Offshore team or in-house staff: which column each role belongs in
Hire in-house for roles that are permanent and shape your product. Use a dedicated team in India for capacity you need within weeks, or for work that may not last. Most companies end up with both, so the useful exercise is to place each role in a column. The table below helps you do that.
Last reviewed:
The two options side by side
- Time to a working engineer
- Dedicated team in IndiaAgreed at the start of the engagement for a Brihat specialist
- In-house hiringIn Brihat's estimate, 3 to 6 months including notice periods
- Who carries a departure
- Dedicated team in IndiaThe supplier replaces the person, with a handover overlap, at its own cost
- In-house hiringYou, including a fresh search and the knowledge that left
- Choosing people
- Dedicated team in IndiaYou interview and approve every engineer
- In-house hiringYou hire directly
- Scaling down
- Dedicated team in IndiaBy notice: 30 days for a pod or specialist, a quarter for a delivery centre
- In-house hiringBy redundancy or attrition
- Domain context
- Dedicated team in IndiaBuilds up while the team stays stable
- In-house hiringBuilds up and stays
- Cost shape
- Dedicated team in IndiaOne monthly fee; equipment and statutory work sit with the supplier
- In-house hiringPay, benefits, recruiter fees, laptops and management time
- Tools and process
- Dedicated team in IndiaWorks in your repository, CI and ticketing
- In-house hiringYour own
- Governance fit
- Dedicated team in IndiaBrihat's own engineers, engaged under a contract with you
- In-house hiringYour employees
| Criterion | Dedicated team in India | In-house hiring |
|---|---|---|
| Time to a working engineer | Agreed at the start of the engagement for a Brihat specialist | In Brihat's estimate, 3 to 6 months including notice periods |
| Who carries a departure | The supplier replaces the person, with a handover overlap, at its own cost | You, including a fresh search and the knowledge that left |
| Choosing people | You interview and approve every engineer | You hire directly |
| Scaling down | By notice: 30 days for a pod or specialist, a quarter for a delivery centre | By redundancy or attrition |
| Domain context | Builds up while the team stays stable | Builds up and stays |
| Cost shape | One monthly fee; equipment and statutory work sit with the supplier | Pay, benefits, recruiter fees, laptops and management time |
| Tools and process | Works in your repository, CI and ticketing | Your own |
| Governance fit | Brihat's own engineers, engaged under a contract with you | Your employees |
Compare the full cost, not the day rate
A day rate ignores recruiter fees, laptops, benefits, the manager's hours and every month a vacancy stays open. Work out the cost of one productive engineer-month in each column.
- In-house: salary, benefits, recruiter fees, laptop and licences, the manager's time, and the months before the person is productive.
- Dedicated team: the monthly fee for the team, plus your own time for reviews and planning.
Where each fits
Choose a dedicated team when:
- you need engineers working within weeks
- the workload is genuine but might shrink
- recruiting, spare capacity and replacement should sit with a supplier
- you want to add one skill before committing to headcount
Choose in-house hiring when:
- the role is permanent and steers the product
- the know-how must stay inside the company
- your governance allows only employees
- your hiring is already quick and reliable
Keeping the work visible
Ask for four things whichever option you pick: work in your repository, your own board, your own CI, and direct access to each engineer. Brihat's terms require a daily window in which its engineers and yours are both at work, and the delivery lead is accountable for the team's output. The length of that window is agreed in the contract. Progress then shows in your tools, not in a supplier's slide.
A team that becomes yours
Under build-operate-transfer, the opening contract states when the team transfers, at what price and by what method. Brihat recruits against your hiring bar, you approve each offer, and employment moves to you at the agreed point. Ask any supplier offering a transfer to put those same three items in writing. See the build-operate-transfer service.
Questions buyers ask
Cost is one input. The monthly fee buys a stable team that learns your business, with the supplier holding the risk of people leaving. The fully loaded comparison above shows the real difference.
Yes, through build-operate-transfer, or through a conversion arrangement on augmentation: Brihat charges no conversion fee after six months and a prorated fee before.
For the difference between a pod and single specialists, read dedicated team vs staff augmentation.
Tell us what you want to build.
The first call is 45 minutes with an architect, usually the founder. It is free, and we will sign an NDA first if you ask.