IT Skills Shortage: When Projects Cannot Wait
Around 109,000 IT positions are unfilled in Germany. On average, it takes 7.7 months to fill an open IT role. Projects, roadmaps and client requirements continue regardless.
Delvera coordinates international engineering capacity for exactly these project gaps. You work with a German contract partner. Delvera coordinates the international delivery setup and stays engaged for communication, quality and escalation.
For IT service providers and companies with ongoing projects, specific skill gaps or critical start dates.
Source: Bitkom Research, IT labour market study, June 2025.
Skills shortage meets project reality
An open IT role is rarely just an open role. It can mean that a client project starts later, a backlog grows or a planned go-live comes under pressure.
Internal recruiting remains the right path for long-term core roles. In practice, however, it does not close every short-term project gap. Selection processes, notice periods, availability and onboarding take time. This is particularly true for experienced engineering, cloud, data or business applications specialisations.
When a project, a migration or a client requirement cannot wait several months, an additional option is needed: a clearly delimited project setup that fits the specific need.
Typical situations
Fixed project dates
A client project, a migration or a go-live is scheduled. Internal hiring takes longer than the project plan allows.
Short-term skill gaps
The project is missing a specific specialisation for a limited period, for example Java, cloud, DevOps, QA, data or business applications.
Capacity pressure in ongoing projects
The internal team is already at capacity. New requirements, additional client projects or a growing backlog cannot be absorbed indefinitely.
A German contract partner for international delivery setups
International engineering capacity can make sense. But it brings additional questions around communication, contract structure, data protection, escalation and coordination. Someone needs to bring these together in the end.
Delvera consolidates these topics via a German contract partner and a fixed point of contact in Germany. You do not need to coordinate multiple international partners, contract relationships and communication channels yourself.
What this means in practice
One contract framework, one invoicing flow
The specific contract framework, invoicing and responsibilities are agreed via Delvera in Germany. You hold one contract relationship, not several in parallel.
Data protection and access requirements clarified before start
Data protection, access and data-processing requirements are reviewed within the specific setup before project start and contractually defined. This includes the question of which data touches which locations.
One point of contact for coordination, status and escalation
Delvera remains your contract partner and point of contact in Germany for the agreed setup. Status alignment, escalation and contract questions run via a German-speaking contact within the overlapping working window.
When additional external project capacity can make sense
Additional external project capacity is not a substitute for every internal hire. For strategic core roles, long-term knowledge build-up and central leadership functions, internal recruiting can remain the right decision.
An additional setup can make sense in particular when projects need to stay deliverable and internal teams lack specific expertise, capacity or scheduling flexibility in the short term.
A fit for
- project peaks and temporarily elevated delivery demand
- specific engineering or consulting gaps
- ongoing client projects with fixed deadlines
- backlogs that need to be reduced quickly
- transition phases during an ongoing recruiting process
- requirements where the needed specialisation is not currently available internally
For individual specialists in ongoing projects: Team Extension.
Not the right answer for every situation
An additional setup is not automatically a good fit when:
- a long-term key role is to be built up internally on a permanent basis
- project scope, tasks or decision paths are still unclear
- no clear technical point of contact exists on the client side
- communication, access and collaboration cannot be set up in a structured way
- the need is described only as a general capacity wish, without clear project context, task area or scope of responsibility
How Delvera scopes the right project approach
Delvera does not start with the question of whether nearshore or offshore is better, nor with a prepared staffing offer. The first step is to clearly scope the specific need.
We review together which requirements emerge from the project, which seniority is needed, which collaboration realistically works and which location model fits the need.
Four steps to scope the setup
Clarify project need and scope of responsibility
Project phase, task area, scope, technical requirements, expected outcomes and the necessary scope of responsibility are scoped together.
Review skill requirements and communication needs
We clarify which experience, seniority, language skills and alignment formats the project requires.
Match location model, budget and availability
We review which nearshore, offshore or hybrid setup fits the project, the communication window and the available budget framework.
Set a realistic start date
We clarify which options are realistic with regard to availability, project start and the preparation required.
How Delvera works
Delvera does not start with a prepared offer but with the specific project need. From this emerges a delimited delivery setup with clear roles, responsibilities and communication paths.
Delvera coordinates the agreed delivery setup. Technical requirements, priorities and acceptance are aligned with the responsible people on the client side.
How Delvera coordinates project start and collaboration
Once the right setup is scoped, the actual delivery preparation begins. What matters then is not only the technical fit, but also clear collaboration between everyone involved.
Delvera coordinates the project start from Germany and stays engaged as a point of contact for communication, quality and escalation.
What is clarified before and during the start
Communication rhythm and contacts
Alignment paths, fixed contacts, meeting rhythm and communication windows are clearly defined before project start.
Tasks, interfaces and handovers
Project-related responsibilities, handovers, access and interfaces are prepared in a structured way.
Transparency during the project
Progress, open items and possible risks are reviewed regularly, so that problems do not only surface when a deadline is already at risk.
Quality and escalation
When quality, communication or collaboration are not working, Delvera clarifies the root cause, structures the next steps and reviews whether roles, communication or the setup need to be adjusted.
Delvera's role
- Contract partner and point of contact in Germany
- Coordination of project start
- Alignment of communication and responsibility paths
- Oversight of quality, transparency and escalation
- Selection of engineering partners, quality assurance and continuity coverage
- Interface between the client and the international partner network
Internal recruiting and additional project capacity compared
Both models can make sense. What decides is whether long-term knowledge build-up or short-term project deliverability is the priority.
Internal recruiting
Build a long-term core role internally
Additional project capacity
Cover a specific project gap or skill need
Internal recruiting
Depends on labour market, selection process, notice period and onboarding
Additional project capacity
Depends on project requirement, seniority, location model and availability
Internal recruiting
Set up for the long term
Additional project capacity
Plannable per project and per need
Internal recruiting
Build knowledge and responsibility permanently in-house
Additional project capacity
Secure ongoing projects, backlogs or fixed start dates
Internal recruiting
Employment relationship under German law
Additional project capacity
Contractually defined project and delivery setup with a German contract partner
Internal recruiting
Strategic core roles and long-term team structures
Additional project capacity
Project peaks, specialised requirements and time-critical initiatives
Internal recruiting
Time to hire, dropouts and onboarding effort
Additional project capacity
Communication model, responsibilities and collaboration must be clearly defined upfront
The decision is not either recruiting or additional project capacity. In many situations the two approaches complement each other: while a long-term core role is built up internally, a clearly delimited external setup can help keep ongoing projects deliverable.
Who this page is relevant for
IT service providers with client projects
When a project start, an extension or a client need arrives faster than internal capacity planning can catch up.
Mid-market companies with open IT roles
When central IT roles are open, but ongoing projects, transformation initiatives or operational requirements cannot wait.
Topic page: IT Outsourcing for Mid-Market Companies.
Companies under specific delivery pressure
When backlogs are growing, specialised expertise is missing or a project deadline is at risk and a clearly structured setup is needed at short notice.
Current focus
In the current phase Delvera focuses on the German mid-market, industry and IT service providers outside heavily regulated sectors such as banking, insurance, healthcare, public sector and critical infrastructure. We are building targeted capability for those sectors in a later phase.
Which technical focus areas can Delvera scope on a project basis?
Delvera reviews suitable engineering and consulting setups from active nearshore and offshore partnerships on a project basis. Which technical focus areas can realistically be scoped at short notice depends on the project need, the required experience, the location model and current availability.
Software and platform
Backend, fullstack, frontend, QA and test automation, DevOps, cloud engineering
Data and AI
Data engineering, automation, AI/ML
Business applications and delivery
ServiceNow, Salesforce, SAP-adjacent topics, technical lead roles, delivery coordination and selected project coordination roles, UX/UI
Common questions
When does additional external project capacity make sense?
When projects, roadmaps or client requirements cannot wait for a recruiting process to conclude and internal teams are missing specific expertise or capacity in the short term.
How quickly can a project start realistically?
The specific time to start depends on how clearly project scope, requirements, access, location model and availability are already scoped. For complete setups including contract and start preparation, a window of four to six weeks after contract signing is often realistic.
Who do I sign the contract with?
Your contract partner is Delvera GmbH in Munich. The specific contract framework for your project, including statement of work, data protection agreement and responsibilities, is scoped in the initial call and finalised before start.
Which technical focus areas can Delvera review?
Delvera reviews engineering, QA, DevOps, cloud, data and selected consulting setups, for example ServiceNow, Salesforce or SAP-adjacent topics. What is feasible always depends on the specific project need.
How is the budget framework scoped?
The budget framework depends on project scope, technical seniority, location model, duration, communication needs and availability. These factors are scoped together in the first conversation.
What happens if quality or communication does not fit?
When quality or communication does not fit, Delvera clarifies the root cause together with you and the partner network, agrees the next steps and reviews whether roles, communication or the setup need to be adjusted. Escalation runs via a German contact partner.
Does internal recruiting still make sense?
Yes. For long-term core roles and sustainable knowledge build-up, internal recruiting can be the right decision. Additional project capacity is particularly useful when projects need to stay deliverable in the short term.
Why does Delvera start with the project need rather than with individual profiles?
Delvera does not start with individual profiles but with the specific project need. We scope requirements, technical seniority, location model, communication needs, budget framework, availability and start date. We then coordinate a fitting project setup with Delvera GmbH as the contract partner.
Scope your project gap in a structured way
You have a specific project gap, a growing backlog or a fixed project deadline?
In a 30-minute conversation we review together which project setup can make sense, which location model fits, which budget framework is realistic and which start date would be possible.
No obligation. Clearly scoped. One point of contact in Germany.