concept and report our results at least bi-monthly.
How would your people work with my in-house software development team?
ZYNK has extensive experience working with distributed software development teams. Thus, we have been involved in projects developed across continents. Our clients are from North America and Western Europe and work with teams located in Europe, South America, and Asia. In most of our projects, we start with a kick-off meeting at our client’s office or at ours. In short, we often meet face to face with the key roles from the client and the other teams involved in the project. This helps form close ties among team members and shape common goals. Frankness, effective communication channels, and a great work ethic helped us build trust and reach targets. Your team will feel as if ZYNK’s consultants belong to it. Thus, our people will be easy to reach and eager to help.
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