In 2018, AgilityFeat partnered with a rising innovator in the chemical data industry to support their product modernization goals. The client needed a flexible, cost-effective way to evolve its sophisticated data analysis platform and scale it for enterprise clients.
We responded by building a custom nearshore team of Latin American software professionals. The results? Improved scalability, enhanced product quality, and eventually, a successful acquisition by a global leader in the space. Today, we continue supporting the product under its new brand through a long-term staff augmentation model.
The Challenge: Preparing for Growth and Acquisition
The client had already proven their business concept but needed to modernize a legacy platform to meet enterprise demands. AgilityFeat began the engagement with a full technical and UX assessment
The Solution: Agile Product Modernization Through a Fully Nearshore Team
AgilityFeat brought together a custom nearshore team to lead the product modernization effort. With shared time zones, cultural alignment, and bilingual communication, our team integrated seamlessly into the client’s operations and long-term goals.
We combined deep technical expertise with agile leadership. Our software developers collaborated closely with a dedicated project owner to keep technical work aligned with evolving business priorities. An agile lead served as scrum master, driving transparent workflows and continuous delivery. DevOps and QA specialists focused on automation, security, and reliability from day one.
This cohesive nearshore structure provided the flexibility to scale resources and adapt to changing priorities, without the overhead of hiring full-time staff or the friction of disconnected outsourcing models.
Key Modernization Actions
Our work focused on thoughtful, incremental modernization that could scale with the client’s growing enterprise customer base. Key initiatives included:
- Comprehensive technical and process assessments to identify bottlenecks and modernization opportunities
- Security-first architecture that ensured the platform was built to meet evolving enterprise standards
- Agile transformation, introducing structured workflows, sprints, and a test-driven development mindset
- CI/CD pipelines to reduce manual intervention and improve deployment speed and consistency
- Ongoing collaboration with internal teams to ensure knowledge sharing and long-term sustainability
- Smooth post-acquisition integration, with our team maintaining product knowledge and delivery continuity
Results and Business Impact
The modernization efforts paid off in both technical improvements and business outcomes. We helped the client:
- Launch a modern, scalable platform capable of supporting large enterprise clients
- Significantly reduce technical debt and day-to-day maintenance burdens
- Achieve a faster, more resilient release cycle through automation and agile practices
- Navigate a smooth acquisition, with no disruptions to service or product delivery
- Maintain operational efficiency and product stability through ongoing nearshore support
This approach gave the company a strong foundation for growth and long-term product success.
Why This Nearshore Partnership Works
Our success stemmed from more than just technical expertise. It was about how we worked together. What made the difference:
- Deep collaboration: We operated as an extension of the client’s internal team, not just as vendors
- Cultural and language alignment: Bilingual communication enabled smooth interaction across U.S., Latin America, and European teams
- A multidisciplinary team: Developers, QA, DevOps, product owners, and agile leads worked as one cohesive unit
- Flexible resourcing: Our staff augmentation model allowed quick adaptation to new business priorities
- Long-term engagement: The partnership evolved alongside the client, from startup growth through acquisition and beyond
Takeaways and Best Practices
This engagement offers valuable insights for any company considering product modernization using nearshore software development teams:
- Nearshore staffing enables scalable product transformation without time zone or communication barriers
- Staff augmentation adds agility, providing skilled support without long-term hiring commitments
- Long-term collaboration beats transactional outsourcing, especially when continuity and knowledge retention matter
- Cross-functional, embedded teams accelerate modernization while ensuring product and process resilience
Investing in the right nearshore partner can turn legacy systems into scalable, secure platforms and position your company for growth, acquisition, or expansion.
Building Resilient Platforms with Trusted Nearshore Partnerships
Our long-term success with this product modernization journey shows the advantages of using a nearshore development team to drive innovation and ongoing staff augmentation partnership to put those initiatives into practice. A custom nearshore team grounded in agile practices, technical leadership, and multidisciplinary talent enables organizations to transform legacy systems at scale, adapt to shifting business conditions, and sustain innovation for the long term.
For organizations seeking product modernization using nearshore software development and staffing, our experience illustrates the advantages of a collaborative, multi-disciplinary approach for scaling delivery, ensuring technical continuity, and achieving business outcomes. Get in touch. We’re just a message away.
Further Reading:
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- Understanding Staff Augmentation: A Flexible Solution for Your Technical Staffing Needs
- From Frustration to Transformation: Why Enterprise Leaders Should Partner with AgilityFeat
- Large-Scale Nearshore Staffing: An AgilityFeat 13-Year Success Story
- Welcome to AgilityFeat: Your Partner in Technical Staffing and Development in Latin America
