Distributed Teams: A New Best Practice for Engineering

As business comes back to life from state and local shutdowns, many are rethinking their staffing needs. For some, the shift to all-remote work revealed opportunities to streamline everything from office space to supply chains, and requirements for new skills and competencies. Many are looking to use staff augmentation, used in the crisis to quickly get the right skills in the right place at the right time, and remain flexible in an uncertain future. 

Staff Augmentation "A Great Decision"

"Consider reassessing jobs that have been redefined by the crisis," said Bill Currence, CEO of operational efficiency expert Cornerstone Consulting. "Develop a depth chart for these roles and evaluate weak points. It's more important than ever to find the right people with the best skills to manage what's coming next. Whether you need support in assessing a volatile supply chain or filling an engineering role, staff augmentation can be a great decision."

A trend accelerated by the pandemic is the use of distributed engineering through staff augmentation as a best practice. Many businesses realized that to be ready for "what's coming next," they need flexible, resilient workforces that can perform at a high level from anywhere. Distributed software developers enable teams to scale up, scale back, and shift resources faster than traditional hire-onboard-train staffing methods. 

Stay Ahead of Change

The flexibility to add adaptable resources as needed is becoming increasingly necessary in a fast-changing environment. The goal isn't just to keep the lights on when the unexpected happens. Teams want to get ahead of change and to seize opportunities as they arise. Examples include a new customer that requires customized software, or an internal project is fast-tracked. Remote engineering staff augmentation enables the speed and flexibility that these opportunities demand. 

Remote Works

The virus-driven shift to remote work has shown businesses--especially those that were anti-remote work or wary of it--that distributed engineering can be done and done well. Employees can be as or more productive, and teams can connect, collaborate, and communicate in new ways. Employees are free from grinding commutes. Managers realize that they can access expanded labor pools. CFOs see opportunities to reduce office costs. This newfound openness to remote work is further accelerating interest in distributed staff augmentation.

Remote software teams make it possible to connect talent with opportunity for business's sake. Companies can access the right skills at the right time, regardless of location. They can also accelerate staffing with engineers that are remote-collaboration veterans, which accelerates development and delivery.

Distributing Risk

Distributed software developers also help distribute risk. When an entire group is in the same geographic location, any disruption at that location risks disrupting the whole business. Remote teams can more quickly add staff to make up for such disruptions. Distributed engineering teams also enable firms to raise talent levels by engaging top engineers that may not be available locally. The result is a more flexible staffing infrastructure.

In the post-virus world, remote staff augmentation is expected to grow even faster. Businesses racing to build new digital channels to move products online need fast access to skilled developers. 

Learn more by watching the recorded webinar, "Why Go Back (to the office)? CTOs Share Lessons Learned and Future Plans," where Andela CTO David Blair, Wellio CTO Erik Andrejko, and Vibes VP of Engineering Clarke Retzer have a frank "screenside chat" about what's working, what's not, and what's next in their remote work and product development plans.