2020 has forced all organizations, from global tech giants to local firms, to re-evaluate their business strategies and rebuild their operations both to halt the spread of COVID-19 and to ensure financial stability in the new environment. 

In just three months, the world went from acute shortage of qualified professionals to the record level of unemployment. In the USA alone more than 30 million people filed unemployment claims. However, the need for digital products did not vanish. On the contrary, for many companies digitalization became the matter of life and death. 

Therefore, businesses are trying to find the balance between the need for tech expertise and cost optimization. Although a lot of people across the globe lost jobs, the shortage of IT professionals before the crisis was so big that it barely affected their salaries, and IT outsourcing started to make even more sense to businesses. 

Moreover, the barrier between local talent and offshore experts tumbled down when the whole world switched to remote. So the focus is now shifting towards affordable workforce, regardless of their location. 

Executive Summary

Early in 2020, when the world was forced to introduce social distancing and shifted to the work-from-home mode, the line between on-site and remote development teams became hardly visible. Business leaders realized that offshore talent was closer than ever before and started to rethink the value of IT outsourcing. 

In the time when organizations need to optimize costs and operations, easy access to the brightest tech talents from across the globe creates numerous competitive advantages. Yet cost-efficiency of outsourced software development becomes the decisive factor for businesses that want to ensure their financial health without sacrificing important engineering projects. 

Amid this new reality, finding a reliable technological partner is both a viable strategy and a challenge.

As one of the top IT outsourcing destinations, Eastern Europe combines the availability of strong tech skills, cost-efficient software development services, and a wide choice of established IT vendors. The region has also significantly developed its infrastructure and tech education in the last 20 years. 

In this report, we explore the advantages of partnering with Eastern European software development vendors and the expertise this region has to offer. 

• Eastern Europe remains one of the most attractive outsourcing destinations due to the excellent price-quality ratio, constant growth of the IT industry and strong technological expertise.
• IT outsourcing to Eastern Europe is viewed both as a major business enabler of digital transformation and an attractive cost-cutting option.
• Eastern Europe has a large tech talent pool of 1M professional developers. Ukraine, Poland, and Romania are leading the Eastern European software development market, offering a vast availability of IT experts [2].

This research explores the leading software development companies in Eastern Europe, examines their expertise, partnerships, case studies, awards, and industry recognition. All the companies on the list have a proven record of delivering top-notch custom software products to clients all over the globe. They are well-known IT outsourcing vendors with experience in many industries.

• Eastern Europe has over 3,500 IT outsourcing vendors with strong expertise in fintech, healthcare, education, and other industries [6].
• There are almost 300 Eastern European companies who offer staff augmentation services to their clients.
• The Internet of Things and embedded development market is thriving as the region has over 240,000 C/C++ developers [26]. 
• Eastern Europe has over 300 companies with substantial expertise in cloud consulting and computing, and nearly 150 vendors who specialise in DevOps services [25].
• In just 3 years, the number of companies with AI expertise has gone up 4 times. As of the beginning of 2020, Ukraine has almost 150 specialised vendors with sufficient tech expertise, followed by Poland with 110+ vendors, and Belarus with 45+ companies [25].

About This White Paper

Eastern Europe is a well-known IT outsourcing destination which possesses an extensive tech talent pool and financial attractiveness in terms of IT outsourcing. The main goal of our research was to bring together all the available information about the most reliable software development providers in Eastern Europe to help various market players make informed business decisions and find a trustworthy partner. 

The research gathers the information and statistics from 30+ sources. It is based on the research provided by international advisory companies, award associations, dedicated vendor listings, business associations, and other reputable sources. The report includes findings by Forbes, Deloitte, A.T. Kerney, IAOP, IT European Software & Excellence Award, Clutch, LinkedIn, and others.

• You may also like:
• IT outsourcing market in Eastern Europe [report]
• Software development in Ukraine: 2019-2020 IT market report [PDF]
• Where to outsource: talent pool, billing rates, expertise

Leading IT companies which build remote development teams

The success of outsourced IT projects depends on many factors but choosing a reliable partner is apparently the most critical one. Eastern Europe has over 3,500 IT outsourcing vendors. So how to choose the right company? 

The main criteria for selecting a software development service provider include cost-effectiveness, the company size, technological and domain expertise, communication, to name a few. In this report, we have considered all the essential vendor selection criteria and made a list of the best Eastern European vendors trusted by IBM, Microsoft, Panasonic, OpenText, Volvo, Bosch, and other industry leaders. 

The shortlist has been compiled in the following stages:

• Analysed over 100 software development vendors that were either established in Eastern Europe or have a significant presence in the region, as well as development centres in one or several EE countries. 
• Selected the companies with 1,000+ employees as they have established processes, capacity, and scalability to work on the solutions of any complexity. 
• Matched the longlist against The Global Outsourcing 100 (2017 through 2020) and European IT & Software Excellence Award (2019 and 2020) to select the vendors whose achievements have been recognized by the leading industry associations. 
• Analysed the vendors’ technical competence, industry expertise and case studies of delivered projects using the public information on their websites, social media, news, etc. Also, we paid attention to certifications, partnerships, and the biggest clients. 

We have also added essential vendor information, including when the company was founded, the number of employees, HQ, development centres in Eastern Europe, key clients, as well as their certifications and awards to make the selection process easier.

Example of the company profile

N-iX is one of the top software development vendors in Eastern Europe with 1,000+ engineers onboard. Since 2002, N-iX has formed strategic partnerships with global industry leaders, including OpenText, Lebara, Gogo, Fluke Corporation, Currencycloud, several Fortune 500 companies, and over 50 other medium and large businesses. With five delivery centres in Ukraine, Poland, Bulgaria, and Belarus, N-iX possesses strong expertise in:

The company has multiple industry awards, including 2020 IT Europa Awards in 3 categories, GSA UK, Software 500, ect. Also, it has been recognized among The Best of The Global Outsourcing 100 providers by IAOP for the fourth consecutive year.

Part II. Companies and expertise: find the right vendor for your needs

Finding a reliable company is just the first step in the vendor selection process. Next, you have to choose a company with a strong technical expertise that matches your business needs. In this section, we are going to explore:

Custom software development in Eastern Europe 

As one of the primary IT outsourcing destinations, Eastern Europe has over 3,500+ IT outsourcing companies [6] offering a variety of services, including custom software development, IT staff augmentation, cloud migration, data analytics, etc. In 2020, companies can tap into even a larger pool of experts as a lot of R&D centres and startups have been forced to optimize costs and the number of employees due to the COVID-19 crisis. Therefore, you can find the best software engineers much faster and the services have become much more cost-efficient.

In this section we discuss domain and tech expertise, as well as the best software development vendors of the region.

Best software development vendors in Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe has a large number of vendors of all sizes and specializations. To narrow down the list of the best vendors for custom software development, we have selected firms that offer this service, analyzed their websites, studied the relevant case studies, and shortlisted the companies with the strongest expertise. 

IT staff augmentation in Eastern Europe: unlocking the new possibilities

Companies in the USA, United Kingdom, and Western Europe are trying to reduce costs without compromising the quality of their products. They need both highly-qualified and cost-efficient specialists to solve the puzzle, many industry-leading businesses, such as Microsoft, Mercedez, Lebara, Gogo, Viber, and others have opted for staff augmentation by teams from Eastern Europe. 

Staff augmentation allows you to extend your development capabilities by integrating the vendor’s experts with your in-house team. Clutch lists almost 300 Eastern European companies who offer staff augmentation services to their clients. With a tech talent pool of over 1M software engineers [2], Eastern Europe has become a gold mine of staff augmentation for the US, the UK, and Western Europe. 

Best companies for staff augmentation in Eastern Europe

Staff augmentation is an excellent way to tap into the international tech talent pool. We have cross-checked the list of companies from this report with the services they offer and case studies matching this service, analyzed their expertise and companies they have worked with.

You may also like Staff augmentation in Eastern Europe: How to make the most of it

Internet of Things and embedded development market overview

The IoT market has reached $193.60B in 2019 and is expected to reach $657.31B by 2025, with a CAGR of 21%*. With the development of wireless networking technologies, adoption of advanced data analytics, and cost reduction of connected devices, the market is expected to grow at a positive rate [12]. 

In 2019, the top industries that dominated the IoT adoption were utilities, transportation, retail, government, healthcare, insurance, and healthcare. Consumer, professional services, retail, transportation and healthcare had the highest CAGR of around 15-19%. 

Top IoT companies in Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe has an extensive tech talent pool with over 240,000 C/C++ developers. Leading IoT companies are working on projects in a variety of industries, including automotive, healthcare, transportation, etc. The following companies have experience in building IoT applications

Keep reading: How to build a strong team for embedded software development

Cloud solutions and DevOps services

With an introduction of the cloud, both Cloud solutions and DevOps as-a-service have been growing exponentially. The hosting, storage and computing cloud services market reached $126B in 2017 and was forecasted to grow to $163B in 2021 [17]. 

Along with the growing interest in cloud computing, the need for experts with relevant expertise is also increasing. As of the beginning of 2020, Indeed.com lists over 115,000 open job postings on the US market alone. The EU market has over 180,000 job opportunities for experts in cloud computing and DevOps services. 

So can Eastern European market be the solution to this problem?

Best Cloud/DevOps services providers in Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe has over 300 companies with a solid expertise in cloud consulting & computing and nearly 150 vendors who specialise in DevOps services. Explore some of the best vendors with the strongest expertise.

• Keep reading:
• 30 best cloud migration companies in the world
• DevOps outsourcing: How to make it work
• DevOps services in Ukraine: How to choose the best company

Data Science, Big Data, and Business Intelligence Market Overview

IDC forecasts that worldwide revenues for Big Data and business analytics will go up to more than $203B in 2020, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.7%*. The number of job postings related to Data Science has skyrocketed. For instance, the Royal Society reports that the number of UK job postings related to data science services went up by 231% between 2013 and 2018 [19]. In the respective section, we explore the current state of Data Science market in Eastern Europe, as well as top Big Data companies

• Read more:
• Data science services: 5 tips to choose the best vendor
• Data Science outsourcing to Ukraine: pros & cons
• Business intelligence outsourcing: how to make it work?

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning 

Artificial Intelligence is changing our understanding of technology across all major industries. From virtual personal assistants and face recognition to smart cars and robotic helpers – AI-based solutions are taking over our personal and business lives. The global artificial intelligence (AI) market reached $20.67B in 2018 and is projected to reach $202.57B by 2026, marking a 33.1%* CAGR during the forecast period. As of 2020, the VC-backed funding has reached $71B  with a primary interest in ML applications and ML platforms. 

Best AI companies in Eastern Europe

Ukraine has the largest number of AI & ML providers in Europe. In just 3 years, the number of companies with AI expertise has gone up 4 times. As of the beginning of 2020, Ukraine has almost 150 specialised vendors with sufficient tech expertise, followed by Poland with 110+ vendors and Belarus with 45+ companies. If you are looking for a reliable AI/ML partner in Eastern Europe, make sure to check this section of the report. 

• Related:
• Hiring AI software developers in Ukraine: Ultimate guide 
• 17 AI development companies with strong tech portfolio

Enterprise VR/AR/XR solutions

Just a few years back Virtual and Augmented Reality were associated primarily with the gaming industry, but now it has gained momentum in many more fields. The global VR and AR market was valued at $27B in 2018. And by 2025, it is expected to reach $393B with a CAGR of 69.4%* during 2019-2025. In 2020, the focus will shift towards enterprise Virtual and Augmented Reality rather than simple VR & AR products for the consumer sector.

Best companies for enterprise AR/VR solutions

This section offers a shortlist of reliable VR development companies from Eastern Europe with a proven track record of successful VR/AR projects.

You may also like How to make the most of Virtual and Augmented Reality for enterprise

Enterprise software solutions

In 2019, the global spending on enterprise software solutions had reached $456B and is expected to reach $503B in 2020. Enterprise software solutions range from payment processing and automated billing systems to complex enterprise content management (ECM), customer relationship management (CRM), enterprise resource planning (ERP), Business Intelligence (BI) systems, etc. Such solutions are complex and demand long-time involvement.  

Top enterprise solutions companies 

Based on industry, the enterprise software development market can be segmented into banking, financial services and insurance, energy and utilities, healthcare, manufacturing, media & entertainment, retail, transportation, and others. Based on business needs, it  can cover a variety of services, including enterprise automation, enterprise mobility, professional services (e.g. SAP), or such technical expertise as Data Science, Cloud, Blockchain, AI, etc. Companies in this section have both development capabilities and previous expertise in creating large-scale solutions for enterprises around the world. 

• Related:
• How to succeed with enterprise automation: 5 growing trends
• 20 trusted enterprise software development companies of 2020
• Enterprise mobility solutions: 4 tips on choosing nearshore vendor

Wrap-up

Eastern European countries significantly developed infrastructure and tech education in the last 20 years. Moreover, the region is a thriving market for software development and team extension services. This report explores the top software development companies in the Eastern Europe, examines their expertise, companies they worked with, as well as their awards and industry recognition.  All companies on our list have a proven record of delivering top-notch custom software to clients all over the globe. They are well-known IT outsourcing vendors with experience in many industries.

Download report PDF

References:

To see the list of resources used for this report, please, download the PDF file.