The off shore process typically involves a lot of responsibilities and process adherence from both the customer and services organization. The key success factors are: 

·        Effective planning from customer,

·        Effective documentation from customer,

·        Quality commitment from service provider,

·        Timely and informative reports from off-shore,

·        Effective distributed configuration management,

·        Effective system-speed and resource wise-for transferring project objects-documents, sources, files, etc from on site to off shore,

·        Remote log on capabilities for implementing a team less development environment.

 Distributed configuration management for typical on-site/offshore co-development-suggested process: 

·        Client to have a FTP server, where he can give space and allow other users to login from anywhere to upload and download files, through the internet.

·        Authorized person form the project from service provider and clients only to be only able to access the server-with typically project leader taking responsibilities for uploads/downloads

·        Two directories recommended in the root on the FTP server. One for the off-shore team and the other for the onsite/client team.

·        All uploads from off-shore goes to the off-shore directory and those from on-site to go to on-site directory.

·        Sub directory created with the date as its label for uploading the files in the respective directories,

·        All uploaded files in ZIP format.

·        Recommended to have the last three days archives to be retained in the FTP server,

·        After uploading to the server, the team should send email information to the other side, about the upload,

·        Deleting of the old archives to be the responsibility of the respective project leaders after sending emails to all key persons.

·        On completion of the project, customer administrator could remove rights for the contractor/service provider to log on to his FTP server.

·        Thus, effectively, the offshore team could work as an extended arm of the on-site development team.

·        The pilot project chosen should be reasonably well defined, and not be of R&D nature of say, one of iterative prototyping.