In this article, we will discuss what staff augmentation is and how it can help businesses address talent shortage.

What is staff/ team augmentation?

Staff augmentation is a flexible outsourcing option that enables businesses to extend their IT team as needed. This model is ideal for filling skills gaps quickly, accessing highly-skilled talent, and scaling up or down as needed. With staff augmentation, companies can easily integrate remote team members into their existing team and retain full control over the project while the outsourcing partner takes care of recruiting, education & training, retention and ensures high employee productivity. This model is also cost-effective, as it allows businesses to avoid the expenses associated with hiring and onboarding full-time employees. Moreover, terminating the contract is typically faster and easier than other outsourcing models. The outsourcing company leases or contracts a specified number of contractors from a supplier for a limited amount of time, with the service provider delivering the essential staff on an as-needed basis or at an agreed-upon charge for the length of the project.

Why is staff augmentation becoming popular?

According to a LinkedIn report, the demand for developers increased by 25% between 2019 and 2020 due to companies needing to digitise their business to stay competitive amidst the pandemic. This has made it difficult to find and hire professional engineers, which not only requires time and resources but also significant investments. As a result, recruiters are struggling to find the best talents to fill in the ever-increasing job openings, taking approximately 42 days to fill a vacancy with an average hiring cost of $23,8000.

This trend has created a gap between the available talent and employer demand, which is challenging to bridge quickly and efficiently. Additionally, the competitive labour market around technology means that developers and engineers have numerous job opportunities available to them, making it hard to retain existing staff. Any loss of existing staff can be critically fatal for project timelines, leading to delays and increased costs.

Staff augmentation is a flexible outsourcing option that can help businesses bridge this gap between demand and supply of skilled IT specialists in Australia. It allows companies to extend their IT team on an as-needed basis, providing greater flexibility and faster turnarounds.

Is staff augmentation the same as outsourcing?

Not exactly. While both outsourcing and staff augmentation involve seeking talent outside your company, outsourcing involves transferring the work entirely to an external entity. In contrast, staff augmentation brings the talent to your company, adding to your current team. When outsourcing, you pay for the results, and the work is performed outside your organisation. Staff augmentation, however, involves the additional team members working with your existing development team on-site, providing you complete oversight of the entire process.

What are the benefits of staff augmentation?

1. Effortless Team Integration and Enhanced Communication. IT staff augmentation allows your business to bypass the stress of traditional hiring while gaining top-quality talent. Professionals from staff augmentation services seamlessly integrate into your existing teams, adapting to your workplace culture and ethics. Being fully-bilingual and operating in similar time zones make communication faster and more efficient, ensuring smooth collaboration.
2. Access to On-Demand, Top-Notch IT Talent. Staff augmentation provides your business with skilled, dedicated, and experienced professionals who are innovative and team-oriented. These experts possess cutting-edge coding and testing skills, having undergone rigorous training in various software development disciplines. With staff augmentation, your business gains access to a diverse pool of talent with the right qualifications for your project requirements.
3. Unmatched Flexibility and Scalability. The flexible, on-demand model of staff augmentation enables businesses to scale up or down according to their needs. Industry experts handle talent sourcing, hiring, onboarding, and training, allowing your employees to focus on core business activities. This agility ensures your business remains competitive in today’s ever-changing environment while providing excellent customer service.
4. Cost Savings and Effortless Oversight. Staff augmentation offers significant cost savings compared to traditional recruitment methods by eliminating overhead costs like advertising and interviewing. Additionally, you can avoid mistakes associated with hiring inexperienced candidates. Easy communication and oversight are ensured, as management closely monitors the selected staff and maintains open lines of communication with clients.
5. Comprehensive IT Expertise Across Multiple Disciplines. Staff augmentation grants your business access to a full range of skills, roles, and experiences, such as front-end, back-end, and full-stack developers, software architects, DevOps engineers, and project managers. These professionals are fluent in multiple programming languages and frameworks, ensuring that your business benefits from their diverse expertise.

When is staff augmentation the right choice?

When deciding whether to use IT staff augmentation, it’s important to first determine if you need a full-time employee or a contractor. If you only need a limited amount of hours or have a short-term need, a contractor is likely the best choice. Then, consider if you need the contractor to follow your processes and use your tools. If not, outsourcing to a freelancer may be sufficient. However, if you require control over work processes or handle sensitive data, staff augmentation is the way to go. To determine if staff augmentation is right for your project, consider the following questions:

1. Do you need your team to work alongside the talent or can they simply submit deliverables?
2. Do you want to manage the work and output closely or be more hands-off?
3. Should the talent use your in-house tools and technology or is it unimportant?

Staff augmentation can be beneficial in various situations, such as testing a new position, adding niche skills to your team, covering staff on leave, managing complex projects, and having a limited budget.

Final thoughts

Staff augmentation can answer your talent shortage or long hiring times. With a broader pool of world-class talent at a lower cost, this strategy can give your business a competitive edge. It offers flexibility to scale up or down as needed and overcome the challenge of finding qualified candidates. Choosing the right partner is crucial, so look for a provider with skilled talent in your technology mix. While it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution, it can be a powerful tool to find qualified talent for open positions or new projects. Contact us today to learn more about how Creativ Digital can help your business overcome the IT skill gap and talent scarcity.

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So what exactly is IT staff augmentation? 

In short, it’s the augmentation of in-house IT staff along with external team personnel. This can be done in a number of ways. The most common approach is to outsource IT staff to another company or to use independent contractors.

IT staff augmentation is a strategy to make your team more efficient. It increases productivity and improves its overall performance. In this article, we have listed the pros and cons of IT staff augmentation. This is to help you decide if it is the right solution for your start-up business.

PROS

Increased Efficiency

It can help increase the efficiency and flexibility of an organization in a number of ways. One of these is by providing access to skilled resources that may not be available internally. This can help systems keep up with changing technologies and business demands.

Team augmentation also allows organizations to focus on their internal resources. They can focus on high-level strategic tasks that are more difficult to outsource. This can help your business remain competitive in the market. It allows you to be nimble and responsive.

Reduced Costs

Staff augmentation can be a cost-effective solution for startup businesses. When a company employs its own in-house IT team, it has to incur various additional costs such as employee benefits, office space, and equipment. On the other hand, opting for staff augmentation services can save costs for your company.

Most independent contractors are willing to work on an as-needed basis. In addition, these people have their own working stations in their homes. For these reasons, staff augmentation is an attractive option for startup businesses.

Increase Productivity

IT staff augmentation can help start-up businesses increase their productivity. It can speed up the completion of a project by having extra hands on deck. This is because your business hires extra people to work on a project. It helps take some of the load off your in-house employees. Having extra personnel working on a project allows for more collaboration between individuals in your organization. 

Deliver Better Business Results

When a startup hires an external consultant to work on a project for them, it allows the company to focus on other aspects of their business. Your business is still able to successfully complete that project or task at hand. For example, when a startup is working on developing a new product, it might need to hire an external consultant. This is to help out with the development process. On the other hand, the other team can focus on their marketing efforts. 

Augmenting IT staff is a highly debated topic. Some see it as a valuable way to get the best employees, while others think it’s an unnecessary waste of resources. We have discussed the pros to give you a better judgment. Below are a few of the cons that you must consider.

CONS

Culture Adaptation

Hiring an outsider can be difficult because it requires a lot of time to get them up to speed and acclimated with the company culture. It is also difficult to find someone who is a perfect fit for your company, especially if you are hiring for a niche role that requires specific skills. They need to be able to fit in with the existing team and culture.

Expensive 

While some companies hire contractors on a per-hour basis, others offer full-time positions that come with benefits and other perks. Either way, augmenting IT staff will cost money that could otherwise be spent elsewhere within the business. 

You have to factor in the cost of recruiting, training, and onboarding, as well as the salary of the augmented. And if you’re working with an agency, there will be additional fees to pay.

In-House Staff Dependency

There’s also the risk that your IT staff will become reliant on the augmentation company, and less capable of working independently. This can lead to a loss of knowledge and skills within your team, which can be hard to recover from. 

Additionally, if you do decide to go with an augmentation company, be sure to do your research. Make sure you understand the terms of the agreement, and that you’re comfortable with the level of control they will have over your systems. Ask for references, and talk to other companies who have used their services.

Key Takeaways

Despite these potential drawbacks, staff augmentation can be a great way to improve your organization’s IT capabilities. It allows you to tap into a larger pool of talent. You can get the skills and expertise you need without having to invest in training or development. 

Additionally, staff augmentation can help you respond quickly to changes in your business environment or IT needs. If you are considering staff augmentation for your organization, be sure to weigh the pros and cons carefully to ensure it is the right decision for you.

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Coding is not just about sales. However, it there is something that the 2 have in common: the idea that you can be successful while uplifting others around you.  This means that coding and philanthropy can intersect.

If you’re a coder and thinking of ways on how you can make the world a better place, you’re in the right page because we have suggestions for you.

Robotics

It was only a couple of decades ago that bionic limbs were the stuff of science fiction. Nowadays, people are getting fitted with robotic limbs. In fact, last year a man from Florida in the USA got fitted with the first mind controlled robotic arm.

Prosthetics have advanced greatly over the last few decades and what was science fiction is now reality. This is thanks in part to coding. Coding has made it possible for the computers in the arm to interpret brain signals enabling the man to move his robotic limbs independently.

There are many scientific applications for coding and programming. In microbiology, chemistry, engineering and many other fields, programmers are helping make imagination become reality that impacts life in a positive way.

Hopefully, coders and programmers of the future can find the answer to world problems like disease, conflict and world hunger.

Environment Conservation

Debates about the environment and climate change are getting heated nowadays. Fortunately there are technological advances that can help mitigate the devastating effect of climate change in our lives. For instance, there are better tracking systems for weather nowadays. It can accurately predict not only flooding but storm surges as well.

There are also developments in sustainable energy and emission tracking software. Coding is also helping promote the earth’s survival and wildlife. There is now artificial intelligence that helps to track animals and document their growth, deforestation is now being tracked along with poaching and other illegal environment activities.

Charity Coding

Ever heard of Hackathon? It’s an event where computer programmers, software developers, graphic artists, web designers and other IT related professionals convene to solve real world problems through coding.

Starting in the 1990’s, Hackathons were aimed at developing new products or solutions to existing problems. It wasn’t long until organizers realized that these events were more than just about sales. Many non-profit organizations don’t have the funds to fix their tech problems. Hackathons and other charity coding activities can help give back to organizations that are focused on helping others.

Coders and Programmers at Creativ Digital can help you find the right web design and development solutions.  

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Luckily, there are ways you can reduce IT costs without sacrificing the quality of your service or security. Here are some ways you can reduce IT costs for your business.

Renegotiate Existing Contracts

If you don’t ask then you won’t receive. Some business owners simply sign a contract with their vendors and then leave them as is. What they don’t realize is that could be missing out on deals, promos, price reductions and offers.

Negotiate with your vendors if you’re serious about reducing IT costs. Some benefits include:

• Get what you want.
• Receive a good deal.
• Save money.
• Win-win situation for both of you.

Consolidate

Some businesses don’t realize that they’re using multiple vendors for different needs. However, consolidating vendors, platforms and software can help you reduce IT costs meaning more spending power. It will also help improve security.

Other benefits of vendor consolidation include:

• Easier vendor management – fewer vendors mean less relationships to manage.
• Lesser freight costs – the more vendors you have the higher the freight cost since you have to pay for every fare.
• Better relationships with vendors – easier to cultivate vendor relationships. Now that you’re spending money on your chosen vendor they will value your relationship more.

Use the Cloud

The cloud has become an indispensable tool for many businesses. Using the cloud can help reduce IT costs because it can eliminate the need for expensive storage hardware kept on-site.

Cloud computing is cost effective because businesses can scale their needs as they arise. It is also efficient because businesses don’t need to worry about underlying infrastructure costs or maintenance. Best of all it gives businesses a technological advantage by providing innovative technology.

Use Open Source Software

Software can be very expensive in terms of purchasing cost and annual maintenance. Luckily there are open source software that can help you eliminate this cost. There are even software that you can customize because you have access to the source code.

Other Benefits Include:

• Ability to let your start small. You can start with a community version and then upgrade to commercially supported editions as your business grows and expands. If it doesn’t require support you can continue with the community version indefinitely.
• Solid security. Open source sometimes gets a bad rap in terms of security. However, this is not true because the open source community is very responsive especially when it comes to information security.
• Attracts better talent. Many industry experts believe that IT is headed towards open source. Many like to create their own projects and have the ability to interact with others to develop solutions. Having the ability to be flexible and free helps to attract better talent.
• Flexible and agile. Technology is evolving fast so you have to compete not only on flexibility but also agility. If not you’re going to lose to the competition. Open source gives you the ability to be technologically agile especially when it comes to solving problems.

Offshore Outsourcing

It’s no secret that offshore outsourcing is a good way to cut IT costs. There are many talents around the world that offer lower prices in exchange for their abilities. Outsourcing can also give your on-site talents a break. However, work should always be carried accurately and existing workflow should be maintained. This is why you have to hire outsourced talents only from reliable providers.

Use Managed IT Services With Fixed Fees

Use managed IT services that have fixed fees. IT services usually have varied fees depending on your requirements or whether you need it long or short term. However, using services with fixed fees can make your budget easier to manage.

IT services should include security service that protects your business from cyber-attacks. This should help reduce cost because maintaining an in-house cyber security team can be expensive.

IT costs can be expensive but it is essential for all types of businesses that operate on the web. The above strategies are good examples of those that don’t sacrifice quality. These tips can help you free up cash and maximize profit without compromising the IT requirements of your business.

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