Companies in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and elsewhere in Western Europe increasingly build teams in nearby markets such as Romania, Poland or Portugal. The motive is usually a mix of talent availability and cost. The results vary widely. Some nearshore teams become a lasting part of the business; others churn, stall and end up being reversed.
The difference is rarely the location. It is whether the company designed an operating model or simply opened roles somewhere cheaper. This guide is for leaders and HR teams planning or repairing a nearshore set-up.
Decide what should move, and why
Start with the work, not the market.
- Good candidates for nearshore delivery are roles with clear outputs and well-documented processes: software development, testing, engineering support, finance and HR operations, customer support and data work.
- Harder to move are roles that depend on daily, unplanned contact with headquarters, customers or production sites, unless you plan for that collaboration deliberately.
- Be clear about the model. Are you extending existing teams with nearshore members, building a self-contained delivery unit with its own lead, or creating a local entity that will eventually own a function? Each needs different leadership, hiring and governance.
Write down the business case in one paragraph: what the team will deliver, why nearshore is the right answer, and what success looks like after 12 months.
Choose a market on more than cost
Compare candidate markets on:
- Talent depth for your specific roles, including the competition for them from other employers and from companies hiring remotely across borders.
- Language and time zone. Working-hours overlap and the language your teams actually use matter more than distance.
- Hubs within the country. In Romania, for example, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Timișoara and Iași each have distinct technical communities and universities.
