Staff Augmentation with Nearshore Companies: Advantages and Benefits

The technology and innovation market is in continuous evolution and business demands advance rapidly. Organizations of all sizes have faced significant challenges in hiring qualified professionals and adapting to changing market needs.

Faced with this dynamic and competitive scenario, “staff augmentation” emerges as an increasingly popular strategic solution in several sectors. This practice offers companies the flexibility to acquire external talent to fill gaps in the internal team. Brazilian organizations are currently standing out as a highly strategic and advantageous option, especially when dealing with the nearshore model.

But what would staff augmentation be?

It is a strategy adopted by several companies, which consists of hiring external professionals to work on specific projects. This approach is especially useful when an organization needs to source specialized resources but is unwilling or unable to invest in hiring a full staff.

According to Gartner: “Using staff augmentation to handle peak workloads or to access hard-to-find skills quickly can be cost-effective.” Gartner: Key IT Metrics Data 2023: Application Measures — Framework Definitions. December 2022.

How does staff augmentation work?

In the staff augmentation model, the company can choose to hire a single talent or an entire group of external professionals, who join its internal team. In this way, they work together with the team to develop, test and implement projects. These specialists are usually hired because they have specific skills and experience that the internal team does not have, complementing the organization’s workforce as a whole.

And what is nearshore?

The term refers to the practice of outsourcing services, in which companies, suppliers or professionals located in geographically close countries are hired. In the context of business and technology, this approach is often used to describe the admission of technology resources from organizations in neighboring countries or in a nearby region.

The adoption of the nearshore model is an alternative to the offshore model, which involves outsourcing services to distant countries or in different time zones. Nearshore offers several advantages such as geographic proximity, similar time zone, and cultural and linguistic affinity, which facilitates communication, collaboration, and coordination between teams. For example, for companies based in the United States, nearshoreing can involve contracting with companies in Canada, Mexico or Latin American countries such as Brazil.

According to Gartner: “The need for direct, real-time interaction between the service delivery team and the business is one of the key forces driving the rapid growth of the nearshore market.” How agile, digital and automation are driving the rise of nearshore IT and business services and what to do about it. May 2021.

What are the benefits of staff augmentation with Brazilian nearshore companies?

Brazilian professionals have stood out in the technology and innovation market, and this attracts the attention of North American companies seeking to hire international talent for their projects. By choosing Brazilian nearshore companies for staff augmentation, North American organizations can enjoy the following advantages:

+++ Cultural proximity and favorable time zone: Brazil shares many cultural aspects with the United States, which facilitates communication and collaboration between teams. Additionally, the Brazilian time zone is favorable to US companies, allowing for significant overlap in work schedules and facilitating real-time collaboration.

+++ Technical excellence: The Brazilian nearshore is known for its highly qualified and talented IT professionals. These experts have solid technical skills and are familiar with the latest market trends. This ensures that US companies have access to talent with relevant experience and expertise to drive their technology and innovation projects forward.

+++ Flexibility and scalability: Staff augmentation with Brazilian nearshore companies offers flexibility for North American organizations, allowing them to scale their staff according to project needs. Companies can hire a single professional or an entire team, with the assurance that they will have specialized resources available when needed.

+++ Cost-effective: Hiring Brazilian nearshore organizations can be more cost-effective compared to hiring local professionals in the United States, without compromising the quality of work. This is because the cost of living in Brazil is generally lower than in the United States, for example, which allows US companies to offer more competitive salaries to Brazilians.

+++ Cultural diversity and innovative perspectives: The inclusion of Brazilian professionals brings valuable cultural diversity to the projects. The different perspectives and ideas contribute to more creative and innovative solutions. This cross-cultural collaboration drives innovation and allows US companies to stand out in the global marketplace.

+++ Language proficiency: Brazilian specialists generally have consolidated language skills, including fluency in English. This eliminates communication barriers and ensures effective collaboration with the North American team, reducing the need for additional training or communication difficulties.

The staff augmentation model with Brazilian nearshore companies offers North American organizations a smart strategy to meet their technology and innovation talent needs. With geographic proximity, technical excellence, cost-effectiveness and cultural diversity, companies can boost their competitiveness, expand their global presence and obtain high-level results in their services. If you are looking for a similar solution to your challenges in technology and innovation projects, the nearshore model of staff augmentation can be a great option.

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References: Gartner, *How Agile, Digital and Automation Drive the Increase in Nearshore IT and Business Services and What to Do About It. May 2021.