Rightshore, Nearshore, Co-shore: What’s Real and What’s Rubbish?

Let’s be honest: Businesses today face relentless pressure to deliver top-tier products faster, better and cheaper than ever before. That’s led to all kinds of delivery models like rightshoring, nearshoring, co-shoring, offshore, and onshore remote work - each comes with its own advantages. But confusion around these models still persists, often clouding decisions that could otherwise fuel smarter, more strategic growth.

In this piece, we’re cutting through the noise and unpacking the most common myths showing how one digital health scale-up used a tailored approach to unlock rapid, global growth.

Myth 1: Rightshoring is just a buzzword – it’s really just nearshoring with a new name

Reality: Rightshoring isn’t marketing jargon. It’s a deliberate, flexible approach to building global teams that work. Unlike nearshoring – which is mostly about geographical proximity – rightshoring focuses on finding the right skills in the right place at the right time. That could mean a mix of onshore, nearshore and offshore resources, depending on what your business actually needs – whether it’s time zone alignment, cost-effectiveness, niche technical expertise, or a bit of all three.

📊 According to Gartner, by 2026, 50% of software engineering leaders in enterprise companies will use product-centric delivery for all development initiatives, up from just 15% today.

This move towards more agile, cross-functional models underscores the growing demand for delivery strategies that prioritise outcomes over location.

Myth 2: All global teams offer the same value – just at different prices

Reality: Value isn’t a flat comparison. Yes, cost matters – but so does context. Nearshore teams in countries like South Africa or Portugal often offer smoother collaboration thanks to overlapping time zones, cultural alignment, and language compatibility. Offshore models may bring stronger cost savings but often require more planning, process, and oversight to manage effectively. The smartest teams weigh more than just budget.

Case in point: Scaling smart in digital healthcare

A fast-growing digital mental health scale-up operating across Spain, the UK, and the USA was looking for a technology partner to help fuel its next phase of growth. The initial plan focused on rewriting one of their core products. But after spending two days with their team in Spain, the BBD principal architect proposed a different path.

Instead of a rewrite, the team identified three key needs:

• A long-term, trusted development partnership

• Access to expert technical knowledge

• The ability to scale flexibly across time zones

What followed was a rightshoring model tailored specifically to the client. BBD deployed experienced professionals from Portugal and South Africa who brought a blend of enterprise-scale thinking, deep domain knowledge, and hands-on cloud and mobile development expertise. Together, they re-architected the platform on AWS using technologies like IaC, Flutter, NestJS, and DevOps pipelines – all designed to support scalability and long-term growth.

Myth 3: Outsourcing is only for large corporates with big budgets

Reality: It’s a misconception that only enterprise businesses can benefit from global teams. In reality, scale-ups often stand to gain the most. Tapping into experienced talent and mature practices early on can help growing companies scale faster, without the long-term cost and risk of rapid hiring.

📊 Deloitte reports that 59% of organisations using blended global delivery teams experience greater agility and faster delivery outcomes.

In this case, the client avoided risky hiring cycles by plugging into BBD’s global network. With expansion into the US and Australian markets underway, additional talent hubs in India and Brazil are being added, ensuring time zone coverage and reducing delivery lag.

Myth 4: Offshore is always cheapest – so it’s the best option

Reality: Cost per hour isn’t the full picture. Offshore teams can look appealing on paper, but what about time zone delays? Language barriers? Slower decision-making? Sometimes, a slightly more expensive nearshore or co-shore model delivers far better value through smoother workflows, faster iterations, and stronger client-team alignment.

Myth 5: If it works for one client, it’ll work for everyone

Reality: Every business is different – so every delivery model should be too. One-size-fits-all doesn’t work when project goals, team dynamics and internal capabilities vary so widely. In the healthcare example, the client didn’t get a templated solution. Instead, the BBD team adapted their approach entirely, aligning closely with the business’s needs, product vision, and go-to-market timelines.

Myth 6: Remote onshore teams are always the easiest to manage

Reality: Onshore doesn’t always equal simple. Distributed teams within a single country can still struggle with coordination, rising talent costs, and siloed communication. A blended rightshoring model can offer the same familiarity – but with better flexibility, scalability, and cost-efficiency.

Myth 7: Nearshore teams lack the technical depth of onshore ones

Reality: That assumption is outdated. Nearshore regions like South Africa and Portugal are home to highly experienced engineers with strong enterprise backgrounds. In the healthcare scale-up example, the team brought cloud expertise, mobile app integration skills and introduced agile governance practices that helped stabilise delivery and improve internal visibility across the business.

Bringing enterprise thinking to scale-up growth

One of the most meaningful changes for the client was how BBD helped introduce structure into their development lifecycle. What was previously an ad hoc release cycle evolved into a mature Agile delivery approach – complete with planning, retrospectives and predictability for internal teams.

The impact?

• Access to a 1200-strong network of technical experts

• Global scale with regional presence

• Seamless collaboration, including in-person touchpoints when needed

• More consistent releases aligned to business goals

• Scalable capacity to meet demand across markets

Conclusion: Choose the model that fits – not just the trend

Rightshoring isn’t about jumping on a trend – it’s about building delivery teams that actually work for your business. Whether you’re a fast-moving scale-up or an established player, aligning your delivery model to your goals, team structure and market realities can make all the difference.

By cutting through the myths and learning from real-world stories, you can unlock the flexibility, speed, and confidence to scale in a way that’s built to last.

Want to explore a smarter delivery model? Visit www.bbdsoftware.com to learn more.