Software Outsourcing – Customer’s Pros

For Dr. Jay Seller convenience and mutual confidence are key factors in maintaining a successful long-term collaboration with Bianor.

Software technology in helping to theater

“We are a global society, and nothing is more international than web-based applications and programming,” said Dr. Jay Seller when describing a software outsourcing project that he is coordinating for Colorado State Thespians. The nonprofit educational theatre organization, located in Denver, Colorado, is on a mission to promote and strengthen theatre arts in education through theatrical experiences. “I have been with the company for 20+ years volunteering my time to support their mission and the importance of arts education in America,” said Dr. Seller.

Jay Seller

Offshore outsourcing

Dr. Seller, who has an undergraduate degree in Business Administration, a Masters in Education, and a Doctorate in Organizational Leadership, has no technical background. But obviously, the absence of competence in programming has not been an obstacle for him in spearheading a 10-year successful and continuously evolving software outsourcing project with an overseas vendor. “I was originally working with Bianor in New York when they referred my project to the Bulgarian office,” remembered Dr. Seller. “At first, I worried about my lack of knowledge and weakness of not being proficient in a second language, but quickly those fears were relieved,” he added.

Essentials for an IT project success

Colorado Thespians Logo

Bianor has been working with Colorado Thespians to develop and enhance an online registration platform. “The system became popular in the USA, and as a result, several other states asked for a copy to use in their state,” said Dr. Seller. “We then branched out into the programming area, and began utilizing the strength of Bianor in Bulgaria,” he added. According to him, friendly user experience and easy customization were critical to the project success, especially when working with non-technical individuals. “Bianor proved to be quick in addressing needs and fixing the unique application for each state requested use,” said Dr. Seller. “In the beginning, I would have to meet on a Skype call to explain expansion ideas. But that has not been the case in years, as we all seem to know exactly what the intent of the conversation is,” shared Dr. Seller.

Assets of a long-term partnership

Dr. Seller admitted that he keeps on working with Bianor because of the convenience and the already established confidence with the team. “Any programming issues or site issues are relatively minor. The team is so on top of things, reminding me of deadlines, changes, etc.,” shared Dr. Seller. Even the time difference seems to be no issue for Dr. Seller as he has always received professional and timely assistance, even over weekends. The only negative aspect of this overseas collaboration is that he has never had the chance to meet the engineers face to face. “I don’t have the availability to meet with the team in person and take them out for lunch or a drink to thank them for their work,” Dr. Seller explained.

Choosing the right software outsourcing partner

Dr. Seller said that if someone had asked him whether to outsource a software development project or run it in-house, he would advise outsourcing. “I would encourage them to take the leap of faith and give it a try,” said Dr. Seller. According to him, the main decisive elements in outsourcing are the price and the convenience. Of course, they would not mean much without reliability. Selecting the trusted outsourcing partner is the key to a beneficial collaboration. One should always do serious research and keep in mind the main selection criteria. For Dr. Seller, these are: 1) an excellent track record of the company and 2) a deep knowledge base. According to him, the main questions that one should ask are, “Will they get the job done, in a timely fashion, and will I be happy with the outcome?” For Dr. Seller and Colorado State Thespians, the answers to both questions are a resounding yes. Bianor is and continues to be their ideal software development outsourcing partner.

Photos:
1/ Dr. Jay Seller, Colorado State Thespians