Technology is no longer limited to software companies and has now become a mainstay of all businesses.
From helping with day-to-day operations to automating manual repetitive tasks, technology has become a vital ingredient in the success of every business undertaking, no matter its size.

With businesses relying on technology more than ever, entrusting remote technology partners with enterprise application development needs isn’t a new practice.
Delegating business technology needs to a remote expert is expected to stick around as long as technology exists.

Not Every Match is Made in Heaven

There are many fish in the pond, so finding a technology partner is relatively easy.
But finding a truly reliable partner can be a handful.

If your current tech partner leaves something to be desired and you find yourself considering switching vendors, here are some factors to keep in mind:

6 Factors to Consider Before Switching Your Technology Partner

1. Transparency

Imagine entrusting the development of your mission-critical enterprise application to a remote technology partner with expectations of a reasonable turnaround time and a smooth collaboration experience, only to be met with patchy updates, lack of visibility, or worse, complete radio silence from the other end.

Being in the dark about your own project can be a nightmare and is certain to sour your experience.

To avoid this, it’s important to ensure from the beginning that you have full visibility.
Ensure periodic communication with your tech partner.

Transparency also means being aware of who is working on your project, in what capacity, and being informed in case of changes to the team.

Make sure to account for these factors while embarking on a new partnership.

2. Seamless Communication

Regularity of Communication

• Regular communication is another critical KPI for the success of the relationship with a remote partner.
• Especially in a remote setting, you are entitled to regular updates, reviews, and meetings.

Ensure that both parties have the necessary tools and infrastructure to facilitate regular communication.

Language and Comprehension

• Language and ease of communication matter.
• Evaluate a partner not only by their technical expertise but also by how easily you can communicate with them.
• A partner who is technically brilliant but struggles to comprehend your requirements and convey their progress is not ideal.

Your partner should possess enough communication skills to easily comprehend your business needs and not falter during regular communication.

3. Awareness of Your Business Intent

A technology partner worth their salt should be able to look at the bigger picture and understand your business intent.

Business intent includes understanding the reason behind building your applications, how it will impact your business and customers, and how it will help achieve your business goals.

If you find a potential partner with these attributes, you’ve found a great match.

4. Honoring Timelines

Time is of essence, especially in mission critical enterprise level projects. One needs to ensure that the team is equally committed to meeting the agreed deadline.

When hunting for a change in partners, look for someone who adheres to planned timelines and who keeps you in the loop when a delay is expected.

The key is how do you gauge this attribute before starting to work. Here are a couple of pointers:

• Work ethics flows top-down. As you engage with potential partners, pay attention to how you are being engaged.

• Are the key stakeholders carrying the language of “ownership”? Do they have references those can vouch for this key attribute?

• How does the ownership percolate within the proposed team structure? Are there periodic check points to fine tune delivery and areas of improvement? We have seen that smaller teams with smaller sub-owners drive far better ROI than larger teams (10+)!

5. Cultural Match

There are bound to be cultural differences when one works across thousands of miles. What’s important is to have clear alignment with negotiables and non-negotiables!

Non-negotiables could be having capable team members who:

• Can work independently
• Carry ownership so that one can rely on them
• Are eager to learn and contribute!

Collaborate with someone who aligns with your values and have matching priorities with yours.

Lookout for your potential partner’s work style, try to gauge their work culture and make an informed decision before signing on the dotted line.

6. Find Value Enhancers

Anybody can do what you have “told” them to do. But a rare few will “think” and “apply” themselves to add value! Guess when switching partners, this could be a crucial aspect!

The ideal partner will strive to add value and go above and beyond the mere basic expectations.

When embarking on a new engagement, the last thing you need is a yes sir attitude from the partner- you don’t simply need a yes man, who will blindly agree with what you say, if they simply agree with what you say/need, without pitching in with their expert opinion/suggestions to build something better, they are not really adding value to the relationship.

Find value enhancers!