Why should Brazil be an option for companies considering outsourcing? Which benefits and challenges are there and how to address them? Great conversation with Tiago Tavares from topdesignteam.com
Mainly providing web design/ development and ongoing website management services, although working at times with large corporations, topdesignteam strategically focuses on small and medium companies as a way to have a larger client base, thus reducing the potential impact towards revenue in the event of one or two cease being clients.
One major challenge in Brazil is finding resources with the ability to properly communicate in English, which is why one solution is to define a single point of contact who acts like a project manager centralizing all communication.
Are there still different requirements or expectations (as it used to be the case one decade ago), concerning design styling from clients in distinct geographies?
Tiago has been witnessing the Globalization Era impacting also this specific domain by trends alignment over the several geographies, mainly in the “Americas”.
When directly asked about why should companies choose Brazil for Outsourcing services, even though not being an “intuitive” immediate first option like India or the Philippines, Tiago points out three main reasons: the country tradition in producing very good technical resources with deep expertise who, although having speech restrictions, are able to communicate in English in the written form (via chat or e-mail); having a weak currency towards the USD which accounts for low cost; and being able to cover the North American work schedule (same time zones).
When outsourcing, the prudent way is to test before you commit.
Quality is not a direct reflex of your provider organizational structure, a big company may provide a lousy service just as well as a freelancer may prove to deliver a product of excellence. Tiago points out that many clients are in fact moving away from outsourcing to companies, in search of a more personalized experience by hiring freelancers.
And, how to define a good job?
Even if sometimes the client insists on something which either does not comply with design best practices or it is not the most suitable solution (despite your best professional advice), at the end of the day, providing a good job means meeting client’s expectations.
As it happens, complicated people do show up from time to time, and communication is crucial to overcoming misalignments
And as a client, which are the most common mistakes you find in your providers?
For one, locally (and driven from a cultural handicap), committed delivery dates are perceived as being “flexible”, which implies that you must act “smart” by anticipating milestones so you may have the product for when you really need it.
Another challenge is the fact that professionals have focal restrict expertise (not being generalists), so you must juggle with this to get things done.
What would you point out a key message from this conversation?
Tiago points out the relevancy of dedicating effort towards finding truly committed partners since it accounts for both reliability and flexibility as well as savings.
Freelancers are naturally more flexible than companies and willing to “cashback”/ reduce prices in exchange of learning along the path.