Though multiple industries faced tremendous challenges due to the COVI-19 pandemic, the IT sector soared in productivity by adapting to different working models, including resource augmentation.

In the pre-covid era, businesses would typically opt for resource augmentation only when there was a shortfall in in-house resources. However, the advancement of home-office tools and technologies that ensured business continuity and enabled smooth functioning of teams remotely has blurred the line between remote and in-house workforces. And this paradigm shift in resourcing, businesses have adapted to resource augmentation models for better productivity and ROI.

In this blog post, we shall discuss in deep what’s resource augmentation, and how the same can help scale up your business significantly.

What is Resource Augmentation?

Staff/Resource Augmentation is an effective business strategy in which businesses engage with skilled resources on an external basis to fill different gaps of immediate nature without having to hire in-house. Simply put, staff Augmentation is a model in which an organization invites additional personnel temporarily while still leveraging its existing resources to meet its business targets.

How Resource Augmentation is Different from IT Project Outsourcing?

Though both Resource Augmentation and IT Project Outsourcing aim at optimizing the time and costs of the project, in typical outsourcing, the business opts into a prearranged and outcome-specific engagement, sharing risks with the outsourcing vendor. However, when it comes to Resource Augmentation, the organization invests in skilled resources while maintaining control over the team and the project.

Resource Augmentation Scenarios

The following are the scenarios in which the businesses shall opt for the resource augmentation model.

• When the project demands a Subject Matter Expert (SME) assistance to meet a specific requirement. E.g., Deploying an experienced cloud architect at the initial phase of the project to device the cloud strategy.
• When the in-house resources are inadequate, and the business requires some additional hands to roll out the project to meet demands and leverage opportunities.
• When the business is unable to hire full-time resources in-house due to a shoestring budget.
• When the business wanted to build a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) to test the market before investing in in-house resources to build the full-fledged product.
• When the resources are more cost-effective offshore than the operating country.

How Resource Augmentation Can Help Scale Up Your Business?

The benefits of resource augmentation are numerous. The following are some of the ways in which resource augmentation can help scale up your business and fuel growth.

1. Fluid Process

Unlike the in-house hiring process that’s is long, cumbersome, and monotonous, the resource augmentation process is relatively flexible. As there is no time limit on how long you may hire someone, businesses can hire, deploy and replace as required. It also avoids additional recruitment costs that are associated with permanent employment.

2. Less Legal Hassles

Hiring resources in-house obligates organizations to fulfil specific legal requirements such as payroll, taxes, and insurance. However, with the resource augmentation model, the legal obligations and responsibilities fall on the staffing vendor. This reduces paperwork and other hassles so that the organization shall entirely focus on the execution of the project.

3. Access To Top Talents

Finding the fitting candidate with specific skill sets can prove resource and time-consuming, especially for the resource-scarce small and medium businesses. But, with resource augmentation, these organizations shall have access to a global pool of talented resources via their staff augmentation partner to fulfil their requirements.

4. Fresh Perspectives

The augmented resources with vast experiences bring a fresh pair of eyes with outsider’s perspectives that help improve various factors of the project, typically overlooked by the in-house permanent employees engrossed in their work.

As a preferred resource augmentation partner, TekIntelligence has helped businesses resolve complex IT talent issues by bridging the software development demand-supply gap through an efficient hiring process and quick onboarding.