The high-level benefits of IT outsourcing are fairly well known within the IT industry. Even so, many clients do not fully understand “why” and “how” an outsourcing relationship can provide these potential benefits. Furthermore, those that do understand the benefits may not understand the risks that must be managed in order to achieve these benefits. [...]
The triumphs and disappointments of the retail industry are very public. Every man, woman and child of buying age experiences the service strategy, the employee satisfaction level, the marketing concepts, the inventory policy and most visible of all, the pricing schemes each retailer requires in order to make a profit and stay afloat. Retailers, although [...]
Over the past few years, the concept of “insourcing” or bringing work back into the US from offshore has received some pretty extensive media coverage. The concept has a strong emotional appeal, especially when there are so many out of work within our own country. But how strong is this trend and how would [...]
As the evolution of sourcing options continues to develop and broaden, C-level executives in the public and private sector have devised and deployed various sourcing strategies to fulfill their vision and mission. When it comes to corporate shared services (e.g., information technology, contact center, finance & accounting and human resources), many have elected to offset [...]
Fast access to meaningful, real-time information is critical to running a successful business, but today’s CEO dashboards fall short. Most are generic, out-of-the-box solutions, created by vendors who don’t understand the companies’ businesses or the type of information each specific CEO really needs. In a world where consumers can get personalized information pushed to their [...]
Forward thinking IT service providers are evolving from efforts-based outsourcers to partners in creating actual business value for their customers. In support of that shift, they’re moving beyond conventional IT-centric measures of success to embrace a new customer engagement model that emphasizes IT’s role as an enabler of business change. This business-aligned IT framework maps [...]
Being Prepared Can Increase Your Bottom Line Eighty percent of companies without well-conceived data protection and recovery strategies go out of business within two years of a major disaster. What do Hurricane Katrina, a burn-your-building-to-the-ground fire, and the great San Francisco earthquake have in common with employee turnover or a simple computer crash? Lots. All [...]
Strategies to Reduce Global Network Costs in a Rapidly Changing Environment The cost of an organization’s telecommunications network services (voice, data and wireless), typically accounts for three to six percent of overhead and can average more than two percent of total revenue. In addition, telecom network services spend is increasing. Industry forecasts predict that enterprise [...]
Although the concept of application optimization is not new, the way companies approach optimization is shifting. In the past, optimization, if addressed at all, was regarded as a one-time consulting service, handled by an unrelated, third-party vendor. Today, successful companies are taking a more holistic approach — working with a service provider who can deliver [...]
Insurance providers, laboring under legacy systems built up over decades, are in desperate need of systems transformation to compete for new customers and business in a rapidly evolving industry. But building a traditional business case for IT systems modernization, based upon the justification that consolidating aging and redundant legacy systems will reduce maintenance, support, upgrade [...]
IT leaders should have the information they need to make informed business decisions on how to run their department and buy the products and services they need. Benchmarking is one of the best means to deliver such information, but has traditionally been an expensive, time consuming and painful endeavor. Not anymore. ProBenchmark is able to [...]
Customer experience has become a powerful differentiator for organizations of all sizes and types. In today’s ultra-competitive market, businesses must strive to deliver exemplary customer service across all touchpoints and via a proliferating array of channels. With customers becoming more demanding every day – and given the fact that dissatisfied customers often will take their business over to [...]
Today’s IT infrastructure has a lot of moving parts. There have always been the servers, network, security concerns and desktops to deal with – along with standard and custom applications. Enter cloud, virtualization and mobility, and that complexity moves to a whole new level. In addition to desktops, IT personnel have to find a way [...]
Welcome to this edition of BPO Thought Spot — providing you with meaningful thought leadership on the latest trends, innovations and practices in the outsourcing space. The world of outsourcing is evolving to meet the changing needs of today’s business. What began as a method of achieving labor arbitrage is transforming into a dynamic way for [...]
What is the next great strategic sourcing practice for sustaining cost reductions and driving an efficient, competitive business in an environment that is constantly and dramatically changing? The answer is in how companies are addressing vendor relationship management and creating incentives that better leverage the capabilities of their current providers. Most mature outsourced companies have created [...]
The best outsourcing agreement for your organization is not necessarily the one with the lowest price. Your primary goal when negotiating and structuring an outsourcing contract is to develop an agreement that achieves your business objectives, not just on day one but throughout the entire term. To do this well, you must understand the overall [...]
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