There’s Gold in Them Thar Hills
Outsourcing Center, Bruce McCracken, Business Writer
Do you know who’s visiting your Web site? Data mining strikes gold.
Research & Insight
Service Level Agreement (SLA)
Mission Critical
Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer
Sunoco cracks its data center challenges by outsourcing its mainframe processing to (i)Structure.
No Time for RFPs
Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer
Buyers are often in a hurry to outsource so they can implement their competitive strategies. But cutting short the supplier selection process can result in a failed outsourcing relationship. Here’s how to do it right.
Berlin-Based Consultants Share Insights on European Outsourcing
Joyce Ahlering
The multinational team quickly reached a consensus that Germany is an exception to the rule in European outsourcing practices. Generally speaking, outsourcing has been accepted in many branches of German business. Postal service and call centers are often outsourced to German providers, whereas IT providers are often American-based. Dallas, Texas based Perot Systems, for example, is an American IT provider with a large presence in Germany.
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Outsourcing Negotiations
Michael E.C. Moss, Gordon & Glickson LLC
Ask anyone how long it takes to negotiate an outsourcing deal, and the answer will likely be the same: much too long. In fact, some would say, the outsourcing will take at least as long to negotiate as you have time available to negotiate, and probably longer.
Outsourcing Payroll Check Printing Pays Off
Outsourcing Center, Beth Ellyn Rosenthal, Senior Writer
Employees get a sinking feeling when they look at their paychecks and they’re wrong! If they believe the payroll department didn’t calculate their overtime properly or deducted too much for their health insurance, the first thing they do is reach for the telephone. Then, the payroll staff has to drop everything and reconstruct what happened to determine if they were paid the proper amount.
We’ve Only Just Begun
Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer
Jane Drasites, Director, Benefits Delivery for BP Amoco, swears that the first year in an outsourcing relationship is just like a marriage. Some marriages don’t work very well. When Amoco (prior to its merger with BP) signed an agreement in 1993 for Hewitt Associates to handle its HR functions, it was positive it had found the right mate. Unfortunately, they didn’t go for some counseling before they tied the knot, and the honeymoon didn’t last long.
Ten Key Questions for Developing Effective Service Level Agreements
Brad L. Peterson, Partner, Mayer Brown LLP
The first and most important step in developing an effective SLA is to ask the right questions. This article will give you those questions and some background on how to choose the right answers.
Close Encounters of the HR Kind
Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer
Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc. (PSEG) is a holding company in the electric and gas business with several affiliate companies in generation and distribution services in 12 countries and in 12 states in the US. Dealing at times with regulation, deregulation and increased competition, this is a company that must set and achieve its goals. One prime target for improvement in the early 1990s focused on human resources.
Drexel Deepens Its Impact
Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer
As the world increasingly becomes defined by technology, Drexel University (DU) is committed to driving innovation and being a leader in technological advancements. Drexel stays in the headlines, having created a number of nationwide firsts. In November 2000, its 62-acre campus became the first major 100% wireless university in the U.S. Other firsts include distribution of speech recognition software to all students and staff, the nation’s first online techno-MBA and an online affinity bank. DU students and faculty have access to a wide array of information technology (IT) resources and support services.