Over the years, outsourcing has become a critical part of business management and a key ingredient for business growth. Outsourcing means hiring skilled individuals or teams to work on projects that are out of your area of expertise or are expensive to get done in-house. With the rise of the IT industry in recent years, outsourcing has become a primary source for companies to hire external help for their internal or client projects. Skilled engineers, content writers, designers, and other experts can be hired by businesses worldwide to provide top-notch services at an affordable price. Companies save time by hiring external help, and it allows them to focus on areas to expand their businesses and scale-up. Outsourcing is in most cases, more affordable than hiring an individual to join the company full-time, it saves both time and money as you don’t have to do the required admin work to onboard and maintain new talent.
Businesses worldwide have seen that opening up to outsourcing can help with scalability and they can do it quickly and at a fraction of the cost. According to a survey conducted by YouGov, 70% of British businesses have outsourced to third parties. Most of this outsourcing happens to off-shore companies and often to developing countries with an abundance of talent, like Ukraine, the Philippines, Pakistan, and India. With developing countries rapidly progressing in the outsourcing market, the question arises why should you choose Pakistan?
Pakistan is the hottest destination for technology outsourcing services because when it comes to quality technology services, it has no match. The country is known for its service quality, affordability, and the abundance of skilled and talented youth with an interest in technology careers. The country has been making steady progress in the world of technology for well over a decade now and has emerged with some of the best software solution providers in the world. With some countries such as Mexico, banning outsourcing and other countries such as Thailand, South Africa, and Brazil experiencing security issues, Pakistan is one of the leading countries when it comes to outsourcing.
Pakistan’s IT Ecosystem
The Pakistani IT industry is one of the most rapidly growing IT industries globally. The country has seen a growth of about 70% over the past three years in relation to the Pakistans’ IT ecosystem. In recent years, outsourcing has become one of the most significant career options for Pakistani youth, and every year, over 25000 graduates enter the job market with a degree in Software Engineering and Information Technology. Though Pakistan had been a bit slow in catching up but now due to the recent investments by the government and private sector in skill-building and infrastructure, the country is gaining momentum and is ready to become the next software hub. Pakistan currently has over 2000 registered IT companies and multiple public and private skill-building programs to train future technologists. The Government has allocated PKR 100 Billion exclusively for Skills development to be spent in the next 6 months to rapidly grow the human capital in the technology and startups ecosystem.
Pakistan also tops the list in the freelancing and gig economy, with skilled Pakistani freelancers dominating the freelance hiring platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr. The Pakistan programmer market ranks at No .3 for supplying talented freelance programmers, behind only the USA and India. The country also ranks at No. 4 in the Forbes list of fastest-growing freelance markets in the world. Suffice to say, Pakistan is going places when it comes to providing technology services to the world.
Pakistan’s Start-up Ecosystem
It would be an understatement to say that Pakistan’s start-up ecosystem is booming by getting a whole lot of investments in local startups. Over the past three years, many angel investors and venture capitalists from all over the world have been actively investing in the Pakistani startup ecosystem and their investments are now bearing fruits. The startups in the country have raised over $244 million in the first three quarters of 2021, which is more than the previous six years combined. Pakistan is now home to many successful start-ups such as Careem, Daraz, FoodPanda, and more.
Pakistan also has back offices of multiple international startups, as providing technical support is one of the country’s core strengths.
It is common knowledge that IT is the future, and there are numerous tech education programs and start-ups in Pakistan that believe in equipping the youth and especially women with excellent skills to thrive in the IT industry. Programs like Codegirls, TechKaro, are non-profit organizations while digiskills is a government program that trains the youth of Pakistan to navigate the world of IT and find fulfilling jobs for themselves in the IT industry. These organizations teach coding, designing, and numerous other digital skills. The graduates of these programs are now ready to shape the future of the IT industry in Pakistan.
Policies Of Pakistani Government
Pakistan’s government is heavily invested in improving the infrastructure and policies around the tech ecosystem. In recent years, there have been numerous policies that been put in place to facilitate the tech companies that provide outsourcing services, as well as for startups. This includes tax incentives, facilitating business registration, and banking services. The government of Pakistan offers tax incentives to foreign companies conducting business with Pakistani talent, making it infinitely cheaper for international businesses and entrepreneurs to hire talented Pakistanis. As of 2021, the Pakistan Software Export Board has formulated and implemented several incentive packages for the IT industry in Pakistan to further establish the country’s dominance in technology outsourcing. Organizations like P@SHA give their recommendations and proposals to the Government of Pakistan for making policies that help the IT industry grow. P@SHA has been working incessantly over the past three years and has achieved multiple important milestones over the years.
With the support of the government at their back and skilled youth as their front, Pakistan is undoubtedly the go-to destination for outsourcing.
Here are some of the reasons why you should opt for hiring a software services company in Pakistan.
Seven reasons Why You Should Choose Pakistan For Outsourcing of your technology needs
High Service Quality
The IT industry in Pakistan believes in delivering high-quality top-notch services to its clients. International businesses and Entrepreneurs feel confident to pick Pakistan for outsourcing their technology needs due to the excellent quality of work provided by Pakistan’s software solution providers.
From providing new product development to maintenance services, companies have built their expertise in the type of service as well as in different tech stacks. According to Kearney’s 2019 report, Pakistan is considered a well-established market for outsourcing along with India and China, due to its outstanding service quality.
Low Language Barrier
The ability to understand and communicate with their clients makes Pakistani employees an asset for foreign companies. English is the official language of Pakistan along with Urdu, with the Pakistani educational system emphasizing learning the English language and helping the students hone their communication skills. According to statistics, about 57% of Pakistanis can converse in English.
It is safe to assume that it is easier for Pakistani employees to communicate with foreign clients confidently. Communication is the key in any business, and choosing Pakistani companies for outsourcing would make communication infinitely easier.
Affordable Labor Market
Pakistan is an affordable country for outsourcing due to a massive difference in currency exchange from USD to PKR. So, hiring a team of engineers in Pakistan is more affordable than hiring a team in the US, Canada, or Europe. Due to the high unemployment rate in certain business sectors of Pakistan, individuals are opting for technology careers as a way to earn their livelihoods. Pakistan also has a large number of university graduates as the median age in the country is just over 22 years. The abundance of young people and their interest in technology is an excellent combination for finding the right talent at an affordable price.
The Benefits Of Big Cities
Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, and Islamabad are the business hubs of Pakistan. These cities have the country’s best engineering and tech universities sprouting skilled developers, designers, and writers in numbers. Karachi, the leading business center of Pakistan, has been emphasizing honing IT skills and providing outsourcing services for years now. These cities are also home to various IT programs such as Codegirls, a non-profit organization located in Karachi, which teaches its students to hone their IT skills such as coding, designing, and more.
Entrepreneurs and businesses who are on the lookout for coders, illustrators, mobile and web application developers, and other skilled IT professionals, usually find skilled individuals to work for them in one of these big cities.
Ease Of Doing Business
Pakistan is a business-friendly country, with its economic security increasing up to 220% as of 2019. Pakistan has tax incentives for specific business services, making it infinitely easier for software companies in Pakistan to charge less for their IT services to their overseas clients.
The laws in Pakistan make it easier for international companies to conduct business, making Pakistan the hottest outsourcing destination in the world. Pakistan allows 100% ownership of equity in the IT industry and offers tax holidays and incentives in various conditions. This motivation and support from the government results in incredible outsourcing work from Pakistani companies and is skyrocketing Pakistanis’ success in the IT industry.
Professionalism
Pakistani tend to value their work a lot and show high professionalism as most of their clients are in other countries. They are also culturally savvy and are able to show high levels of intercultural competence. The end goal of the freelancers and software houses in Pakistan is to always deliver the best quality of services and improve their client retention rate.
Our company, Genetech Solutions, one of the leading tech-houses in Pakistan, has worked with numerous foreign clients over the years. The company has always provided quality service and satisfied their clients, resulting in nearly an 80% client retention rate. Check out the reviews given by the clients Gentech Solutions has worked with over the years.
Broadband Services
The growth of the IT industry wouldn’t be possible without an internet connection. A country without high-speed broadband services wouldn’t be trusted by foreign entrepreneurs for technology-related projects. Pakistan offers broadband services for comparatively lower prices, hence making the internet an affordable luxury for everyone. It currently has a 3G and 4G internet, and the government is aiming to introduce 5G by the year 2023, to increase the internet speed.
Conclusion
With the rapid growth of the IT industry, Pakistan is now the hottest destination for outsourcing. With skilled employees and affordable labor costs, the country has enormous potential to become a leader in technology innovation and sustainable economic growth.
Our team at Genetech Solutions has been leading on multiple fronts, including human capital development and gender inclusion in the local tech ecosystem. We have been working with numerous clients all over the globe to provide technology services and develop products that are used by hundreds and thousands of users. If you want to discuss a new product idea or need an expert team to outsource your technology needs, feel free to contact us. We will be happy to set up a free consultation call.
We hope you enjoyed learning about the state of Pakistan’s tech ecosystem. If you have a question or a comment, please feel free to reach out to us or leave a comment below.
