WHITE PAPER: Offshore Software Development
Aspire Systems, Inc.
www.aspiresys.com Page 5 of 17
Reputed global companies such as Intel, American Express, Aetna, U.S. Healthcare, Compaq,
General Motors, Home Depot, IBM, Microsoft, Motorola, Shell, Sprint, 3M and others have set up
their own offshore software development centers or entered into strategic alliances with offshore
software companies.
3. DIFFERENT MODELS OF OFFSHORE DEVELOPMENT
Over the years, depending on the specifications of the project and the scale, different models of
working with an offshore team have emerged. A few of them are represented below:
3.1 Onsite/Offshore
Model
In this model, depending upon the specific set of services involved and scale of the project, the
vendor firm will put in place a combination of onsite and offshore technical resources that will
become a virtual extension of the customer's team. On an average, 70% of the total effort is
done offshore and 30% at the customer's site. Typically, an onsite coordinator or a small team
from the vendor firm will be located at the customer's site to synchronize between the offshore
team and the customer.
3.2 Pure
Offshore
Model
Under this model, the entire project is carried out offshore. The vendor company will not have
any onsite presence. The customer interacts directly with the offshore team.
