Staff augmentation is an essential resource for businesses of all sizes and industries. It involves the process of supplementing staff members with skilled professionals from outside of your organization to fill specialized positions or provide additional staff when needed. This can help to reduce costs, increase efficiency, and provide access to specialized skills that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to find within your own staff.
Organizations looking for staff augmentation can choose between two distinct models: team augmentation and outstaffing.
Team augmentation involves only certain staff members being added to an existing team that is already in place while outstaffing allows a company to completely outsource their staff needs by hiring third-party staff on an as-needed basis.
In addition to providing a cost-effective staffing solution, staff augmentation also has the potential to improve the overall quality of work by allowing organizations to tap into talent pools from around the world who may have more experience and better qualifications than are available locally.
The staff augmentation industry is expected to grow exponentially over the next decade due largely in part to advances in technology such as cloud computing and remote working capabilities making it easier than ever before for companies to connect with skilled professionals anywhere on the planet. A recent report found that global staff augmentation was worth over $731 billion in 2020 alone, a number that’s expected to reach nearly $935 billion by 2026.
When it comes to hiring people, it’s a long and arduous process that can cost a lot of time and money. This is where staff augmentation would come in - a way to fill the talent gap faster and more efficiently.
Without any delay, let’s take a look at what staff augmentation is and how it can work for your business.
Staff Augmentation is a type of personnel-related service that helps businesses staff up with highly trained and qualified professionals to meet specific project or department needs. It's a great way to bring in external expertise while avoiding the challenges of managing in-house staff.
With staff augmentation, businesses can outsource their staff requirements to a third-party vendor that can supply staff that possesses the technical and professional skills needed for the specific task at hand. This allows companies to quickly staff up without having to go through the hassle of interviewing, hiring, and training employees. The staff provided by staff augmentation services are usually specialized professionals who are well-versed in the particular skills required for the job.
The staff provided through staff augmentation services can also be used on short-term contracts or as part of an extended team. In short-term staff augmentation scenarios, businesses can increase staffing levels for specific projects such as software development or data analysis—without having to hire permanent staff. With team augmentation (outstaffing), businesses can extend their existing teams with specialized resources from third-party vendors. This allows them to benefit from access to additional resources without having to worry about increasing their own staffing levels or salary costs.
Overall, staff augmentation is an effective way for businesses to fill gaps in personnel and reduce overhead costs associated with hiring new employees. It's an especially popular option for companies that need skilled personnel on a temporary or project basis without wanting the commitment of long-term hiring.
The key difference between staff augmentation and outsourcing is the scope of the services provided. Staff augmentation is designed to provide staff with specialized skills needed on a temporary or project basis. Outsourcing, on the other hand, involves contracting out an entire function or department to another company.
Staff augmentation solutions are typically used by companies when they need to quickly staff up for a project or task that requires specific technical expertise.
This can include software development, data analysis, customer service, or any other role that requires qualified employees with specific skill sets. In contrast to outsourcing, staff augmentation does not involve transferring ownership of the function or team in question—it merely adds personnel to it.
Outsourcing involves transferring control over an entire function or department to an external provider who then handles all operations and staff management on behalf of the business. This solution is often used by businesses that want to reduce overhead costs associated with running certain departments such as HR, finance, marketing, etc., without having to relinquish control over them entirely.
In summary, staff augmentation and outsourcing are two different approaches that businesses use to staff up and manage personnel requirements more efficiently. While staff augmentation focuses solely on providing staff with specific skillsets on a temporary basis, outsourcing transfers control over entire functions and departments to external providers.
Staff augmentation is a great way for businesses to staff up quickly and efficiently without having to invest in long-term staff or incur high overhead costs. It's an ideal solution for companies who need staff with specialized skillsets on a short-term or project basis, but don't want the commitment of hiring full-time staff.
In addition to providing access to skilled personnel, staff augmentation also helps businesses save time and money. By outsourcing staff requirements to third-party vendors, businesses can quickly staff up without having to go through the process of interviewing and onboarding employees. This allows them to benefit from additional expertise without having to cover costs associated with permanent staff.
Staff augmentation services are often more cost-effective than hiring permanent staff. This is because staff augmentation services typically provide staff on demand, which eliminates the need for businesses to cover long-term salaries or retainers. This approach also eliminates the need for businesses to pay additional benefits or pay into payroll tax systems when they hire employees directly.
Overall, staff augmentation provides companies with access to skilled personnel on a temporary basis while eliminating the overhead cost associated with hiring employees directly. It's an ideal solution not only for staffing up quickly but also for keeping operational costs low and ensuring that teams have access to experts in their field on an as-needed basis.
NineTwoThree Studio is an agency offering staff augmentation solutions to funded startups and tech brands. We boast:
All available to take your product from concept to scale. Our past projects were built by people we still employ today. In fact, we retained 100% of our team in 2022.
Our last 27 Fixed Price projects were delivered on time and were within 7% of the estimated budget - meet with us on a0 discovery call to see how we can bolster your in-house team.
