Is Outsourcing to Poland Still Relevant?

The scales in software development outsourcing are always shifting, and so are the factors that make Poland a competitive outsourcing destination. 

While Polish developers have built a name for themselves and collected many accolades in IT outsourcing over the years, we can’t help but wonder if this still holds true in the current day. 

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If legendary IT outsourcing hubs like India are losing their advantage, do Polish developers still qualify for the best and most challenging projects in 2021?

Yes, and here’s why

• Poland scored an outstanding 70.56 points in the US Chamber of Commerce IP Index 2020, which makes it the safest country among popular outsourcing destinations.
• According to Hackerrank, Poland ranks third when it comes to developers’ success at popular programming contests — and 5th in TopCoder Country Ranking stats. 
• It’s estimated that Poland has the biggest FinTech market in the CEE sector with a value of approximately €856 million. For Fintech companies, it’s critical to stay within the EU market compliant with the EU’s regulations — and saving on labor costs.
• Poland takes the 16th position out of 100 countries in the English Proficiency Index.
• According to PFR Group, more than 70 thousand Poles study Computer Science annually.
• Poland has an ideal geographical location. A flight from Krakow to Vienna will only take an hour, less than two hours from Zurich, Berlin, Paris, and Brussels, and 2 hours and a half from London.

And that’s not all! Read this insightful update on the current state of the Polish outsourcing landscape to gain better insight and make informed decisions.

Who is Poland’s competition in IT outsourcing? [Top 5]

Before we dive deeper into the intricacies of software development in Poland, it’s crucial that you get acquainted with the other four best countries to outsource software development in 2021:

India

India has dominated the outsourcing landscape for decades. Although gradually losing its outsourcing charm, it’s still the second-largest country with a population that speaks English, making it easy for UK, US, Canada, and Australian companies to hire Indian developers. 

Furthermore, India ranks first among countries with solid IT skills in Asia and produces about 200 000 IT graduates each year. 

And as a cherry on top, Indian developers are among the most affordable in the world. According to Payscale, an average software developer earns approximately $6 714 per year, compared to an average of $72 166 in the US.

Ukraine

Ukraine has become the hotspot for offshore software development in Eastern Europe. The country boasts of over 200 000 developers, 4000+ tech companies, 110+ R&D centers, and 1000+ tech events each year.

This giant Eastern European country takes the 11th position among the top offshore software development countries and happens to be the one of the top countries for outsourcing software development for years on end. 

Ukrainians have embraced the love for technology, and most IT professionals continue to self-educate in order to keep up with the competitive employment landscape.

Hungary

Hungary has a thriving IT sector that contributes 10% towards the nation’s GDP. Most global IT corporations — IBM and Microsoft, have been outsourcing software development in Hungary for decades.

The country produces about 6000 IT graduates each year, and Java, Python, JavaScript, and SQL are the most dominant programming languages. Thus, before you build a software development team in Poland, you might want to dig deeper on Hungary’s often underestimated outsourcing environment.

Egypt

Egypt is relatively new on the outsourcing landscape, but perhaps that’s the very reason why you should consider it. While India and China, not forgetting Eastern Europe, might have several accolades, the development cost levels have already been adjusted to Western standards. 

Egyptian developers’ wages, on the other hand, are much lower, post the country’s currency devaluation in late 2016.

Speaking of accolades, although Egypt is relatively new, it still has several notable achievements under its belt. Egypt is home to Microsoft’s only two global Innovation Centers for research and development. 

Besides, large IT corporations like Dell, Vodafone, and Microsoft are already outsourcing to Egypt. The African country is ranked 23rd in the ITUs Global Cybersecurity Index. 

Poland

Poland IT industry presents very few software outsourcing challenges. Talk about providing the best value for money, world-class software development services, a vibrant developer community without cultural difference issues, and an advantageous geographical location in proximity to many other EU countries—Poland has it all. 

Polish developers also stand out globally for their excellent price-quality ratio compared to many other outsourcing destinations. The following is a detailed look into Poland’s IT environment. 

The Polish IT ecosystem at a glance 

Each year Poland registers more than 70 000 computer science students and has an average of 700 outsourcing companies in the IT sector. The country is emerging as a global powerhouse for software development and a wide range of other IT projects. 

Some of the famous Polish startup software companies include Nightly, Docplanner and Brainly. The latter is one of the fastest-growing ed-tech startups globally, serving 150 million users in 35 markets. 

You can rest assured finding dedicated software development teams for hire in Poland is no hassle. However, you still need a systematic approach to get the best professionals for your particular project. Below is a list of primary services offered by Polish IT companies:

• Web development
  Web developers create a great variety of tools and solutions we use every day. By outsourcing web development you can easily build simple websites on ready-made platforms like WordPress or complex custom solutions using modern practices such as DevOps.
• Mobile development 
  There almost 9 million mobile apps in the world, and this number keeps growing. So how to stand out in a crowd? Outsource mobile development to Krakow, Warsaw, or Poznan and you and will find hundreds of experienced app developers that will help you build a truly competitive application.
• Digital design 
  This refers to a large spectrum of design services that will help you to build aesthetically appealing apps, translate your business values into intuitive interfaces and make your products memorable and easy to use. There are many digital design services in Poland that can help you to accomplish these tasks.
• Full-stack development
  Full-stack development companies do not focus on narrow specializations but offer a wide range of services from mobile and web application development to scaling strategies that help achieve the company’s long-term vision. 

Before engaging any Polish IT company, you must take a closer look at the KPIs. These will help you skim through hundreds of Polish programmers to find the best fit. Identify remote software development teams in Poland with solid portfolios of relevant software development projects. 

Also, consider the size of the outsourcing company to ensure they can acquire critical resources for the project. 

Where to find the top IT talent in Poland

Tech giants like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have established big R&D centers in Poland. Some of the notable IT hubs contributing towards the growth of the Poland tech landscape include:

• Warsaw- R&D facilities for Samsung and Microsoft 
• Krakow- R&D facilities for CISCO and UBS
• Wroclaw- R&D facilities for Nokia and IBM
• Katowice- R&D facilities for Hyland and Kroll
• Cracow- R&D facilities for Google and Fujitsu
• Poznan- R&D facilities for Roche and Capgemini

6 reasons why polish software developers are different

There is a lot of buzz around the IT industry in Poland. But, what is really driving global giants like Microsoft to outsource software development to Poland? Below are some of the key advantages that come with outsourcing development to Poland:

• A stable political and economic environment 

Ever since the 90s, the Polish economy has been growing at a steady rate. In fact, Poland’s GDP growth was the biggest among OECD and European countries until late 2015. 

While 2020 was a challenging year for all countries, the Polish economy proved to be quite resilient. The GDP only shrunk by around 3,6%, which makes it the 4th lowest decrease in Europe.

Furthermore, despite the challenging year, Poland maintained its 15th position in “Digital Nation,” which makes it the second-highest-ranking country in Europe.

• World-class tech talent

In Poland, more than 247 000 IT students graduate every year. To date, Polish IT specialists account for 20% of Europe’s IT professionals. The combination of fresh and ambitious college students and experienced technocrats makes the country a perfect hub for innovative projects. 

Poland is a safe bet for new companies looking for the best place to outsource their projects. You’ll hardly find bad apples in its huge pool of world-class talent.

•  Cultural and work ethics similarities

Poland’s previous economic crises forced most Polish citizens to move to the US, UK, and Canada in search of better opportunities. Today, many of the families that migrated have established themselves back in Poland, thus dissolving the cultural gap between Poles and Western Europe and North America. 

This led to the speaking of five major languages in Poland, including English and German. All in all, this greatly contributed to the nation’s diverse and inclusive cultural practices in line with the best practices for doing business internationally. When Polish companies work with foreign firms, the onboarding process is seamless.

A competitive environment that nurtures a culture of innovation, self-learning, and problem-solving is now the new normal in Poland. When outsourcing software development to Poland, most Polish companies take a partnership approach, ensuring that your projects are completed with satisfaction. 

The goal is to nature establish a long-lasting relationship instead of treating the collaboration like a financial transaction. 

• Strategic geographical location

While the Polish have worked hard to make Poland a better country, we can’t deny their silver spoon—an advantageous and strategic location. The country is located at the heart of Europe’s economic activities, near major European financial centers, such as London, Frankfurt, and Paris. 

This makes it ideal for companies that want to outsource development in a location where they can easily check in for team building once in a while. 

It’s also worth mentioning that Poland’s EU membership significantly contributes to the country’s soaring success as a development outsourcing destination. 

The government is serious about IT protection, and General Data Protection Regulation(GDPR) standards are closely upheld in every Polish company.

• High-quality tech infrastructure

Poland is one of the few countries in Eastern Europe that is categorized as a developed country. Thus, when outsourcing app development to Poland, you can rest assured knowing your project will be handled in a highly advanced environment with cutting-edge IT infrastructure. 

Poland has one of the best mobile internet, and is one of the cheapest in the world. In fact, if we rewind to 2018, Poland took first place in the European Broadband Awards. 

• An ideal time zone

While Poland might not have the best time difference with the US, it has the ideal time zone for most European countries. France, Germany, and Poland share the same time zone, and there’s only one hour difference between the Polish and the British.

Besides, the 6-hour gap between Poland and the US is much better than the 10-hour and 12-hour differences India and China have with the United States.

To adjust to the US time gap, most Polish companies start work midday, giving their employees more time to rest, at the same time providing a seamless collaboration with their clients.

To outsource to Poland or Ukraine — That is the question

IT outsourcing to Poland comes with many perks. However, before making the big decision, it also makes sense to evaluate other viable options, and Ukraine is one of Poland’s most notable competitors. 

Considering both Poland and Ukraine are global powerhouses for IT software development projects, the best way to determine the winner is to compare the numbers. After all, the numbers don’t lie.

Here are statistical comparisons to help business leaders select the best Eastern Europe software development outsourcing destination: 

• Hiring a developer in Ukraine costs on average $15-45 per hour. However, if you hire developers in Poland the average cost would be $40-$56 per hour. The exact rates will differ according to the service provider and developer experience. Generally, outsourcing to Ukraine is much more affordable.
• There are more than 210 000 tech specialists in Ukraine and over 295 000 in Poland. 

However, Ukraine is producing more IT newcomers compared to Poland. In 2017 alone, there were more than 27000 newcomers in Ukraine compared to 15000 in Poland. Currently, Ukraine is the second export service industry and is predicted to earn $8.4 billion by 2025. 

• Ukraine has a 1.2 billion dollar industry against a $9.4 billion Polish industry, with the former having more mid to large size IT services firms. Ukrainian developers serve mainly the US market, while Poland has a grip on Western Europe.
• Overall, employing Ukrainian developers costs 30% less compared to Polish developers — and this comes without compromising the quality of the code.

In closing, both Ukraine and Poland are listed among the best countries to outsource software development for good reasons. 

To overcome key software outsourcing challenges such as time differences, companies in Western Europe may consider Poland. In contrast, those in the US and Canadian markets may consider outsourcing to Ukraine.

Over to you

Besides the location, there is a lot to consider when choosing an IT outsourcing destination. While you certainly won’t go wrong with software development outsourcing to Poland or Ukraine, scrutinizing your options is still non-negotiable. 

Evaluate accomplished projects, company size, and the IT infrastructure each company has, amongst other factors. 

To dodge the common pitfalls in the process, most companies leverage an experienced IT outsourcing partner. 

At Relevant Software, we have helped 200+ companies progress with tech solutions, thanks to our extensive experience in implementing the most challenging outsourcing tasks over the years. Here are some of our notable case studies. 

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