Making a business grow is always the end goal. Thus, business owners use different strategies to achieve it. One of the ways they do it is by hiring professionals to come up with techniques to make the road to success smoother.
Enter the rise of outsourcing companies.
In this digital age, looking for service providers is now made easy. You can hire professionals to do different tasks from outsourcing companies across the globe. Not only is it convenient—it’s also cost-effective and efficient. That said; many businesses take advantage of this strategy as it has also become the norm.
The question now is: Should you also ride the wave of offshoring; or should you stick to doing your projects in-house? The answer mainly depends on your needs at the time. To help you realize that need, here’s what you need to know about outsourcing companies.
What is Outsourcing?
As previously stated, it’s very easy to hire services online from customer support and IT, to manufacturing and human resources. To simply define outsourcing, it involves hiring remote workers to do specific tasks for the organization. It’s a common practice in businesses to outsource non-core tasks and let in-house staff focus on their main responsibilities.
For instance, you need more people to handle your clients’ concerns and inquiries. Instead of hiring new employees, training them, and giving them the mandatory benefits, you can just hire outsourcing companies to do all the daunting tasks and provide you with the staffing solution you need. You can consider outsourcing as a good business strategy and a tool to use when you need it.
Benefits of Outsourcing
Outsourcing has been a great help to many businesses. Because whether your business is a start-up or a well-established one, not all tasks can be managed solely by the company. On that note, many business owners opt to outsource some of the tasks to third-party vendors. Needless to say, it has a lot of benefits. Here are the top 10 reasons companies choose to outsource.
- Cost-effective
- Time-saving
- Excellent service guaranteed
- In-house staff can focus on their core duties
- Increases productivity
- Round-the-clock staffing solutions
- 24/7 customer support
- Access to advanced tools and resources
- Working with competent and highly qualified professionals
- Gain connection with other business owners
Top Outsourced Industries
With the advancement of technology, many services are now offered online. These include projects that are commonly outsourced such as customer support and digital marketing to name a few. No wonder most industries are now open to this strategy. Check out some of the industries that leverage from outsourcing.
1. IT Outsourcing
Whether for a new app, IT system maintenance, or any tech-related task; business owners have now begun outsourcing their IT needs to outside firms. Why? Well, for some, it is a cheap way to ensure their servers keep running and emails keep being delivered without the rigmarole of managing—and paying for—an entire department.
2. Project-Based Outsourcing
As you run and grow your business, you’ll encounter projects that come in all shapes and sizes. For instance, you might want to launch an ad campaign, but don’t have an in-house creative staff to get it off the ground. Rather than starting an entire team for seasonal projects like this, outsourcing it would be much wiser. You can save time and money and leave the tasks to the hands of real experts.
3. Manufacturing Outsourcing
This one may be the most common and widely used form of outsourcing. Car, clothing, and electronics firms often farm out the production of their products because it is usually cheaper to make things overseas. Since not all companies can always upgrade their process and equipment, outsourcing the task can help them deliver their products and compete in the market.
4. Professional-Level Outsourcing
This form of outsourcing greatly reduces overhead costs as it lets companies gain access to high-quality resources while paying only for the services used. These include sales, accounting, payroll, legal counseling and HR outsourcing.
5. Process-Specific Outsourcing
This type refers to the outsourcing of a specific process or procedure. It’s now becoming a great choice for firms because it allows them to focus on the core areas of the service. The most popular examples are small food businesses outsourcing delivery service from courier firms.
Leading Companies that Outsource Services
Given that outsourcing companies are very helpful in growing a business, many companies took risks and prospered as a result. Read on to know the tip of their success.
1. Alibaba
Alibaba.com started as a small internet company and has since grown into one of the world’s largest internet global e-commerce sites. Known to many as “China’s eBay,” the company nonetheless had humble beginnings. Before growing the giant conglomerate it is today, its founder Jack Ma says he hired remote workers for most of their projects. As he outsourced development to web developers in the US, only then did he see his business take off.
2. WhatsApp
In 2012, WhatsApp started with only 30 full-time and 5 part-time workers. It has grown to be one of the most popular chat apps before Facebook bought it two years later. However, they didn’t experience this growth relying only on their 35-person team; an outsourcing company is one of their secrets. They outsourced developers in Russia to keep their operating costs down. And as the business grew, WhatsApp hired and relocated these offshore pros to the US.
3. Basecamp
Before they became one of the most popular project management tools, Basecamp was just a 4-man team. As they started to grow, founder Jason Fried admitted that while they were delivering a good product for the money, their internal processes were a mess. To move the app development forward and free up time for their team at home to focus, they started outsourcing work to remote developers. This helped them improve their product, organize the team, focus on business priorities, and make necessary changes.
4. Google
Contrary to what others think, Google has been partnering with outsourcing companies and hiring remote staff for years now. They outsource virtual assistants, IT professionals, developers, and more. They are even outsourcing email support for Google Ads and there is no discrimination on who they hire. Google works hard to take care of all its in-house and remote workers and provide them the perks they deserve.
5. TransferWise
TransferWise is one of the most successful global money transfer services that use remote staff for business growth. They are known for hiring Ukrainian and Estonian developers and product engineers, not because of cost savings, but due to their talent. They hire the right people, regardless of where they live, and then empower them to do the best job.
6. Skype
Skype has revolutionized the way companies do business. It has made communicating with remote workers easier for firms around the globe. But before all this, Skype also worked with outsourcing companies for the back-end development of the app.
7. Slack
An online collaboration tool, Slack is launched in 2013 by four talented people. However, before officially launching the product, they relied on beta testing from an outsourced company. By doing this, Slack was able to get important feedback that helped them create, not just the tool, but a personality. This helped them launch a product that has outdone the market several times.
Tips to a Successful Relationship with Outsourcing Companies
Once you’ve decided to work with outsourcing companies, make sure to build a good relationship with your third-party service provider. Doing so makes transactions easy and successful, and you can be at ease that you will be provided with services you deserve. To help you with that, we have listed some tips for you.
1. Prepare a distinct goal.
To create a successful outsourcing relationship, you must gain a good understanding of the subcontracted work. Then, you, together with the service provider, should write goals for your relationship.
2. Cooperate, not dominate.
In the first stage of hiring an outsourcing firm, it’s right for you to control the circumstances because you’ll outline the requirements and choose the supplier. Yet, after contract signing, don’t own the authority or let the supplier hold it alone. Instead, build a cooperative approach. This practice will allow you and the outsourcing firm to work together to achieve a common goal or to derive mutual benefits. As what the American author, speaker, and pastor John C. Maxwell says, “Teamwork makes the dream work.”
3. Nurture good communication.
A strong communication between a client and a service provider is vital in building a successful outsourcing relationship. Hence, to achieve this, share your ideas and plans with your contractor and tell them to be transparent with operational issues. Don’t just communicate when you have something to complain about. Otherwise, help the outsourcing firm learn more about your company by telling them your business’ goals, plans, competitive strengths, and market positioning.
4. Be honest with them.
If the firm has any shortcomings on the project, discuss those issues with them at once, and don’t let the problems fester and grow. Doing so will rather boost the understanding and commitment between you, thereby maintaining a more harmonious relationship.
5. Acknowledge cultural differences.
Since the parties in an outsourcing relationship often come from varied cultures, it’s vital for both to recognize each one’s uniqueness and to bond together. Little taps can go a long way. Further, as a client, you can bridge this gap by visiting a supplier, talking with its management, hearing its visions and values, and gauging its track record.
6. Appreciate their efforts.
Positive feedback inspires outsourcing companies. They love to hear they’ve met or even beat your demands. Thus, thank them for completed tasks, welcome their ideas and suggestions, and respect their time. These actions will yield a fruitful outsourcing relationship between you and the firm.
7. Suggest regular review meetings.
Not keeping in touch with your service provider will lead to frustration because of unmet needs. Hence, to keep a successful outsourcing relationship, hold frequent formal review meetings. Such will allow you and the outsourcing company to generate ideas, suggestions, and updates crucial to keeping the project running in the best way possible.
8. Treat them as key partners.
Outsourcing companies in the Philippines don’t sell a product for mere money. What they offer are their own skills. Thus, show them your trust, and you’re confident they can give you excellent service. Treat them with the same respect as internal workers. Make them realize they’re an essential part of your business. A real partnership approach won’t only motivate your contractor and make them stay. Likewise, it will give you more time to find new ways on how to leverage their knowledge to your business.
9. Take care in negotiating.
We understand you have a budget to keep. Yet, before you close the deal, make sure both you and the outsourcing company agree it’s worthy. If they realized you’ve pushed them too far to give you a deal, you might just get a bargain work in return.
Solve this by telling what you can afford to pay right away. In the outsourcing business, payment systems vary. If you don’t know the fair market rate, you may check websites such as Salary.com and PayScale. You can also get a free quote to give you an idea about the service rates. If you found out the one you want to hire is too pricey, look for another outsourcing company that can match your budget.
The Best Outsourcing Companies to Hire
You can find the best outsourcing companies in a click. With a lot of options online, you need to be keen in hiring one. It’s best to read reviews and client feedback. This gives you a chance to know the company a bit better and weigh if it’s the best firm to provide you quality staffing solutions your business needs. For that reason, we’ve listed some of the most-hired outsourcing companies in the Philippines you can consider.
1. Outsource-Philippines
One of the pioneers in the outsourcing industry, Outsource-Philippines has been in the business since 2003. They offer various services such as digital marketing, administrative, data management, contact center, creative, and website management services.
2. Accenture
This outsourcing company is known for providing services that revolve around strategy, consulting, digital, technology, and operations; not to mention their superiority when it comes to the IT industry. They cater to clients from more than 120 countries; a stat that makes them one of the biggest BPO companies in the world.
3. Teleperformance
Another pioneer in the industry of outsourcing is Teleperformance. Headquartered in the Philippines since 1996, they have built a good reputation which has enabled them to have 20 office sites in the Philippines and provide their contact center and customer support services to more than 150 countries.
4. Sykes
Next on the list is Sykes, founded in 1997. Since then they have been providing multi-channel customer engagement and demand operation services for 2000-plus companies worldwide. With their passion in serving business, they have garnered a number of prestigious awards such as the Top Employer of the Year during the 10th Asia CEO Awards.
5. Convergys (Concentrix)
This outsourcing company is one of the biggest firms in the Philippines operating to 30 locations in the country. They are known for their information management products and customer support solutions. Their market is mostly large companies in the field of finance, insurance, travel, and retail.
Dive into the World of Outsourcing with Outsource-Philippines
When it comes to growing your business, outsourcing examples abound because you can rely on expert teams to get the tasks done without the need to hire in-house staff. It is cheaper, yields productivity, keeps office costs down, and gives you access to a global market of talent and expertise.
If you want to grow your business, we can help you by providing you the best professionals who can deliver the services you deserve. Outsource-Philippines offers a wide range of outsourcing services that you can hire depending on your business needs. What are you waiting for? Partner with us today.
