Televic is a Belgian technology company that works for various sectors such as healthcare, conferences, education and railways. With healthcare being its main market. In fact, more than 90% of the hospitals in Belgium have Televic technology in the field of patient and nurse assistance. To keep up with this high level of demand in this market and constant product evolution, Televic needed to hire extra developers to join their team. With the saturated job technology market in Belgium and the inconvenience of high salary costs of developers, Televic found the solution in Cactus.
“We are constantly working on next-gen products. It is crucial that we continue to innovate and that we can quickly build and launch new products” says Mathias Devos, Software Team Lead at Televic Healthcare.
Solution
Cactus proposed to Televic the hiring of a developer who met all the requirements prescribed by Televic and who would be located in Spain, where Cactus had most of their team. After passing the same tests that the rest of Televic’s team members have to take, the Cactus developer spent time onboarding in Belgium getting to know the client and the product to respond to their demands.
José Laffitte emphasizes the importance of good onboarding: “I notice that it greatly improves onboarding if our developers travel to Belgium at the start of the collaboration. You get to know the team and the company better when you meet each other in real life. That human aspect should not be underestimated, especially if you really become part of a team full-time. It reduces the distance, and it increases empathy.” José Laffitte is the Head of Engineering at Cactus and leads the Spanish team of developers from Belgium.
Results
Companies that decide to hire externally have two basic ways to do it. Either on a project basis, when an assignment is done for a limited time (and budget), or incorporating someone into the team, sharing the same way of working, and routines and spreading the company culture further so the new person becomes one among equals. Televic chose the second option. A company that has innovation at the core of its business needs that same energy to be constantly bubbling, so the team members must be very aligned.
“Over the past decade, we’ve observed a growing challenge faced by Belgian companies in attracting technological talent. It has become increasingly difficult for them to find skilled professionals locally, compelling them to explore alternative solutions. However, some organizations still exhibit hesitation when it comes to hiring foreign tech talent, fearing potential loss of control in remote work setups. Nevertheless, companies like Televic have proven that this resistance is unfounded. Spain, with its close proximity and cultural affinity to Belgium, presents an excellent option for sourcing tech talent, offering a valuable and culturally familiar pool of skilled professionals.” says Jose Laffitte.
The article first appeared at Bloovi.be on August 31, 2023.
