Remote Product Development Management: Effective Strategies

The pandemic has brought many issues for businesses in various industries. It did, however, have a favorable impact on one thing. Tech companies and highly digitized firms are coming out of the COVID-19 crisis even more productive.

The reason for this is the widespread shift to remote work. Is it the new norm? Yes. Does it allow digital companies to thrive? Of course! It’s no surprise as such organizations show the highest percentage of remote workers: more than 50% on average.

Remote product development also became salvation in the face of the tech personnel shortage. Now companies can find a competent, dedicated team anywhere in the world. And Vox predicts that by 2025, about 70% of the workforce will work remotely.

"By 2025, about 70% of the workforce will work remotely."

So how do you become part of this new reality and outsource product development effectively? We will talk about this in detail in today’s article. We’ll discuss the main reasons for delegating product development and the best strategies for remote work.

Arounda has been an outsourced vendor for full-cycle product development for many years. Our dedicated team raises the bar for software development, design, and strategy. Thus, we can share valuable insights with you, drawing on our extensive experience.

Remote Product Development Explained

Remote product development is a process that occurs when you delegate product creation tasks to a third-party development agency or freelancer. It’s that simple.

You choose the model of cooperation with a remote vendor depending on the needs of your business. In particular, these can be:

• Outsourcing. It’s when you completely hand over product development to a third-party company. In this case, you communicate with project managers or other intermediaries to find out about the progress in building your software.
• Outstaffing. It’s when you supplement your in-house staff with remote employees. In this case, you get a dedicated team whose work you can constantly supervise.
• Freelance. It’s when you look for individual freelancers and delegate them your digital product development tasks.

Regardless of the collaboration model, product development takes place remotely. Digital communication allows you to control this process even when the talent is in far-off offices.

Primary Reasons to Outsource Your Product Development

How to figure out that you need a remote development team? We’ve prepared the top reasons to delegate your product creation.

You Need a Larger Talent Pool

You are no longer limited to local workers by choosing remote product management. It becomes even more relevant if your software requires specific knowledge and skills. Now you can ignore geography and locate candidates anywhere in the world.

You Need Budget Optimization

Hiring in-house staff might be costly, especially since modern tech talent has increased requirements. You are also responsible for the administrative costs associated with conducting interviews, maintaining workplaces, and providing employees with the necessary equipment and software.

If you choose remote cooperation, all the abovementioned things will no longer be a problem. A remote product development company will bear the cost of maintaining employees. Moreover, you can choose the vendor that offers the most reasonable prices.

You Require Scalability

Need to grow your development team quickly? That’s easy. Don’t waste time interviewing and finding the perfect candidates. Now you can turn to a remote development company that immediately provides you with the necessary workers.

You Need Improved Time to Market

If you have realized that you are missing deadlines or need to release a product faster, remote workers are your way out.

Such development teams have all the necessary equipment and significant work experience. Therefore, they will be able to speed up the creation of your product effortlessly. Consider that 70% of workers claim their productivity does not suffer when working remotely.

You Require a Fresh Opinion

Let’s assume that you already have an in-house team. Here you are already in the process of creating your digital product, but doubts arise. Are the features you have chosen efficient? Does the design match your business?

It is natural that your employees have tired eyes, especially if they have spent a lot of time developing your product. So, you can always hire remote developers who may bring fresh ideas and suggest improvements.

Tips on How to Manage the Product Development Effectively

If you aim to outsource product development, then you need to do it as efficiently as possible. Consider the following tips for organizing remote work processes:

Manage Time Zone Differences

Working with a remote development team will often occur in different time zones. Therefore, you need to take care to use your working time productively. How to do it?

Determine the hours when both you and the development team are available. Use this time to call remote workers, discuss completed tasks, and plan development.

Also, agree with your remote vendor about an emergency communication channel in case of urgent questions.

Establish a Defined Working Process

If you want the result of the development team’s work to meet your expectations, then articulate these expectations first.

Describe your product idea and the goals you want to achieve. You also need to set expectations for performance, accountability, and teamwork. The same applies to setting work tasks. You should formulate them clearly and explain them well so there are no misunderstandings.

Plan Communication Thoroughly

Effective communication with a remote team will allow you to achieve the best results in the shortest possible time.

Please make it a rule to hold regular online meetings at a time agreed with the team. Ensure to inform each employee about the meeting and never cancel a planned event, especially if it takes place beyond working hours.

Also, identify other communication channels. For example, it can be an email, a convenient messenger like Slack, or other means.

If possible, hold face-to-face meetings with the remote team. It can be corporate events, joint trips, etc.

Document All Processes

Get the habit of not just talking about your product development goals and objectives. Write them all down.

Create a document with requirements, communication means, development timeline, and expected results. Consequently, your team will have a comprehensive guide and won’t need to ask you about workflow constantly.

Break Product Development into Separate Sprints

Splitting product development into separate sprints provides flexibility for the team. And flexibility is one of the main requirements for an effective remote employee work organization. Set deadlines for each sprint and list the required tasks.

Be Ready to Reconsider

As a digital product owner, you have a defined vision and purpose for it. However, your remote team can bring many ideas to improve your software.

Therefore, allow your employees to express themselves. Let them share their thoughts and advice. You must be open to change and be ready to implement it.

Arounda’s Product Development Services

Our company offers full-cycle product development. We already have more than 100 completed projects to our credit, and we don’t plan to stop there. Arounda wants to continue impressing its clients with top-notch product design and quality.

Depending on your needs, we can develop an effective mobile application, website or web application.

Take a look at the first-class services we can deliver:

• Product strategy. From the information you provide about your business, our experts outline the goals and mission of your product and create a plan for its development.
• Business analysis. Our specialists will help you research your business, minimize limitations, and show your company’s strong side.
• Mobile development. We can create a mobile app from scratch according to your requirements.
• Front-end development. Our dedicated developers can easily connect the design to the back-end, creating a functional visual part of your product.
• Back-end development. Our experts are also ready to take on the server side of your product creation and make it efficient.
• UI/UX design. Our experienced designers can create an intuitive user interface with a smooth UX.
• Website design. We also create powerful website designs that increase your conversion rate and audience loyalty.
• Brand identity. Our team can develop an identity for your business that will convey your vision and meet the latest trends.

The Arounda team comprises more than 30 dedicated experts with skilled developers, designers, and project managers. Having a staff like this, we’re taking product development to a new level.

Final Thoughts

Remote product development is a new way of doing tech business. Companies opt for outsourcing to adapt to post-pandemic crisis conditions and talent shortages.

A remote development team will be beneficial in many situations. For example, it will help eliminate the lack of local experts or expand your existing team. Remote workers are also necessary when you’re looking to cut expenses and speed up your product development.

You will quickly succeed with the proper organization of the remote working process. Just consider today’s advice when hiring an outsourcing vendor.

If you are looking for a reliable remote product development company, Arounda is a worthy candidate. Our five years of experience in the tech field and hundreds of released projects speak for us. So let’s collaborate! All you need to do is contact our team.

‍