Today, businesses (big or small) are looking to cut down on the operational costs until they recover the losses occurred during the pandemic. Minimising the expenditure will be their key motto. Therefore, many companies will look at outsourcing a few key talents for their projects and assignments, for it is the most cost-effective operational strategy.

Due to the worldwide pandemic, in the past few months, we have observed an increase in the consumption of technology by every sector. Now every company will adopt technology to be in line with their competitions and survive. From manufacturing to financial services firms to non-profits all will hire more technology and IT talents. The mass migration to cloud computing, remote and virtual working will require experienced technology talents with right skill sets. Therefore, technology is one of the top domains that businesses will outsource to different companies. From small to big, all corporates have been opting to choose to outsource IT services for many different reasons. Before choosing to outsource any talent, companies should weigh the benefits of the services provided by the outsourcing partner.

Apart from being cost-effective, here are some of the benefits of having outsourced technology talents:

Experience and Skills

Investing in the services from a trusted and dependable technology service provider will bring in the change and help you grow with the guidance of top-tier technology experts. The external team will possess in-depth expertise with excellent skill sets in the technology domain. The experienced talent will defiantly add value to your project and operations by applying their knowledge to your business processes right away.

GoodWorkLabs’ technological knowledge and the team’s capability to understand the know-how of every business seamlessly is key to offering the solution that best suits the companies. This mix allows us to offer the technological profile that best fits the requirements of each project.

Increased Productivity 

By having an industry specialist in your team, you can be sure that your work will be done to the T with zero monitoring and micro-managing. This will shorten the time needed to complete the projects and thereby finish them in time. Having a highly-skilled expert will only fasten the processes, boost the performance, and yield better ROI.

Focus on core operations

By partnering with an experienced service provider, the companies and businesses can focus on the core – the revenue generation part of their business. This will help them concentrate on their business objectives more effectively. It is very common that businesses, where technology is not their core get distracted by applying more energy and time in understanding technology. While technology is relevant for their company, it is outside their business goals, therefore, for situations like these, outsourced technology companies come to the rescue. They can help business managers to focus their energy on areas within their competencies.

Security

Small businesses that do not have a specialised IT security team needs a bit of expert advice on how can they protect the company data from cybersecurity threats and hackers. If you have an external technology partner, they can assist you in protecting assets against digital thefts by using innovative and advanced cybersecurity tools. Traditionally, implementation of the cybersecurity infrastructure is often expensive, therefore having a technology partner can help you eliminate these costs.

Risk Mitigation 

Ever thought what happens when you do not get desired results from the technology talent you outsourced? Worry not, they can be replaced with no or minimal added charges. Helping their clients to be aligned with technology, the outsourcing partners help companies meet their expectations through all odds. Even if the talent leaves the company before the end of the project, the outsourcing partners start looking at alternatives at no added cost.

If you are looking to outsource technology talents, then let us introduce you to the top technology outsourcing company – GoodWorkLabs. GoodworkLabs helps you with all the technical requirements that you may have, from developing an app/software product to staff augmentation. Also, during this ‘work-from-home’ and quarantine time, we can help you with remote developers who can assist you in your projects and do some great work together! Should you require any more info on our offerings then reach out to us at +91- 9863077000 or [email protected].

DevOps Tools for your Business

When it comes to software development, integrating the spheres of Development and Operations opens doors to a more refined perspective of software development. However, if you are new to the practices of DevOps, you may face certain problems initially regarding its understanding.

Not only this. Being new to DevOps practices will also make it difficult for you to select the right kind of tool for your team. To help you get the perfect tool, we have enlisted the 7 top DevOps tools that you can incorporate into your business operations.

The devops tools mentioned below are an amalgamation of automated building tools and application performance monitoring tools.

1) GRADLE

When it comes to a tool stack of DevOps, you will require a build tool that is trustworthy. Maven and Apache Ant may have been the frontrunners for quite a long time, but the appearance of Gradle in the year 2009 has changed a lot of things. Gradle has been enjoying a steady rise in popularity since then.

The versatility of Gradle is the main USP. A programmer can write codes in different programming languages like C++, Java, and Python among many others. It is important to note that Google selected Gradle as its official build tool for its Android Studio.

The best thing about Gradle has to be the facilitation of incremental building, as it helps to save a considerable amount of compiling time. The incredible number of configuration possibilities only adds to its advantages.

2) GIT

Git is a pretty favorite tool across developers in the software industry. It is a distributed source code management tool that is a favorite among open source contributors and remote teams alike. Git facilitates the tracking of progress for your development work.

You also get a lot of help by saving different types of your source code and also can refer to the older versions if needed. The ease of reference makes Git an excellent tool for experimentation because you can create separate sections and fuse them only when every part is complete.

For integrating your DevOps workflow with Git, you also need repositories where the members of your team slide in their work. Presently, Github and Bitbucket are the two most popular online Git hosting services.

Both the above services can be merged seamlessly with Slack, which helps each member get notified when somebody takes a particular action.

3) JENKINS

Jenkins is also one of the favorite tools for DevOps automation for many software developing teams. It is necessarily a CI/CD server with an open source which allows you to automate of different stages of your pipeline of deliveries. With a considerable plugin ecosystem, Jenkins enjoys a colossal bout of popularity.

The number of plugins on offer is about a 1,000 making the integration with many tools pretty flawless, be it Docker or Puppet. With the help of Jenkins, you can set and personalize your CI/CD pipeline as per your requirements.

Jenkins is also pretty easy to start working with as it runs on basic Windows, Linux and Mac OS from the start. Jenkins also makes it very easy to create and deploy the new code as soon as possible. The process helps in a straightforward measurement of every single step in your pipeline.

4) BAMBOO

Bamboo is a CI/CD server solution which provides the users with a lot of similar features that are available on Jenkins. While both Bamboo and Jenkins facilitate the automation of delivery pipeline, Jenkins is an open source service, but Bamboo is a premium service, which means you need to purchase it.

There is a price tag on Bamboo for sure, but it also comes in with some features which come out-of-the-box that need to be established manually in Jenkins. Due to pre-built functions, Bamboo has the upper edge. Bamboo also has lesser plugins because it already does many things right from the moment it is activated.

Bamboo is also able to get flawlessly integrated with the other Atlassian tools like Jira and Bitbucket. To sum up, Bamboo saves you from a lot of configuration time. The user interface is also more intuitive with auto-completion, tooltips and other useful features.

5) DOCKER

Since its launch in the year 2013, Docker has been the most popular container platform and is still improving. People consider Docker as one of the essential DevOps tools in existence. It is Docker which has made containerization a trend in the world of technology as it makes distributed development a reality and also deploys your apps automatically.

Docker isolates your applications into different containers to make them more secure and portable. The Docker apps are also OS and platform independent. These Docker containers can serve the purpose as a substitute for practical tools like VirtualBox.

6) KUBERNETES

Now Kubernetes is a tool which takes containerization to a whole new level. It works nicely with Docker and its other alternate tools as well. Kubernetes helps in the grouping of containers into more logical units.

When it comes to Kubernetes, the need to link your containerized apps with a single machine does not exist. You can designate this function to a collection of computer systems. The tool then automatically distributes and schedules the containers along the computer collection.

7) PUPPET ENTERPRISE

Puppet Enterprise is a configuration management platform that works on a cross-platform. The tool allows you to help in the management of your entire app infrastructure as a code. Puppet also gives the developers an open source tool for minor projects.

If you have the Puppet Enterprise, managing multiple teams and a whole load of resources becomes very easy. The most fantastic thing about Puppet Enterprise is that there are more than 5,000 kinds of modules and offers easy interlinking with the other DevOps tools as well.

Thus, we hope you this list of the devops tools helps you implement the best development and operations strategy. But to find out which DevOps tool works best for your team, you will need to experiment and test things. in the end, a tool’s performance boils down to your own goals and needs.

If you are still not sure which tool to opt for then let us assist you! Drop us a quick message about your business requirements.

Agile Methodology Tools in Business

Timely delivering projects under a defined deadline and a set budget is a priority for those companies who wish to maintain their credibility, reputation, and prestige. Projects that get delayed give a hard time to the enterprises throughout their hierarchy because late project delivery has a significant impact on the morale, level of productivity and focus as well. To make matters worse, incorrect implementation of agile methodology might force the employees to leave the company due to excessive stress.

In such a stressful situation, the single best thing an employer can do is to take a step in the right direction at agile methodology, which is where the real tools of project management enter to play. The tools help in the identification of the actual status of a project, the expected tenure of a project and all its practical applications.

Entering into the world of project management, one is a witness of the importance of flexible working methods while also ensuring the implementation of futuristic and latest techniques for gathering the results quickly. There are some project management tools which come in handy to assist in the implementation of Agile project methodology of management.

The eight best tools which we have for you to choose from are:

1. Trello

One of the most widely utilized tools of project management, Trello is renowned for its straightforward user interface (UI) and easy usability. The functioning of Trello can be figured out even by a beginner who does not have too much knowledge in the field of project management.

Trello gives you cards along with dragged columns. The primary columns are three of them that include To Do, Doing, Done. Pulling the map to the appropriate box involves the rest of the tool to plot and create new columns, a rapid and simple procedure.

The cards are objects which can be assigned to resources that are relevant and include the estimation, completion process as well as delivery dates of the projects underway. The reputation of Trello is evident from the fact that even Twitter makes the use of Trello.

2. Visual Studio Team Services (VSTS) 

If you love using Microsoft Stack, VSTS is the perfect tool for your needs. The device facilitates easy integration with Visual Studio, helping manage a technical project with maximum ease. Until five users, the option of using VSTS is free and some premium features that can be purchased. The best feature of VSTS is the mechanism to trace any changes in the code which is the best thing a developer can ever hope for.

3. JIRA 

When you talk about authenticity, Jira is that tool which lives up to your expectation in project management and is known for being the best tool for tracking the records of jobs done through Agile management. Be it small businesses, enterprises or big organizations, Jira is ideal for business of all sizes.

Just like Trello, columns and tickets are there for you to display the different phases of your work. These tickets can be made and then be attached to a resource. When you complete a sprint, the performance of each can be measured through pie charts and graphics representations too.

4. AXOSOFT 

It is a software for an Agile project which is helpful in the identification of bugs in the project and then taking up an accurate Scrum framework to plan these projects. Axosoft has many tools which make the developers work conveniently and create features which are under the budget, on the right schedule and free of bugs.  

Agile followers are in love with Axosoft because of the way this software helps business through the creation of an Agile workflow. The progress report of each is very transparent, and Axosoft also keeps it centralized which ultimately results in practicing Agile methodology to a maximum extent in any team.

5. ASANA 

Asana is one among the best task managing software, and facilitates a team for planning, sharing and tracking the advancement of a project with the mapping of every resource’s performance within the organization.

The interface is pretty easy. You need to create a workplace, add the projects required for completion. It is easy to allot, track and organize the tasks thereafter. You can also add up notes, comments, and tags to be clear and expressive with the motto.

6. Zoho Sprints 

Zoho Sprints assigns you the authority for creating backlogs through a drag and drop feature. You can also stretch the stories of individual users with priorities, which is an added feature other than allotting tasks to a team.

Every work item can be noted duly in a time sheet that has budget control measures like the billable and non-billable hours for a particular piece of the project.

7. WRIKE 

Wrike tool has dashboards, customizable workloads, and charts which boost a project in flowing freely. There are a lot of updating options where all kinds of scattered information that rests on your mail, images, and documents can be easily accessed. Simply put, WRIKE helps in streamlining the workflow that is relevant to the timely completion of a project.

WRIKE also features the collection of necessary information from the cloud, sending of emails and also seamlessly merges with applications like JIRA and Salesforce.

8. Velocity Chart 

This tool helps to have an idea about the value that is generated in every single sprint, helping you to estimate the amount of work which will be completed in subsequent runs. In other words, you can easily measure the velocity of your team’s work.

The Velocity Chart adds up the estimates for every complete and incomplete story. These estimates can be on factors like hours, business value and any other factors that can be assigned to a numerical value.

If you wish to include Agile methodology in your project management practice, the eight tools that we listed above can prove to be crucial to have quick and efficient project management. If you would like to implement agile methodologies to your project, you can contact us here.

The importance of choosing the right technology stack

The use of the right technology stack is the essence of a successful digital product. But choosing the right blend of technology is always tricky. 

At GoodWorkLabs, we offer an expert tech consultation that is unique for every digital product in question. In this post, we have given a more generalized road to help you choose the right tech stack for your application. We are laying down all the possible options for your reference so that you can manifest the right blend for your brand.

Technology stack: Definition & Popular Technology

In layman’s language, web app development requires a database, a server, HTML+CSS, and programming language. All these layers put together, form a tech stack for web development.

Technically, a technology stack is a combination of components which satisfies all the layers of mobile or web application and can directly affect the app functionality. The anatomy here is very simple with two major layers:

• the client-side (frontend; the presentation, what the user sees)
• server-side (backend; the website’s functionality, processes)

Frontend frameworks and libraries:

1) Bootstrap:

• Customizable, saves time, easy to use with a bunch of other helpful components.
• Recommended when you are opting for a ‘mobile first’ application.

2) Angular:

• JS-based framework, good for projects with easy code integration
• New Angular 5 makes it easy to reduce the runtime with the built-in code optimizer
• It is recommended for developing single-page web applications, cross-platform mobile apps, landing pages, and common websites.
• Already used by Google, PayPal, and Upwork

3) Vue.js:

• JS framework which easily integrates with JS libraries
• It is recommended for large-scale and single-page projects.
• Already used by Alibaba, WizzAir, Grammarly

4) React:

• JS library for making user interfaces (UI)
• Active community with numerous ready-made components
• Quick development
• It is recommended for web applications or platforms which require a very responsive UI.
• Already used by Facebook, Reddit, Netflix

5) JQuery:

• JS library that is used for code optimization

Programming Languages:

• PHP:

PHP is particularly designed for web development and creating dynamic web pages. Though it had certain vulnerabilities, it is considered to be the most popular language. Also, as PHP based apps are easy to code, it means that you can cut greatly on expenses by saving time.

• JavaScript (JS):

JavaScript is a convenient, versatile and effective high-level programming language which can be used for both server-side and client-side code. It is recommended for dynamic, agile and modern websites.

• Java:

Java is well-documented and supports numerous libraries. It is used widely for both complex website and dynamic mobile apps. The popular frameworks are Hibernate, Grails, Spring, Dropwizard, and Apache Wicket.

• C#:

With the capability of processing heavy data flow and the flexibility to create all kinds of application, C# is a popular cross-platform technology among developers.

Backend frameworks:

1) Ruby on Rails:

• One of the popular tech stack among startups, ROR is perfect for all kinds of apps from basic web pages to high-traffic web portals. 
• For developers, ROR is very easy to learn and use
• It is fast and scalable
• It uses DRY (“don’t repeat yourself”) design pattern and MVC concept (“model-view-controller”)
• RoR is already used by Airbnb, Basecamp, Twitch, Shopify,  and Zendesk.

2) Django:

• Django is versatile and can be used for startups, medium-sized projects, and high-loaded websites. It is a clean, secure, fast, and scalable framework for rapid development. Along with being well-documented,  it comes with its own lightweight server.
• Already used by Discus, Mozilla, Instagram, and National Geographic.

3) .NET:

• .NET allows developing any type of web app faster and making it scalable. It is very easy to add APIs and live communication features. It has an active community and is extensively documented.
• Already used by Xbox.com, Microsoft, Stack Overflow

4) Node.js:

• Node.js allows optimizing code on complex, high-performance, and data-intensive real-time apps. It is simple, fast, and expressive. It is recommended for apps that involve real-time streaming, collaboration tools, and chatting.

5) Express.js:

• As the name suggests Express.js is a minimalist, flexible, and resource-efficient framework which uses templates and requires minimum efforts. It is recommended for APIs and simple web and mobile services.

6) Flask:

• Flask is another well-documented framework with a highly active community. It is recommended when the client requires to build a service on a resource-constrained system. Also, it is good for serious websites and RESTful APIs.

Databases

1) MongoDB:

• MongoDB is a NoSQL, document-based database which can be used for storing large volumes of unstructured data. It can also be used in a cloud-based environment.

2) PostgreSQL:

• PostgreSQL has multi-version control and supports custom data types. Basically, it is an object-relational database with NoSQL features and is used for storing a gigantic volume of data (up to 32 TB per table).

3) MySql:

• The plus points of this most popular relational database are that MySql is highly scalable, easy to set up, cloud-reafy and is platform independent.

Popular technology stacks

You can also pick from already designed popular web stack. They have a solid foundation and you can easily customize them as per your requirements. The major tech stacks that have been used are LAMP(Linux-Apache-MySql-PHP), MEAN (MongoDB-Express.js-Angular-Node.js) and .NET.

LAMP alternatives:

• WAMP: Windows, Apache, MySql, PHP
• LAPP: Linux, Apache, PostgreSQL, PHP
• WISA: Windows, IIS, SQL, ASP.NET
• XAMPP: Linux, Mac OS X, Windows, Apache, MySql, PHP, Perl
• MAMP: Mac OS X, Apache, MySql, PHP

MEAN alternative:

• MEEN: MongoDB, Ember.js, Express.js, Node.js

Conclusions

The success of your project majorly depends on the tech stack that you choose in the beginning. With so many fishes in the pond, it is difficult to say which one will work best for you. But GoodWorkLabs can help!

Let’s discuss your requirements and compile the perfect tech stack for your next project. Drop us a quick message with your requirements and we will have our tech expert get in touch with you soon

Predictions For 2017-18

Disruption has moved from an infrequent inconvenience to a consistent stream of change that is redefining markets and entire industries. In 2016, we saw the astonishing rise of Pokémon Go, which demonstrated accelerated digital change in areas such as augmented reality. Gartner’s top strategic predictions for 2017 and beyond describe not only the disruptive effects of digital business innovation but how secondary ripple effects will often prove to be more disruptive than the original disruption.

Three high-level trends emerge from the predictions:

• Digital experience and engagement will draw people into non-stop virtual interactions
• Business innovation will create extraordinary change from mundane concepts
• Secondary effects will be more disruptive than the initial digital change

Gartner’s Top 10 Predictions for 2017 and Beyond

1. Immersive Shopping Experience – By 2020, 100 million consumers will shop in augmented reality.

Whether they allow you to try on makeup or place virtual furniture in your home, immersive technologies such as AR increase consumer engagement by enabling them to fully explore features and conveying additional information that can aid in a buying decision. Popular applications, such as Pokémon Go, will help propagate the technology and bring it into the mainstream. 1 in 5 global brands will use AR for shopping by the end of 2017.

2. Voice First Browsing – By 2020, 30% of web browsing sessions will be done without a screen.

Many teens already use voice search daily and new audio-centric technologies, such as Google Home and Amazon’s Echo, are turning “voice first” interactions into ubiquitous experiences. By eliminating the need to use your hands and eyes for browsing, vocal interactions extend the web experience to multiple activities, such as driving, cooking, walking, socializing, exercising, operating machinery, etc. By the end of 2017, watch for room-based screenless devices to be in more than 10 million homes.

3. Mobile Apps Decline – By 2019, 20% of brands will abandon their mobile apps.

Many brands are finding that their mobile apps are not paying off. They simply haven’t delivered the level of adoption and customer engagement that companies expected. App stores are crowded and the cost of application support in not only maintenance, upgrades and customer support but also marketing to drive downloads, exceeds original ROI calculations. Google’s effort to make the mobile web more “app like,” will gain traction, and companies will opt to reduce their losses by allowing their apps to expire. Watch for Apple’s reluctant embrace of the mobile web as a vehicle for customer engagement.

4. Algorithms at Work – By 2020, algorithms will positively alter the behavior of over 1 billion global workers.

Employees, already familiar with behavior influencing through contextual algorithms on consumer sites such as Amazon, will be influenced by an emerging set of “persuasive technologies” that leverage big data from myriad sources, mobile, IoT devices and deep analysis.

JPMorgan Chase uses an algorithm to forecast and positively influence the behavior of thousands of investment bank and asset management employees to minimize mistaken or ethically wrong decisions. Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic uses influence algorithms to guide pilots to use less fuel. By year end 2017, watch for at least one commercial organization to report a significant increase in profit margins because it used algorithms to positively alter its employees’ behaviors.

5. Blockchain Grows Up – By 2022, a blockchain-based business will be worth $10 billion.

Blockchain technology is established as the next revolution in transaction or event recording. A blockchain ledger provides an immutable, shared view of all transactions between engaging parties in a distributed, decentralized network. While the Bitcoin blockchain ledger is itself well-understood, blockchain remains an immature technology. By 2020, new businesses and business models will emerge based on smart contracts and blockchain efficiencies. These smart contracts automate at a reliability, customization level and speed not achievable with traditional business systems.

6. Digital Giants Everywhere – By 2021, 20% of all activities an individual engages in will involve at least one of the top-seven digital giants.

Many of us interact with at least one of the digital giants (by market capitalization: Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent) in our digital worlds of web search, mobile, social networking, messaging and music streaming. As the physical, financial and healthcare worlds become more digital, many of our activities will be connected and within reach of the digital giants. Note that collectively, the digital giants will have direct and indirect knowledge of what we do as individuals and the fundamental issue will be what they do with the data.

7. Innovation Requires Greater Investment – Through 2019, every $1 enterprise invest in innovation will require an additional $7 in core execution.

Many organizations have adopted a bimodal style of work to jumpstart innovation. While exercises are designed to experiment and “fail fast,” those that do receive approval for implementation involve a level of complexity, scale, and business change ramifications that may not have been considered in the initial planning stage.

8. IoT Saves Trillions – By 2022, IoT will save consumers and businesses $1 trillion a year in maintenance, services, and consumables.

Digital twins capture real-time data, allowing smarter maintenance and service schedules for physical objects such as large pumps, airframes, and turbines. When the sensor-enabled real world twin sends data to the digital twin, it can simulate the physical state, allowing the digital twin to be inspected instead of the physical object. This would be helpful for a submerged sewage pump or any other asset in which on-site inspection is inconvenient, costly or hazardous.

Consumers, too, will benefit when they can extend the life of the oil in their cars from a prescriptive replacement “every 5,000 miles” to replacement triggered by a measurement of the engine’s performance.

Emerging and established companies need to keep in mind these predictions, especially the tech leaders during hiring and procurement. Investments need to be smarter, better and more calculative in nature.

Source: Gartner

Solve For India

Google on Friday announced a new initiative called “Solve for India”.  Google with this innovative program plans to expand and boost the start-up ecosystem and inspire new-age entrepreneurs to “Solve for India” and its untapped potential. As the name suggests “Solve in India”, Google intends to work on solving problems that majority of the Indians have been facing from the past few decades.

With enhanced connectivity and the ever growing Internet user base, it provides an opportunity to everyone to pursue their dreams and curate solutions for Indians. Google is going to offer the same with the “Solve in India” program.

Below are the features of the initiative:

1. “Solve for India” program is set to inspire the emerging group of entrepreneurs in cities like  Jaipur, Pune, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkatta, Indore, Nagpur, Kanpur, Madurai, and Chennai.

2. It will provide a platform for developers, entrepreneurs in the above mentioned cities to collaborate with experts and understand latest Google technologies. They will also get support and other assistance directly from Google.

3. For startups who’re looking to build scalable solutions, Google will provide over $20,000 of cloud credits under this program to boost their growth.

4. Developers can also expect to build on their skills and learn from experts on latest in Android, Firebase, Machine learning, Cloud APIs, Progressive Web Apps and Indian Language Translation solutions.

5. Entrepreneurs will be able to learn from a plethora of Google’s program starting from Google Launchpad mentoring program. It will help them to build, scale and accelerate early stage product ideas into category leaders.

“Majority of India’s Internet users are Indian language users, and over 80 per cent of them access the Internet from their mobile phones. But the current Indian startup ecosystem is building products for English speaking audience and caters only to 15 per cent of the population. There’s growing number of entrepreneurs in smaller Indian cities who are focusing on building solutions that caters to the real needs of India. Through this initiative we want to bring the best of Google under one program and join forces with them to help create solutions that serve the needs of a billion Indians,” says Karthik Padmanabhan, Program Manager Lead for Google India.

Understanding Offshore Development

You’re comfortably relaxing on your couch and enjoying a football match. The television suddenly switches off and the switch box explodes with sparks flying around. You have no clue what has happened and you look up on the internet searching for an electrician. The local electrician is charging $100, whereas a veteran electrician from the neighboring community is ready to visit your place and rectify your electrical setup for just $30.

Whom will you call?

Keep these options in your mind as we dwell into the concept of offshore development.

From the past decade or so, an unexpected trend has arisen in the technology sector. Multi-national companies, start-ups, and even local businesses have started adopting the business models of offshore development services. Offshore development was something that only large global companies engaged in many years ago due to the geographical and language challenges that existed. Today, these are not a factor as communication and transparency challenges have been both negated due to the technology that has come into everyday life.

First, let us discuss what exactly is offshore development as well as why it has become such as a popular option for companies worldwide.

Offshore development means the process of outsourcing your development needs such as web, mobile or even custom software to countries such as India, Philippines, China and so on. The reason why people look at offshore web or software development is mainly because of the cost-savings and the time that can be saved. Also, it minimizes internal overhead costs. The offshore model has been around for a long while but with the world becoming more global and technology making it easier than ever before to communicate to anyone no matter where they are located, the demands for offshore development have increased substantially.

The Offshore Development model is used for multiple things: offshore software and offshore web development or services such as customer service, data-entry, cold-calling along with BPO or KPO processes. The main reason is that a person in India or any other developing country will cost significantly less when compared to the US, UK or Australia. The bottom line is that if you are able to find a good offshore development partner, you can really save yourself time, money, HR hassles and other operational expenses. The key is to find a good offshore partner who has the experience, expertise and technical skills to accomplish what you need. Ranging from a simple website or even a fully operating customer service center, your offshore partner must be well equipped to handle your requirements.

Professional offshore development can be beneficial in the following ways:

Reasonable services :

Not all the countries boast of a talented pool of web developers and designers in abundance which makes it difficult to get work done at a nominal amount. The reason being that they charge substantially as they develop products knowing that they are in monopoly. It turns out to be quite expensive build a website or mobile app. Offshore development can disrupt the monopoly and be more cost effective.

Quality:

One of the best things about the offshore software companies is that they have a vast pool of talent and can render top notch development services. This ensures that the quality of the projects is superior and also matches the international standards.They also ensure that they utilize the best tools and technologies to create highly competitive products.

Communication:

Technology has ensured that there is no delay in any communication between the client and the developers. Offshore developers tend to be more approachable and communication friendly. This ensures that the process does not go haywire during any stage.

No deadline delays:

Following deadlines is a big aspect when it comes to product development. The entire marketing and operations of a company depends on the product being delivered according to the stipulated time. Offshore development can cut down these hassles as they have the flexibility of employing more resources at a lower cost.

24×7 availability:

Round the clock availability sometimes becomes a norm for a global company and offshore centers offer workflow accordingly which might not be possible in the parent country due to cost and labor-force constraints.

Conducive Environment:

Outsourced processes, usually are very strenuous in nature. The workforce needs to be seated in an environment that can boost productivity and reduce stress levels. It is one of the main factors why Offshore Development is a good option since infrastructure is available cheaply as compared to the parent country.

Security:

Security of confidential data and client properties is a buzzing concern when dealing with offshore companies. Most of the offshore development companies offer high end security protocols and systems to ensure the client’s data is never compromised.

And now, back to the electrician conundrum. If a veteran electrician with years of experience is ready to travel to your house at a cheaper rate, any sensible man would choose him over the $100 electrician. The same logic may also be applied to the concept of offshore development.

So, sit back and relax as your offshore partner takes charge of your processes and product development and frees you of the basic organizational hassles.

Offshore development may seem a far fetch off for most of the most organisations, but if the current global trend is to be observed, it is one of the most trusted and cost effective options for an organisation that is looking to cut down on costs and build quality products.

Challenges for a UX Designer

According to LinkedIN, there are 900,000 UX designers in the world. How strong willed are you to be one of the best in the long run?

“ Determination is the wake up call to the human will”

A designer is a commercial artist confined by factors such as economical efficiency, technological constraints and most importantly a client’s requirements.  A UX designer is more skilled in the techniques and the process on a whole new level which we will not dwell into. And as seen with artists and designers, even UX designers can lose their way in between or simply succumb to mental fatigue unless the work flow is organised and their creative persona is kept alive.

So, what exactly are the obstacles a UX designer faces?

To answer the above question, let us just assume you are 6 years old and in elementary school. The task at hand in the art class is to draw the conventional scenery with a sunrise and a small house.

You have an hour to complete the task and your creative and young mind sketches out generously on the canvas. Agreed, it will not be the best work of art but for a 6 year old child, it is commendable.

Now, let us add factors one by one to transform the 6 year child into a UX designer.

1. The client, the teacher in this case, wants an enhanced amalgamation of colors that are soothing to the eye.

2. Instead of crayons, you will use the latest tech available to make it more interactive: the fish in the rivers should pop out when touched, the canvas should have interchangeable themes according to the time of the day and everything should look lifelike.

3. Instead of an hour, you have a week, in which you have to start from the scratch. Create a storyboard, research how different users react to the design, predict how users are going to interact with the picture on different levels to name a few.

4. And now, most importantly, you are not supposed to cross a fixed budget, redraft the design until the client likes it and stick to a deadline.

5. You’re in your 20’s now, you have had experiences as a human being and your creative side sometimes has a slightly different point of view.

And thus begins the constant battle between your creativity and someone’s exact requirements. Being a 6 year old was fun, being a UX designer is much more fun stacked up on a heap of obstacles and opportunities. So, how to go through the ardent process while enjoying it and keeping your creative ego on a standby?

Remember:

You are special. You are sketching the future of technology. It is a part of you that people will see when they access the digital world. You have already predicted what they will feel, how they will react and that is nothing but pure magic! Not an illusion, not a cheap trick, but a result of your skills and ingenuity. So, as far as you keep this in mind and adjust to a few requests, you are already strong willed to be one of the best in UX designing.

Still, here are a few tips to keep yourself clutter free and determined:

1. Ask yourself why is the client/business spending money on UX design? If it is so important can I afford to lag behind and deliver an under-performing product?

2. It is good to have infinite concepts for a project but stick to a concept, believe in it and keep refining it. The more choices you have, the more fatigue you will experience even before starting especially when you have a deadline.

3. When we are unsure of what to do, we usually look towards a social behavior to guide us. Avoid that. It is your design, a proof of your brilliance.

4. People not only perceive object shapes better, they respond better to action oriented stimuli. Allow this thought process in your creativity.

5. Be clear of what exactly you want from your design, see your design on an emotional level for the future user.

6. Every process has its hardships, but visualize the end result that will boost your confidence.

7. Anything beautiful and alleviating takes time and effort to be created. It is your mind, your space and your canvas. Realize it proves your worth as a person and as a professional.

8. Divert your mind from social and family matters and engage in healthy conversations with your co-workers.

Being a UX designer, perhaps no one will ever know who designed the masterpiece android/iOS mobile app that they have gotten addicted to. You are designing for everyone and no one at the same time. Either your passion for designing and challenges provide the spark for you or it is the growth opportunities. There will be times when you will be agitated, every creative soul goes through that. In fact it is imperative. All that pressure, all those suggestions and yet every time if you come up with a design that startles everyone, you will be the silent guardian that ensures the success of products.

A creative knight in the shining armor of technology.