Understanding IT Staff Augmentation Contracts

October 1, 2021 | By: Scott Lard

In today’s IT landscape, adapting and evolving with the constant changes of technology is a must. However, it can also pose a unique challenge for businesses both large and small. As your business earns new clients, begins new projects, and establishes new goals, the strain on your existing staff can become too much to bear. Although getting extra assistance – be it in the form of manpower or skillsets that your current team lacks – can often be the solution to handling this increase in demand, hiring new full-time or part-time workers to bridge the gap can often be cost prohibitive. That’s where staff augmentation contracts come in.

Augmented IT Staff Contract

Staff augmentation is a staffing technique that helps fill a business’s gaps in their staff for short- or long-term projects. For example, if your business is handling a large project for a client that exceeds the bandwidth that your current employees can handle or doesn’t match the current skillset of your team, you can utilize staff augmentation to compensate. With the help of outside workers, your company can complete the project as needed without making any permanent adjustments to your staff.

Staff augmentation is particularly popular when it comes to IT roles, because unique skills or large teams of employees are often necessary to handle IT big projects. Staff augmentation allows for your business to professionally and efficiently handle any project that comes your way without putting too much strain on your team or your business’s budget.

Benefits of Staff Augmentation

There are many benefits to IT staff augmentation, including:

  • Increased flexibility
  • Less stress on budget
  • Staff specialized for pinpointed needs
  • Access global talent if utilizing remote staff augmentation
  • More control on projects compared to fully outsourcing
  • Maintain continuity when client-facing
Understanding IT Staff Augmented Contracts

What does an IT staff augmentation contract look like?

Once you’ve determined that IT staff augmentation is right for your company’s needs, you’ll need to go about finding the right people to bring on and outlining the specifics of the contract. Just as with any staffing solution, a successful IT staff augmentation requires attention to detail and clearly defined expectations. Your existing team, your newly hired workers, and the staffing firm you choose to work with, if any, should all be aware of the project details, the requirements of the job, and the length and terms of the contract.

As is true with any staffing decision, there are drawbacks to IT staff augmentation, however many of them can be avoided by outlining details of the contract before the project begins and enforcing them during. Examples include:

  • Establishing clear time frames, project expectations, and compensation amounts
  • Clearly outlining and enforcing company policies
  • Empowering managers to keep tabs on in-house and augmented teams to ensure consistency and communication
  • Outline communication platforms, expectations, and requirements
  • Differentiate in-house and augmented staff and keep boundaries clear and obvious

By establishing these factors from the start of your IT staff augmentation search, you can avoid many of the pitfalls that businesses can experience.

How can an IT staffing firm help?

The process of not only locating the right people for your IT staff augmentation contract but also establishing the details listed above can be taxing. That’s why many business owners choose to work with an experienced IT staffing firm. IT staff augmentation can be an ideal solution for many businesses, but it is an in-depth process that requires dedication and skill to successfully deploy. Luckily, there are many great IT staffing firms that can help businesses just like yours achieve success with staff augmentation.

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