In 2014, CPH & Associates, an insurance company based in Chicago, set out to simplify how its clients interact with their providers. It needed a team that could turn that vision into a unified digital platform, in a domain defined by compliance, security demands, and detailed workflows.
This nearshore partnership case study follows how CPH and Scio, working in overlapping Mexico and Chicago hours, turned a single project into a partnership that continues today. It also shows what made it work, for CTOs weighing a similar decision.
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Nearshore Partnership Case Study: CPH at a Glance
CPH & Associates, an insurance company based in Chicago, partnered with Scio in 2014 to build a unified digital platform for clients and insurers. Scio's nearshore team in Mexico worked in real time with Chicago, guided the platform's modernization, and has grown with the client since. The partnership continues today, with dozens of Scio developers contributing over the years.
| Client | CPH & Associates, an insurance company based in Chicago |
| Started | 2014 |
| Challenge | Build a unified digital platform for clients and insurers, in a domain with strict compliance, security demands, and detailed workflows |
| Solution | A nearshore team from Scio in Mexico, working in overlapping hours with Chicago |
| Scope | Platform development and modernization: updating architecture, strengthening security, and ensuring system scalability |
| Team | Dozens of Scio developers have contributed over the years |
| Outcome | A partnership that began as a project in 2014 and continues to evolve |
| 2014 year the partnership began | Dozens of Scio developers have contributed | Daily sprint outcome reviews in real time with Chicago |
What Challenge Did CPH Bring to Scio?
CPH wanted a unified digital platform for its clients and insurers, built around convenience, transparency, and a modern customer experience. The vision was simple to state and complex to deliver. Insurance brings strict compliance, security demands, and detailed workflows, so the company needed a partner that could understand both the business and the people behind it.
Finding that partner meant more than outsourcing talent. Ameet Shahani, Director of Technology at CPH, later recalled the first conversations this way: “Scio’s first approach had substance.” Scio did not sell hours. It proposed ideas, and instead of only asking what needed to be done, it asked why.
That question shaped the engagement. The early meetings were about alignment on goals, not only timelines and budgets, and the collaboration found its balance over time as trust built on both sides.
How Did Scio Structure the Partnership?
Scio built the partnership on four factors: trust, communication, industry experience, and technology expertise. Each one answered a specific need in the CPH engagement. Overlapping time zones between Mexico and Chicago let the teams work in real time, and Scio's experience in regulated sectors made compliance needs and workflows easier to meet.
| Factor | Why it matters | How it worked with CPH |
| Trust | Lets both teams move forward confidently, take risks, and solve problems before they escalate | CPH trusted Scio early because Scio focused on solutions, not only deliverables. When issues arose, the teams faced them together. |
| Communication | Keeps everyone aligned on the same vision and prevents wasted effort | With overlapping time zones between Mexico and Chicago, the teams worked in real time, reviewing sprint outcomes daily and keeping a shared rhythm. |
| Industry experience | Helps predict risks, streamline processes, and design for the industry | Scio's background in regulated sectors such as healthcare and insurance made it easier to meet CPH's compliance needs and workflows. |
| Technology expertise | Lets teams master the tools and technologies that sustain the business | Scio guided CPH through modernization: updating architecture, strengthening security, and ensuring system scalability. |
A Team That Rotates Without Losing Momentum
Over the years, dozens of Scio developers have contributed to the project. Shared time zones, similar professional standards, and cultural proximity let new developers join ongoing work smoothly, contribute quickly, and bring fresh energy to a long-term initiative. For Scio, the project became a place where engineers refined their craft and learned about compliance-heavy environments.
Scio develops these engineers through Scio Elevate, a framework that combines technical skill with empathy, communication, and adaptability. For more on how Scio approaches this, read our guide to culturally aligned nearshore teams.
What Results Has the Partnership Delivered?
The partnership that began in 2014 continues today. CPH and Scio review sprint outcomes daily in real time, the platform has been modernized in architecture, security, and scalability, and dozens of Scio developers have contributed. Shahani described the work as meaningful, which captures the client's view of a long-term engagement.
| Outcome | Result | Context |
| Partnership longevity | A partnership that began in 2014 and continues to evolve | It started as a project and became a long-term collaboration |
| Collaboration rhythm | Daily sprint outcome reviews in real time | Overlapping time zones between Mexico and Chicago |
| Platform modernization | Architecture updated, security strengthened, scalability ensured | Scio guided CPH through modernization |
| Team continuity | Dozens of Scio developers contributed over the years | Talent rotated without losing momentum |
In Shahani's words, “It’s not the flashiest project out there, but it’s meaningful.” That kind of work, Scio's team notes, calls for patience, experience, and people who care. It is about building systems that last, not chasing trends.
What Can Other Teams Learn From CPH and Scio?
Five lessons stand out: collaboration is intentional, culture works as a system, learning runs both ways, trust compounds, and proximity matters. Each comes from the CPH engagement. Together they point to one idea: alignment creates acceleration, because teams that share values and hours make decisions faster.
| Lesson | What it means |
| Collaboration is intentional | It requires time, openness, and shared rituals such as retrospectives, honest feedback, and transparency about challenges. |
| Culture is a system | How people treat each other and resolve conflict directly shapes the success of a project. |
| Learning is mutual | CPH gained flexibility and innovation. Scio gained domain expertise and a trusted partner. |
| Trust compounds | Every project milestone reinforces reliability. Over time, trust becomes the most valuable deliverable. |
| Proximity matters | Working in similar time zones supports real-time collaboration and faster decisions. |
Google's team effectiveness research points the same way. It ranked psychological safety first among five dynamics that set teams apart, and the Agile principles name face-to-face conversation as the most efficient way to convey information within a team. For more on shared hours, see our notes on time zone alignment in software development.
Is This Approach Right for Your Team?
This approach fits mid-market companies that run compliance-heavy software and need a partner who stays. If your platform carries regulatory requirements, security demands, and detailed workflows, continuity of people and shared working hours matter as much as the stack. The CPH case shows that model working over time.
It applies to software companies building products in regulated markets, and to businesses running proprietary software that need to modernize without disrupting operations. Scio staffs these needs through dedicated teams and approaches legacy upgrades through pragmatic application modernization. To judge any partner, use our guide to evaluating a nearshore software partner.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes nearshore partnerships successful?
Strong communication, aligned cultures, and trust built over time. In the CPH engagement, overlapping Mexico and Chicago hours supported daily real-time sprint reviews, and both sides treated the project as a shared mission. That rhythm turned a 2014 project into a partnership that continues today.
Who is CPH & Associates and what did Scio build with them?
CPH & Associates is an insurance company based in Chicago. In 2014 it set out to create a unified digital platform for its clients and insurers. Scio's nearshore team in Mexico built and evolved it, guiding modernization of the architecture, security, and scalability along the way.
How does Scio ensure cultural alignment with U.S. companies?
Through open communication, shared agile practices, and training in Scio Elevate, a program focused on collaboration, empathy, and adaptability. Scio treats cultural alignment as part of how it hires, trains, and grows teams, which is how engineers join long-running work like CPH and contribute quickly.
Why do overlapping time zones matter for a long-term partnership?
Shared hours allow real-time collaboration and faster decisions. With CPH, the Mexico and Chicago teams reviewed sprint outcomes daily and kept a common rhythm. That daily contact helped both sides catch misunderstandings early and solve problems before they escalated, which supports trust over a long engagement.
What industries benefit most from nearshore partnerships?
SaaS, insurance, healthcare, and fintech, where compliance, agility, and innovation rely on constant collaboration. Scio's experience in regulated sectors such as healthcare and insurance helped it meet CPH's compliance needs and workflows from the start of the engagement, and the same logic applies to other regulated, workflow-heavy domains.
How can I start a nearshore collaboration with Scio?
Reach out through the Scio contact page. Scio discusses your goals, evaluates your current needs, and assembles a team that fits your vision, working in overlapping hours with your team just as it did with CPH, and keeps supporting the team as it grows.
The Bottom Line
The CPH story is a long-term answer to a simple question: what turns a vendor into a partner? Shared goals, honest communication, relevant industry experience, and the technical skill to modernize a regulated platform. The results are not a single number but a partnership that has lasted and kept evolving.
If you read this nearshore partnership case study and recognize your own situation, the next step is a conversation about goals and constraints. Talk with Scio about building your own long-term engineering partnership.
References and Further Reading
- Google re:Work. Understand team effectiveness, on the five dynamics and psychological safety. https://rework.withgoogle.com/intl/en/guides/understand-team-effectiveness
- Agile Manifesto. Principles behind the Agile Manifesto, on face-to-face conversation and sustainable pace. https://agilemanifesto.org/principles.html
- Scio. Software companies, the segment page for independent software firms. https://sciodev.com/who-we-help/tech-software-companies/
- Scio. Businesses running proprietary software, the segment page. https://sciodev.com/who-we-help/businesses-running-proprietary-software/
- Scio. Dedicated Teams, on engineers working inside a client's workflow and hours. https://sciodev.com/services/dedicated-teams/
- Scio. Pragmatic Application Modernization, on phased upgrades of legacy software. https://sciodev.com/solutions/pragmatic-application-modernization/
- Scio blog. Culturally Aligned Nearshore Teams. https://sciodev.com/blog/culturally-aligned-nearshore-teams/
- Scio blog. Time Zone Alignment in Software Development. https://sciodev.com/blog/time-zone-alignment-software-development/
- Scio blog. How to Evaluate a Nearshore Software Partner. https://sciodev.com/blog/evaluate-nearshore-software-partner/