Introducing 'SuperCoder' Connecting Skilled Developers from Vietnam and India to Korea

[Start人] Startup Connecting Verified Overseas Developers with Domestic and International Companies
Solving Developer Entry Difficulties... Providing Remote Services
'Microsoft (MS) Launcher' Officially Launched on the 29th of Last Month Participation

Yoon Chang-min, CEO of Supercoder. [Photo by Supercoder]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwak Min-jae] Supercoder is a startup that provides a service connecting verified overseas developers with companies. It handles competency assessments and HR management so that domestic companies facing developer shortages can hire skilled developers from developing countries such as Vietnam and India. Having partnered with Microsoft Korea (MS) on the 29th of last month to address the developer shortage, the company plans to actively focus on supplying developers.

Yoon Chang-min, CEO of Supercoder, said, “After graduating from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) graduate school and working at four startups, I realized why companies struggle to hire developers. While companies want to hire competent developers, the market supplies mostly entry-level developers, causing a ‘mid-to-senior developer mismatch’ problem. To solve this, I decided to start a business last June with people from graduate school,” he explained.

Supercoder focused on overseas developers to solve the domestic developer shortage. Developers from developing countries like Vietnam and India have relatively strong development skills but lower labor costs than domestic developers. CEO Yoon noted, “The salary of developers in Vietnam is about one-third that of domestic developers, but they possess mid-to-senior level development skills. Especially, Vietnamese developers can earn higher salaries in Korea than in their home country, and domestic companies can save at least 50% in costs compared to hiring Korean developers, creating a win-win structure.”

Do domestic companies trust the capabilities of overseas developers supplied by Supercoder? This is where CEO Yoon has put the most effort. Supercoder conducts a total of three competency assessments to select high-quality developers. First, they evaluate English proficiency and communication skills through a phone interview. Next, they conduct a coding test, and finally, a ‘live coding’ session where candidates are given real-time scenarios to code. CEO Yoon said, “Only 5% of applicants pass Supercoder’s competency assessments. Only those who pass this process enter the developer talent pool, and when a client requests, we recommend suitable personnel and refine the service through performance reviews, earning the trust of demanding domestic companies.”

Although many companies want mid-to-senior overseas developers, there have been challenges. Developers from developing countries face high barriers such as visa issues to physically enter Korea. To solve this, CEO Yoon turned to remote services. He said, “Unlike large corporations, it is practically very difficult for startups and SMEs to resolve visa issues for overseas personnel. After COVID-19, remote work technology has rapidly advanced, and the time difference between Vietnam, India, and Korea is not significant, making remote services feasible.”

Supercoder decided to participate in Microsoft Launcher (a Korean startup-tailored support program) officially launched on the 29th of last month. They plan to assist developer hiring by providing developer competency assessments and recruitment recommendation services. The company explains that by waiving the developer recruitment fee once, companies can save about 10 million KRW when hiring a developer with an annual salary of 50 million KRW. CEO Yoon said, “We will establish development processes aligned with global development standards, focusing on startups and SMEs facing developer supply difficulties, and help clients achieve the best performance with global developers.”

This year, Supercoder was also designated as an official partner of the global company Deel. Deel supports companies in hiring overseas developers by facilitating contracts compliant with local labor regulations and enabling payroll payments in over 120 currencies through HR automation services. It has about 6,000 clients worldwide. Supercoder, which secured 300 million KRW in seed investment from Mashup Angels, a startup-focused early-stage investor, and was selected for the TIPS program by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, aims to raise Series A investment within the year.

CEO Yoon stated, “The shortage of mid-to-senior developers is not a problem unique to domestic companies. We have carefully supplied 40 developers to 32 clients in countries facing similar difficulties, such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Our goal is to enhance the service and supply 400 developers by the end of the year.”