Extended Team Model

It’s no secret that having the right people around is one of the key ingredients for the success of a company. Yet, finding and hiring the best resources is one of the most challenging tasks you as an entrepreneur will need to face, especially when considering the limitations of your local talent pool or budget.

Of course, you can always find an offshore team and outsource work completely. But what should you do when you already have some technical staff in-house and simply need to augment it with specific skills or expertise? Here’s when the extended team model comes to the rescue.

What is an extended team?

An extended team is not project-based and is not discontinued after the project ends. It is an ongoing cooperation between your core team and the extended offshore team.

There is no single extended team definition. Different companies can offer different variations of the model. However, there are certain specifics that distinguish it from other cooperation models:

  1. An extended team is aimed at augmenting the in-house staff, not replacing it. In this case, the key competency, both business and technical, is located on-shore and the extension team operates offshore, bridging the skill gaps in your core staff.
  2. You have complete control over the project. Additionally, there’s constant and direct communication within the team (between your in-house staff and off-site developers). They all function as a single tight-knit unit.
  3.  As a result, the responsibilities are distributed among all team members (both in-house and offshore). All of them are equally invested into the process of building the product, and all of them are equally responsible for its success or failure.

How do you make it work? A guide to extended team integration

There is, of course, a learning curve when it comes to hiring offshore developers for your startup, and the same is true for making your core team and extended team function as one. Therefore we would like to assist you in this endeavor by providing you with some useful advice.

When you hire an extended development team with Extenda Solutions, we make sure it works for you. Here is our typical workflow for setting up and project management with team

To start with, consider the scope of your project and define the main roles it requires. Do you have the expertise to fill them in-house? Which skills should be sourced externally?
 
You can perform the initial analysis by yourself or request assistance from a professional consultancy, such as Extenda Solutions. If you turn to us for advice, we will first analyze your development needs and internal processes in order to put together a suitable team for you.

 

Based on your requirements and project specifications, our recruiting team will conduct in-depth candidate research, and select and pre-screen the most suitable candidates. In order for a candidate to be able to become a valuable addition to your team, we verify that they have the technical and the soft skills necessary for the job.
 
You can personally interview the best candidates and choose the ones you deem most appropriate for hire.

 

While the previous steps were preparatory, the integration of a remote team into your workflow starts here. Namely, here’s how your extended team works with Extenda Solutions.
 
Please, note: We can appoint our own representative to provide additional support. For example, our project manager can step in at any time in case you need help solving an issue or setting up efficient collaboration within the team.

 

Accountability

The extended team that you hire with Extenda becomes an integral part of your in-house staff. They follow your internal processes and take direct orders from you or your project manager on-site.

Transparency

Extended team model provides you with constant control over your project. You can track the time/effort ratio in real time and optimize it as you see fit. Working in your local timezone means you don't have to wait till next day to get answers.

Communication

Extended team members will have daily/weekly meetings with your in-house team. Direct communicate with the extended team leads to transparency.


Thinking of growing your in-house team?

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