Mission Agency Outsources to India with Great Success
Wycliffe Bible Translator’s Initiative to Accelerate Translation Time by 10 YearsGrand Rapids, MI – By utilizing offshore resources in India for software development, Wycliffe Bible Translators is making a significant addition to its IT development team, re-engaging lapsed donors and ultimately developing tools that are estimated to accelerate the bible translation process by ten years or more. For this innovative project, Wycliffe Bible Translators partnered with EC Group International, a Grand Rapids, MI company to provide dedicated, high quality software developers.
In October 2006 a team was formed in India enabling Wycliffe to make a significant addition to its Information Technology (IT) development efforts. Wycliffe was able to hire top Indian talent to meet the specific IT needs of the organization, including the necessary Oracle resources that have been a struggle to fill prior to this initiative. An executive at Wycliffe explains: “The team of software test engineers who are working for us at Sudyk Datasoft in Chennai have greatly enhanced our software development process - thus enabling us to produce better software on a timely schedule.”
In October 2006 a team was formed in India enabling Wycliffe to make a significant addition to its Information Technology (IT) development efforts. Wycliffe was able to hire top Indian talent to meet the specific IT needs of the organization, including the necessary Oracle resources that have been a struggle to fill prior to this initiative. An executive at Wycliffe explains: “The team of software test engineers who are working for us at Sudyk Datasoft in Chennai have greatly enhanced our software development process - thus enabling us to produce better software on a timely schedule.”
Wycliffe’s India resources are developing software tools to facilitate the translation of scripture into new languages. By making these tools accessible to Bible translators with a wide range of translation skill levels, there is greater involvement from the church world-wide and decreased dependence on Western personnel and funding. Wycliffe historically has relied on a volunteer force of software developers in the US who raise their own financial support. By locating development activities in India, US volunteers require less funding and get the experience of an international assignment. The new software tools operate on less expensive computers, multiplying resources and decreasing costs.
Not only that, but long-term assignments in India, require 30% less funding than is needed to
relocate to the Orlando office of Wycliffe USA.The innovative utilization of outsourcing is attractive to Wycliffe’s donor base and has energized a large number of lapsed donors. A recent calling campaign, related to a matching grant for the project, resulted in pledges from over 3,400 individuals who had not donated to the organization in over two-years. These lapsed donors contributed over $125,000 and are now re-engaged with the vision of Wycliffe.
relocate to the Orlando office of Wycliffe USA.The innovative utilization of outsourcing is attractive to Wycliffe’s donor base and has energized a large number of lapsed donors. A recent calling campaign, related to a matching grant for the project, resulted in pledges from over 3,400 individuals who had not donated to the organization in over two-years. These lapsed donors contributed over $125,000 and are now re-engaged with the vision of Wycliffe.
The software developers were recruited in India by Sudyk DataSoft Private Ltd,. a Christian owned and operated company committed to sharing Christ with its employees, vendors and neighbors.
Sudyk DataSoft, located in Chennai, has been in operation in India since 1999 and currently has a staff of 85 people. It provides software development services to companies in North America, as well as medical and audio transcription services. Sudyk DataSoft is a subsidiary of EC Group
International, a Business as Mission company active in promoting the concept of spreading the
gospel in restricted access countries through business.
International, a Business as Mission company active in promoting the concept of spreading the
gospel in restricted access countries through business.
Wycliffe Bible Translators is a mission agency with its international headquarters in Dallas, Texas, USA. Through Vision 2025, it is their goal to see a Bible translation program in progress in every language still needing one by the year 2025.
Labels: EC Group, India, Outsourcing, Traditional Mission Agencies and BAM, Wycliffe Bible Translators
