Jest w Polsce nowym Hotspot IT?

India has long dominated other countries as the top destination for outsourcing Information Technology (IT), but with the rise in attrition rates and other fall outs, is there a better alternative? Some companies seem to think so and they are looking to Poland.

There are three main advantages to choosing Poland for outsourcing IT projects:

1. A more favorable time zone: there is a mere 6 hour difference between Poland and New York, compared to around 11 hours difference between New Delhi and New York.

2. Similar work ethics: the Poles are problem solvers and independent thinkers. They tend to follow the US work style where if a problem crops up, the team will try to solve it instead of stalling as they await orders from management.

3. Enforced legal regulations: India is notorious for IP theft and carries a high risk, but Poland has similar IP protection laws to the US, that are actually enforced.

With these attractive benefits, Poland has lured many companies to invest in its service hubs. The cities of Wroclaw and Gdansk house software giants from India like Infosys, Wipro and Tata Consulting Services. IBM is also utilizing what Poland has to offer along, with large banks like Citigroup and Bank of New York Mellon. With Poland’s business sector booming, there is a high chance that it will surpass the automobile industry, which has long been the leading source for private sector jobs.

There is unfortunately one drawback to outsourcing in Poland: a higher cost. During the global economic crisis, Poland was one of the few countries to remain stable. Salaries in Poland are higher than salaries in countries like India for entering developers and the cost of renting space is larger as well - but there is always a solution.

Secondary and tertiary cities, away from the major cities, offer lower rents and are generally less expensive to live in, which allows companies to tweak the salary range. Lodz, Proznan, Wroclaw, and Krakow are just a few choices that can help reduce costs.

And when cost is an issue, it becomes important to consider these advantages that Poland offers:

1. A greater flexibility in terms of the number of cities and the level of skilled workers.

2. A decreased time to bring products to market because of the independent Polish work ethic and the high education of many Poles which makes them apt problem solvers.

3. A chance to enter the attractive Eastern European market with solutions.

Skilled software developers are hard to find in most European countries and many developers who work in the United States or Western Europe tend to prefer managerial positions or venture into careers as consultants as they gain experience. This creates a shortage of developers, but Poland has many developers with these qualifications.

Poland is the best choice to outsource to for smaller projects that require a lot of innovation and it has a great talent pool for smaller, less seasoned companies to choose from to speed up the development process, saving both time and money. Hence, for both large and small companies, nearshoring development projects to Poland is a great choice when considering both costs and quality talent.

Works Cited

1. Horsten, Peter. "The surprising Polish IT Outsourcing potential." PetersOpinion.com. N.p., 8 4 2013. Web. 15 Jan 2014.

2. Ewing, Jack. "Midsize Cities in Poland Develop as Service Hubs for Outsourcing Industry." Business. The New York Times, 22 12 2013. Web. 15 Jan 2014.

3. "The World Clock." . timeanddate.com, n.d. Web. 15 Jan 2014.