CTO guide to hiring Indian programmers

CTOs, VPs of Engineering, and other tech leaders take two routes when looking for the right talent to fill their business needs. They either try to find and hire programmers locally, and often fail in the process due to talent shortages and prohibitive costs, or extend their development team abroad.

India has become a popular destination for the latter.

Engineers in tech hubs like Bangalore offer the same or better quality than their counterparts in the US and Europe. And at a much lower cost!

If you’re considering hiring Indian programmers, this guide will walk you through exactly how to do it. You’ll learn the practical steps to find and onboard top talent, where to locate the best developers across India’s tech hubs, the specific advantages Indian engineers bring to your team, and why offshoring offers the most reliable path to building a world-class development team.

Let’s get started!

Why should you hire Indian programmers?

You’ve probably heard the stereotypes: Indian engineers aren’t skilled enough to perform at the highest level, their English proficiency is lacking, and they struggle with project commitment.

While some organisations have had bad experiences hiring Indian programmers, the problem is not the quality of the engineers but rather the hiring process and engagement model. We’ll cover that later in the article, where we’ll explain why offshore software development is the most effective way of setting up a tech team in India.

The main reason why you should consider hiring Indian programmers is that the country is home to some of the most talented and innovative tech professionals in the world:

Advantages of hiring Indian developers

When you hire Indian programmers through the right model, you’re gaining access to engineers who can (genuinely) move your product forward.

These are the key advantages of hiring Indian developers:

• You get specialists with experience in your industry. India’s talent pool is deep enough that you can find people with the exact skills your business demands and a proven track record working with companies in your sector (e.g., legal tech, FinTech, EdTech…).
• You save money (and still hire top talent). When you offshore to India, you’re saving 25-40% on average engineering costs and accessing the same calibre of talent you’d find at home.
• You enjoy extended development coverage. While your team sleeps, your Indian developers can push forward on critical features. This means issues are resolved overnight, and you wake up to progress rather than bottlenecks.
• You tap into a culture that values problem-solving. Indian engineers are trained through a rigorous education system where analytical thinking and solving complex challenges are core to every engineering curriculum. They don’t just write code to specification, but they also consider edge cases, suggest improvements, and take ownership of outcomes. That mindset is baked into how they approach work.
• You build teams that stay for the long run. Turnover is lower among offshore Indian programmers than among freelancers or contractors. When you hire through the right partner and model, these engineers become an integral part of your company.

Plus, the professionals you hire have extensive experience working with Western companies, so they understand your workflows and your terminology. They speak your language.

For years, there’s been a perception that India is the back office of the world. That’s changed. Today, organisations centre engineering, R&D, and product development roles in the country, not just support functions.

Ryan Chana, Global Head of Advisory at The Scalers, confirms this shift: “There’s clearly been an evolution from thinking of India as a back office location where you just offshore or outsource some non-technical functions. Today, offshore teams make up a huge part of the value chain for a lot of organisations. They’re a core, strategic part of the business.”

Where to find software developers in India

One of the first questions you must ask yourself before building your team in India is where you want to establish operations, given that not every city in the country has the same talent pool or strengths.

There are many tech hubs you can pull talent from, but Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Pune are among the most popular destinations:

Weighing all options, Bangalore is often considered the ideal IT offshoring destination. It’s especially attractive for organisations looking for a vast talent pool and a place where they can set up teams with just a few engineers and scale to hundreds as their needs grow.

How to hire Indian programmers step-by-step

To hire Indian programmers the right way, you need a structured approach that gets you engineers who deliver real value to your business.

Here’s a step-by-step process you can follow:

Step 1: Get clear on what you’re hiring for

Before hiring, nail down your requirements. What roles are you filling? What tech stack do your engineers need to know? What seniority level makes sense to you, junior developers you can train up, or senior engineers who can hit the ground running?

Think about team size too. Are you starting with two developers, or do you need a full scrum team of eight from day one?

Write all this down. A doc with role descriptions, must-have skills, and your timeline will save you weeks of back-and-forth later.

Step 2: Choose a hiring and engagement model

Most companies hiring Indian programmers consider two models: outsourcing or offshoring. They sound similar, but they’re different in practice:

• Outsourcing means hiring engineers to complete a task or project. You define the scope, they deliver the work, and the relationship ends when the project wraps up. This model works best for short-term needs or when you need to ship something fast, but it’s not ideal for long-term product development.
• Offshoring involves building a team with engineers who work exclusively for your company. They follow your processes and are invested in your product’s success because it’s their only focus. This is the model you want if you’re thinking about scaling your engineering capacity over time.

The quality difference between the two models is notable. Outsourced developers treat your project like one task on a long to-do list, whereas offshore developers’ only commitment is to your product.

Step 3: Find the right offshore development partner

Considering you’ve chosen to use offshoring as your model for hiring Indian developers, the next step is to find an offshore development partner that can help you source the talent you need.

A trusted partner handles everything on the ground: recruitment, onboarding, HR, legal compliance, office infrastructure, equipment, and ongoing team engagement. You focus on building your product, while they ensure your team has everything they need to do their jobs.

Here’s what to look for when evaluating partners:

Pricing matters, but it shouldn’t be your only consideration. The ‘cheapest’ partner usually cuts corners somewhere – recruitment, office quality, or ongoing support. You’ll pay for those shortcuts later, in the form of turnover and productivity issues.

Step 4: Choose the best talent for your team

In most cases, you can participate in the recruitment process that your offshore partner kicks off right from the beginning. However, your partner’s goal is to save you time. They may interview over 100 candidates per role and will recommend that you get involved at the final stage of the process.

Here’s something you should know: you have the final say in choosing the right engineers for your team from the talent your partner sources.

Your partner will send you candidate profiles, CVs, technical assessment results, and interview notes from their team. Review these in detail. Look for engineers who’ve worked on products similar to yours, have the right technical depth, and communicate clearly during their screening calls.

Use your time to assess judgment, communication, and cultural fit. Those are the things that make or break remote collaboration.

Step 5: Start working with your new team!

Once you’ve chosen the best engineers for your team, your partner will handle onboarding and get everything up and running.

Now it’s your turn to lead.

Manage your new engineers the same way you do with your in-house team. Set priorities, review code, ship features, and iterate based on feedback. The key is treating your offshore engineers as full members of your product team, not remote contractors working in a silo. 

Most importantly, help them understand the “why” behind what you’re building, not just the  “what.” Engineers who grasp the bigger picture contribute better ideas and catch issues before they ship.

Challenges you may face when hiring Indian engineers

We’ve covered the good in hiring Indian talent, but, as with anything, there are a few challenges you need to be aware of before you make the move:

• The first is the geographical distance and time zone differences. It’s not easy to monitor your team’s performance when they are five, six or more hours ahead of your headquarters. Communication problems and cultural differences may arise.
• Another challenge you may face when hiring Indian talent is quality assurance. Your engineers can be world-class, but are they following best programming practices? Is there sufficient control in place to maintain high standards?
• Security is also a vital aspect to consider. Just think that your tech team will have access to your organisation’s internal systems and confidential information! If your engineers don’t adhere to strict security protocols, your intellectual property and sensitive data may be in danger.

These aren’t dealbreakers, but they’re real considerations. The good news? A reliable offshore partner with a proven track record can help you navigate all three.

The Scalers’ unique (and proven) offshore model solves CTO headaches

If you’ve read this far, chances are you’re looking for an offshore partner that can help you hire Indian developers.

At The Scalers, we’ve built an offshore model that sources the top 2% of engineering talent in Bangalore. What’s more, it addresses the most common issues CTOs and other tech leaders face when hiring Indian programmers:

See what allpay, a UK FinTech, has to say about how we helped them overcome talent shortages and modernise their payment platform:

Ready to hire Indian programmers? Fill out this form, and one of our senior executives will contact you promptly.

In the meantime, we invite you to watch a one-minute video that explains why companies should hire engineers in India.