As Vietnam moves from low-tech manufacturing to a service-oriented economy, the country’s information technology (IT) market is increasingly gaining traction, giving competition to IT firms in China and India. This has partly been encouraged by the growth of Vietnam as a regional market for domestic enterprises and global technology vendors.

Why you should work with Vietnamese IT companies

Local software producers mostly provide their products to government and small and medium-sized enterprises, while larger Vietnamese companies generally look to multinationals for software. As internet infrastructure starts to improve, more demand for areas such as software as a service (or, on-demand software) and other cloud-computing services should pick up. 

What you should pay attention to when working with Vietnamese IT companies

The underdeveloped IT sector and infrastructure, as well as a relatively low level of education in IT, make Vietnamese companies less attractive to foreign customers. Additionally, IT companies and web agencies from Vietnam face systemic problems with cybersecurity, piracy rate and efficient communication among others.  

Cybersecurity is a particular vulnerability for Vietnam, and one of the most notable cases happened in 2016, when an alleged Chinese hacker group, 137CN, carrying out a number of cyberattacks on Vietnam’s airports as well as the official website of the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines in which the airline’s customer database was stolen and made public on the internet.

In 2019 there were a total of 31,500 security incidents in the country, according to the Vietnam Computer Emergency Response Team. In the first half of 2020 alone the number of incidents was 4.4 times higher compared with a year earlier. 

How reliable are Vietnam based IT companies 

Under the strongly growing digital economy, major opportunities are opening for investors, especially those who want to provide products and services based on new technologies. Combining this and the cheap market price, Investors rely on Vietnamese IT companies to provide the needed digital services. 

But the situation is different in the regional market, where potential clients have a wide range of countries and companies were to choose from for their web or software projects. 

How does the Vietnamese IT industry relate to the neighboring countries

IT outsourcing services generate around $3bn a year, according to Vinasa. However, Vietnam is still a boutique market when it comes to outsourcing and lags behind its regional peers such as India and the Philippines, which earned $98bn and $21.3bn, respectively, from providing IT services. 

Node Js is a JavaScript runtime environment that allows developers to run JavaScript code on the server-side. Unlike traditional server-side technologies like PHP or Ruby, which are typically used for handling server tasks, Node.js enables developers to use JavaScript for both client-side and server-side development. Below we’ll dive deeper into the types of projects built with it, and how companies can leverage it for their projects:

Node.js is built on the V8 JavaScript engine from Google, making it incredibly fast and efficient. It uses an event-driven, non-blocking I/O model, which makes it ideal for building scalable and real-time applications. Node.js is particularly well-suited for projects that require high concurrency, such as web applications, APIs, chat applications, streaming services, and more. It has a large and active community, which has led to a rich ecosystem of libraries and packages available via npm (Node Package Manager), simplifying development tasks.

As for the type of projects that can be built using Node.js, we can name the following:

1. Web Applications:  Many web applications are built using Node.js, often using web frameworks like Express.js. These applications can range from small personal websites to large-scale, enterprise-level platforms.
2. APIs (Application Programming Interfaces):  Node.js is commonly used to create RESTful APIs that allow different services or applications to communicate with each other. This is essential for building services that provide data to mobile apps, websites, and other clients.
3. Real-time Applications:  Node.js is favored for real-time applications, such as chat applications, online gaming, and collaborative tools. The event-driven architecture of Node.js is well-suited for handling multiple concurrent connections.
4. Streaming Services:  Media streaming platforms and services that deliver audio and video content use Node.js to efficiently manage and serve media files to users.
5. IoT (Internet of Things):  Node.js is used in IoT projects to handle data collection from sensors and devices, process that data, and communicate with cloud services.
6. Serverless Functions:  Node.js is a popular choice for building serverless functions or AWS Lambda functions due to its lightweight and quick startup times.

Node.js is a versatile technology that can be effectively utilized in both smaller and larger projects, but its suitability hinges on several key factors.

For smaller projects, Node.js offers distinct advantages. Its event-driven, non-blocking I/O model allows developers to rapidly prototype and develop applications. This makes it an excellent choice for creating functional prototypes, minimum viable products (MVPs), or simple web tools swiftly.

Node.js's efficiency in handling I/O operations can lead to responsive user experiences, which is valuable for small-scale applications like personal websites, blogs, or straightforward web tools. Moreover, Node.js itself is lightweight, making it suitable for projects with minimal hardware or resource requirements. It doesn't impose significant overhead, making it a cost-effective option.

Node.js is also well-suited for serving as a backend for Single-Page Applications (SPAs), handling API requests, and serving static files efficiently. Its ability to use JavaScript both on the server and client sides can reduce development costs by enabling code reuse and a single development skill set.

For larger projects, Node.js remains a compelling choice for various reasons. Its ability to handle a large number of concurrent connections positions it favorably for projects with high traffic and user loads. It's designed to scale efficiently, allowing it to distribute workloads across multiple servers or containers, making it scalable and robust.

In larger applications with complex functionality, Node.js can be employed to build microservices that communicate efficiently with each other. This modular approach enhances maintainability and facilitates development on a larger scale.

Node.js's event-driven nature also makes it an ideal candidate for larger projects requiring real-time features. It excels in managing multiple simultaneous connections, making it suitable for applications such as messaging platforms, online gaming, or collaborative tools.

Additionally, Node.js continues to offer development speed advantages regardless of project size, which can be particularly valuable in meeting tight project deadlines.

Furthermore, for larger projects with JavaScript as the primary language on both the frontend and backend, Node.js facilitates streamlined development processes, code sharing, and collaboration among teams working on different parts of the application.