Developing new products to extend your organization’s leadership position is not an easy task. That’s especially true when it comes to new digital initiatives, a critical revenue driver for today’s global businesses. Mature organizations don’t typically have the infrastructure, process or culture to rapidly develop and launch new products. The idea of “moving fast” just isn’t in the DNA of larger, more established businesses.
We found that organizations which rely on agile, nimble partners have much higher rates of success advancing their digital revenue efforts. Take General Motors (GM), for example. When the automotive giant decided to jump into the car sharing space during the early stages of the sharing economy, it didn’t reinvent the wheel. Instead, GM partnered with RelayRides, a startup known for tracking vehicles over mobile devices. We took a similar approach when we adopted Continuous Integration (CI) practices to refine one customer’s development processes, shorten the product’s release cycle and enhance the product’s quality.
One of the top ways to drive digital revenue is to transform a product or service to complement traditional, nonconnected offerings – which is exactly what GM did through the RelayRides partnership. Growing the digital piece of the revenue pie is a key focus of many of the businesses we’re engaged with today. In fact, Gartner’s 2019 CEO survey showed that CEOs expect digital to account for 46% of the value customers see in their products.
What if you’re organization doesn’t have the internal structure, experience or possess that “build it fast and often” mentality? Finding the right product design and development partner can help accelerate your new product cycle. Here’s why:
1. Improved Focus on the Core Business:
No matter the industry, your core competency is likely not directed at product development. Outsourcing to an experienced partner allows companies to direct their focus, talent and funds on their core business. By allowing outsourced developers to manage this process fully, internal teams can concentrate on their current roles and responsibilities.
2. Expanded Engineering Capabilities with Expert Talent Pools:
The implementation of new technologies and development of the most innovative products require a variety of developer skillsets and fields of expertise. Outsourcing gives you access to a pool of multidisciplinary, experienced developers who know the latest technologies and have a successful track record on delivery.
3. Access to Fresh Perspectives and Ideas:
Outsourced development not only contributes additional skills, but also new points of view. These teams can offer fresh, unbiased opinions that help drive innovation and creative solutions. They also bring an experienced outside-in view that can be invaluable while identifying what makes your product unique.
4. Reduced Time to Market:
As the window of product viability gets shorter and shorter, reducing the time it takes to bring products to market is critical to success. External development teams have a shorter learning curve and greater resources that help reduce the timeline. This enables you to respond to changing market demands faster and better capitalize on evolving trends.
5. New Ways to Manage Project Timeline and Costs:
Outsourcing partners can help keep product development costs and timing in line with budgeted goals. No need to bring in additional team members. Development teams can be staffed quickly and cost-effectively with external expertise. They are also used to working under tight timelines and deadlines.
Lastly, your product development partners should be continually adding new skills, capabilities and offerings to help you meet your evolving business goals. Orion now has 4,500 highly skilled employees across 10 major delivery locations. This powerful combination positions us to deliver complete, end-end digital transformations for our growing base of global clients.
