Author: Outsourcing Center, Bruce McCracken, Business Writer

Improving Processes, Going Offshore Best Ways to Reduce G&A Costs Outsourcing service providers servicing the midmarket (defined here as companies with $1billion to $3 billion in annual revenues) face challenges that differ from working with large corporate buyers. How do they provide the same type of services as they do for enterprises and stay profitable, especially when offshoring labor arbitrage is something they want to avoid? The midmarket challenge Midmarket firms feel “a greater sense of urgency” to remove general and administrative costs than the larger enterprises do,” observes Mike Atwood, an independent senior outsourcing consultant. A just-released FAO report…

Business process as a service (BPaaS) is emerging to be a BPO game-changer reminiscent of Software as a Service (SaaS) a decade ago. Specifically, BPaaS is adding arrows to organizations’ outsourcing quiver in how they approach their finance and accounting and other back-office functions. “Businesses that leverage traditional outsourcing deals are looking to move off of inflexible contract and delivery structures,” explains Robert McNeill, Vice President for analyst firm Saugatuck Technology. “The pillars that built and supported legacy outsourcing are under severe pressure. Labor arbitrage, old technologies, and traditional business models limit effectiveness. Businesses are looking for more flexibility, innovation,…

Application development costs and speed to market are critical for a startup with a new concept. Because the founders had to prove the concept, they didn’t want to spend a lot of capital. Hiring U.S. developers was not in the budget. A Chinese service provider got the job done at half the cost.

Auteco Kawaski, a larger motorcycle assembler in Latin American, was unable to track the service and warranty records on individual bikes by either its 300 dealers or 350 service shops. A Colombian supplier, PSL, created the application to do just that.

Success threatened Wellington Technologies. The HP maintenance provider signed a big contract, but the scope of the win was beyond the capabilities of its existing parts delivery system. And the fact that its parts delivery agreement had penalties didn’t help. After paying those penalties, the company outsourced to meet its delivery challenges and enhance its capabilities.

Web 2.0 created a dilemma for Intronis, a provider of online data back-up systems. Its customers needed the software to back up their burgeoning data faster. Its proprietary software was increasingly unable to accommodate their needs and it didn’t have specs for a fix. Outsourcing to Exigen saved the day.

Changes in technology and the business landscape and new government regulations forced Equity Insurance Group to implement strategic changes to remain competitive. Offshoring to WNS was so successful the parties added gain-sharing in the second contract.

High-level customer service is essential for online. Ramping up and down call center staff due to seasonal fluctuations make it challenging to provide the kind of top-notch customer service this segment expects. Shop Direct tried a new approach for the UK: using home-based agents. Here is its success story.

Mitek Systems had a great idea: the applications developer wanted to turn camera phones into scanning devices so customers could make payments and deposit checks. However, the company lacked the internal staff to develop the application which had to work on four disparate systems. Outsourcing was the answer.

Research by three leading companies finds a new trend in contact center outsourcing: a growing preference for domestic or nearshore locations. Why? Greater ease in managing the engagement and lower risk of alienating important customers due to accent and cultural issues. Today, more companies are increasingly reluctant to consider offshore locations. Read about changing landscape and the forces creating that change.