Outsourcing is a crucial part of growing a business. With 5.5 million businesses in the UK working with 49 employees or less, it is simply not possible for the average company to cater to every need in-house, where third-party vendors can fill gaps expertly and with ease. This is not to say that outsourcing is without its pitfalls, though. Here are some chief considerations to make when outsourcing work of any kind.
Loss of Control
Outsourcing requires a degree of trust in the service you are utilizing; as a third-party service, none of its operators are directly beholden to you as a manager or leader. This can be difficult to reconcile, especially if the element you are outsourcing has a public element such as customer service.
Choosing the right service can allay many fears on this front, where regular liaison and transparency in execution can show you that the work is well-attended.
Mismatched Services
However, there remains the distinct possibility that the outsourcing solution you choose isn’t the right fit for your company. They might be relatively new to your industry, or too small to have invested in the right equipment to deliver your desired outcome.
In the event that an outsourcer does not – or cannot – provide the solution they have promised, professional negligence can be a valid option for recouping any losses incurred as a result.
Better still, though, that the right vendor is chosen from the beginning in order to prevent disruption. Vetting needs to be a core part of the outsourcing process, to ensure the vendor you choose can provide the quality and quantity you require.
Poor Communication
Communication is the single thread by which outsourced work can be monitored in-situ, and poor communication from a vendor can breed concern over the status of said work.
You might have outsourced the graphic design for a brochure, and received no updates on progress in the days running up to the print deadline – something which leaves you with few options when the deadline passes.
Outsourcing the Right Work
As a more general note on the practice of outsourcing, it is vital that you as a business leader understand what is better suited for outsourcing within your company. As a painfully simple example, you may already have a financial department – even if staffed by one or two people –, but you may be outsourcing payroll to a third party.
This might make initial sense for alleviating pressure on a small team, but would it be cheaper to expand the team than to retain an outsourcing vendor? The answer might differ from business to business, but it is important to weigh up the values of outsourcing over any in-house options.
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