Success cases: telework

Distance and its consequences (language barriers, educational standards, etc.) add new challenges to projects for far-away clients. This translates into additional risks that often impact either the quality or the price for the final customer, adversely affecting the relations between the client and the development provider. However, telework or offshoring is a very good mechanism for boosting production and, in many cases, reducing costs, which more and more companies are adopting with increasing success.

Many factors count when it comes to client – remote software development provider relations: the physical distance, the time zone, the cultural gap, the language barrier, work methodology, qualifications and training, etc. While some of these appear to be obvious, they are often treated in a cavalier manner when new relationships are established.

At Manentia Software, we have been working successfully since 2005 with companies in Latin America, Europe, and the United States. We design and develop different size applications with good quality levels while minimizing sidetracking and costs. From our perspective, the basic principles that enable us to complete successful projects while upgrading our products and services through the incorporation of new practices are:

- a work methodology mutually agreed on with each client –including programming and documentation standards, work infrastructure, design and development procedures, support tools, etc. On the basis of our own methodology, we have successfully developed work methods tailored to the needs of each particular customer.

- work team’s internal communication and follow-up. To us, the “team” is made up of all of those individuals involved in the project –including both the client’s and Manentia’s staff. Communication and follow-up make it possible to detect problems and threats at an early stage, thereby minimizing the likelihood of such problems, as well as their potential impact.

On the basis of what we consider key concepts that are in line with the nature of our projects, and on the most widely used and recommended practices and standards worldwide, we have developed our own project development and management methodology, particularly for remote users.