When you Google outsourcing, you’ll find a lot of varying information regarding the industry – success stories, outsourcing fails, advice and predictions. By the time you’ve finished reading some of the articles, you’ll have more questions than what you started with. So take a step back, focus on your business processes and how you think outsourcing can help you achieve your business goals. Let’s start with that.
1. Define your goals. It’s not enough to say ‘I want my business to be successful someday’. Set a timeline, and have a plan. Say, ‘I want to double my profit in one year.’ This way you have a clear idea of the direction you want your business to go and you can create an outline of your business plan.
2. List down your processes. Determine which of these are core processes and which of these are back office tasks. How much time are you spending for each process? Are you using your time wisely?
3. Determine which processes can be outsourced and which ones to keep in-house.
4. Check your budget. Do you have enough funds to hire people in-house? One of the top reasons why businesses choose to outsource is cost savings.
5. Know your own weaknesses and outsource those processes which you’re not good at doing.
6. Partner with a reliable specialist. Hire a professional outsourcing agency with years of experience and proven track record of success. Ask for certifications and licenses to make sure you are dealing with a legit company.
7. Weigh the trade-offs. Outsourcing brings lots of benefits and risks. Your goal would be to find an outsourcing partner who takes measures to minimize these risks. For example, working with an ISO-certified partner lowers the chance of data breach.
Remember that outsourcing is all about taking care of your business processes with minimal expenses and effort. By taking these things into consideration, you will have a good initial idea whether or not you should outsource your business processes. Outsourcing allows you to control the most vital processes while still being operationally effective.