Top industry recognition for Bangladeshi software company

A Bangladeshi software company participating in a CBI Export Coaching Programme (ECP) has received the highest possible industry rating from a celebrated US-based institute.

Innovative character

Based in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Datasoft is a software company that has completed many award-winning and innovative projects. Recently, thanks to its innovative character, development know-how, and more than a little help from CBI, it was recognised as a CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integration) Level 5 Software Development Company.

Responsive

The recognition came from the CMMI Institute, a process-improvement appraisal programme administered by Carnegie Mellon University in the US. Acknowledged as an industry standard, CMMI assesses the internal functions of a company and how responsive it is to its clients’ business needs. CMMI Level 5 is the highest recognition a software company can achieve and Datasoft is the first company in Bangladesh to receive it, and one of only 377 worldwide.

Rare

The main focus of CBI’s ECP was exporting to Europe, explains CBI consultant Peter Vogelaar who provided much of the coaching during the programme. “Attaining CMMI Level 5, as Datasoft has done, is quite rare, even in Europe. It shows European clients that they work in a proper and structured way so I’m certain it will now help them expand their clientele.”

Avoiding pitfalls

Apparently, the biggest problem facing companies like Datasoft is that they are not aware of how things work in the developed world. “The ECP shows them how to avoid making about six of the ten mistakes they’d probably otherwise make when entering a new market,” assures Vogelaar, who also runs his own software company. Like all CBI consultants, he speaks from experience.

Competitive edge

Current demographics mean that European companies will increasingly need to outsource software development to companies like Datasoft in countries like Bangladesh, explains Vogelaar. “An ageing population means there are fewer Europeans studying IT while the market for it is growing. To maintain their competitive edge European companies have no choice but to outsource much of this type of work.”

Firmly on the map

Manjur Mahmud, chief operating officer of DataSoft said the move is undoubtedly a prestigious recognition for the company and for Bangladesh's IT industry. It puts the country firmly on the global software development map, meaning that Bangladeshi companies will be taken more seriously. “It is a great acknowledgement for our company and for Bangladesh,” he added. “We hope this achievement will be an inspiration for us to develop our organisation more toward contributing to the country's ICT sector and the global ICT sector too.”

For more information about Datasoft go to: www.datasoft-bd.com