In this blog, we will be learning about the benefits and challenges of outsourcing. In the early stages of any business, it is an important and helpful process. It helps you grow your business and saves time, allowing you to focus on other core tasks of your organisation. In addition, it also helps you save money and resources by providing you with high-quality work at a cheaper rate. Below, we will tell you about the benefits and challenges of outsourcing that you may come across.
Benefits of Outsourcing
Let us take the first step toward learning about the benefits and challenges of outsourcing. We will start with some of the many benefits that you can reap from outsourcing your business’s tasks. Some of these benefits are as such:
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It Is More Cost-Effective Than The Local Alternative
The most significant reason any business should adopt an outsourced employee programme is that, if implemented correctly, it results in a huge amount of bottom-line savings. That is to say, domestic skill and service providers simply cannot compete on a cost basis. In addition, the service rates locally have ballooned to some of the most expensive in the developed world. The rates of equivalent employees to be found in countries such as India offer a necessary and affordable alternative. That is to say, the potential cost savings are very significant. They can transform an unsustainable operation into a profitable one. As a result, it only takes a small drop in the customer base to tip the whole operation over the edge. Creating essential budget breathing room through the targeted implementation of outsourced staff is one of the benefits of outsourcing.
The success of the operation depends upon finding staff. One that satisfies your operating cost goals as well as maintains high standards of quality. That is to say, cost-effectiveness is a formula of price against time. In addition, there is a wide talent pool of outsourced staff available. This might appeal to your business as their hourly rates are lower. But you need to be careful when choosing an outsourcing partner. If the outsourced staff takes a long time to execute tasks, then you are not saving as much.
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It Creates Flexibility And Agility
Another reason any business outsources to a third party is that they have the work that needs doing but not enough of it to require the employment of another full-time employee. That is to say, there are tasks such as bookkeeping, finance, etc., which require execution on a changing basis. Here, an outsourced staff member can help better compared to a full-time staff member. In addition, outsourced employees, by virtue of their per-hour or per-job payment structure, offer businesses the ability to scale engagement up or down as per their needs. It is this essential flexibility of cost and agility in turnaround and delivery that can provide client businesses with the edge as conditions change, or as particular tasks arise.
As a result, if third party employees provide scalable, cost-effective options, then outsourcing-based solutions extend these savings as far as possible. These outsourcing providers allow businesses to fully realise this sense of agility, marrying the most competitive costs with quick and efficient scalability.
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It Allows Core Staff To Focus
When you have a helping hand around the organisation to take non-core tasks off of your hands, you will notice that it creates a renewed sense of focus for the existing full-time staff. By allowing the outsourced team to remove clutter and administrative tasks from their plate, key staff members are able to focus on the core big-ticket items. This is a proper example to debunk the myth that outsourcing programmes steal jobs. A lot of businesses outsource because their existing team simply would not have the time and resources to deal with anything other than the problem directly in front of them. That is to say, they would have no time to focus on the bigger picture or to formulate a strategy to carry their business forward.
Challenges Of Outsourcing
This is the next stop in our journey to learn about the benefits and challenges of outsourcing. We will be learning about the challenges that you may face when outsourcing your business tasks. Outsourcing has its own benefits as well as challenges, though these challenges can be avoided with proper communication and by choosing the right outsourcing partner to work with. Some of the challenges that you may face are as such:
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Offshore Staff Can’t Come Into The Office
It is understandable that, for the purposes of company, culture, and communication, there are a number of business owners who are nervous about implementing outsourced staff. They might feel as though integrating them into the existing infrastructure creates difficulty due to a perceived inability of outsourced staff to attend training, meetings, and team events. That is to say, communication technology has leapt forward in ways we couldn’t have imagined. As a result, an experienced partner like us is able to use this new technology to integrate staff successfully. They may not be able to actually physically come into the office. But video conferencing has enabled outsourced staff to feel as close as any other team member. Above all, it is so good at connecting employees that, these days, many local teams are working remotely as well.
In addition to that, partnering with an experienced provider such as OrangeIQ can calm the fears of team integration. We ensure that everyone is working towards the same goals and with the same aspirations. As a result, actual proximity to the business is not an issue. We can create a strong team regardless of where we are.
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There Can Be Language Barriers
Whenever you are dealing with outsourced staff, there are going to be some concerns about the language barrier. Both in terms of in-house communication channels and published content. That is to say, outsourced skill providers need to be able to communicate efficiently and effectively; otherwise, the timeline on tasks can be extended out further than desired and the costs can pile up.
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Time Zone Differences Might Be A Challenge
Any employee who has had to deal with an external overseas branch of their operation knows how time-zone differences can sometimes be an obstacle. When dealing with an employee working in another timezone, the staff on one side or another has to deal with lagging email chains, delivery times, bleary-eyed video calls in the middle of the night, etc.
These are some of the benefits and challenges of outsourcing that you face when you get into the game. But these can be avoided if you choose the right outsourcing partner. One that ensures communication and delivery standards do not deteriorate. With the right partner such as OrangeIQ, you can reap the benefits of outsourcing without having to face any of the challenges that you may have to face otherwise.
