Truths
WARNING: The following information is not pleasant (the truth rarely is) and is based on facts that I have collected over the past 10 years of consulting through and with many of the major Consulting and Staffing firms that service the Dallas / FortWorth area. This is not to say there are not good firms in the DFW area, but that you will spend as much time looking for good firms as you would just finding good Developers. My recommendation is to save your money and work to find these skilled OnShore Developers.
Truths about Consulting firms & Recruiter.
Do NOT be fooled by Consulting / Staffing firms or Recruiters / Head-Hunters, that sound like they are concerned about you and your business. Remember....
Most are looking to supply the cheapest coders and charge you the highest price.
Need proof, ask a couple of questions...
Q: Do you have a fixed commission charge, and does the coder know what the bill rate is?
A: We charge only 30,40 or 50% over the bill rate, and please do not mention it to the coder.
Truth: Depending on their math the coder usually makes less than 50% of the billed rate.
Truth: Unless they charge a flat fee they are ripping off the coder and most likely you.
Q: How long has this person been working for you.
Truth: The recruiter & coder may have never met, or not met until that week
Truth: The coder is usually not employed by the recruiter when they are presenting them to you
Q: Did you place them at any previous jobs?
Truth: Usually not, but if so you should ask for the name of themanager and get a reference on their performance.
They want these coders to stay around and bill you as long as possible regardless of the amount of work that you have.
Need proof.....
Q: State that your project is only 1-2 months long, but you may have another project after a month of reviewing how this project goes but you want the same coders to come back if it is successful. Then ask the recruiter how this would work with them.
A: They will advise you that you should keep the coders for 3-4 months because the schedule may slip and you would not want to loose these valuable developers.
Truth: The coders will sign a 6mo - 2yr agreement with the recruiter not to work for your company unless through that recruiter. After the first project the recruiter has no plans of paying the coders to sit on the bench so they will go to another firm. When you want them back, the recruiter will say they have them on another project, when actually the coder no longer works for that recruiter.
They may even try to lock you into their proprietary software or change your companies hardware platforms without a valid business reason.
Need proof...... One word.....
Microsoft
..... need I say more?
Truths about Off-Shore Development
Before you reply to an email for cheap off-shore development in (foreign country name here) ......
..You may want to read what CIO magazine had to say about the TRUE costs of off-shore development.."The truth is, no one saves 80 % by shipping IT work to...any other country." (CIO 09/03)
...or this article by a leading IT Manager e-zine had this to say about the cost of off-shore development. "The corporate rush to outsource American IT to India has created an $8 billion business there. Now a new study shows that companies are not...saving money by outsourcing." (IT MgrJournal Nov03)
By the way you should also do a little reading of current US Government regulations.
Did you know......
The US government requires that you verify that each worker an off-shore firm employs or uses are not a terrorist.
(Wonder how you do that and how much it costs?)
The US government fines you if they find the name of a known terrorist working at an off-shore firm regardless of if they are on your project or not.
(I wonder if that means their cleaning staff as well??)
The US government can close down your business and freeze all your assets, if you are suspected of supporting terrorist. This may include your personal assets.
(I wonder if the US government checks if it is really the terrorist or just another John Smith before closing your company??)
The US government publishes companies name as a suspected supporter of terrorism, bring sanctions against your company, and possibly ruin your good name.
(I wonder if the government has ever made a mistake, and if they will fix what they have done to your company or even apologize?)