Research & Insight

Research & Insight

change management

The Seven Deadly Sins of BPO and How to Avoid Them

Outsourcing Center, Patti Putnicki, Business Writer

Business Process Outsourcing (BPO). The concept is relatively simple: instead of hiring employees to handle the necessary but non-core, transaction-based business functions in your company, pass these on to someone else. Where’s the room for BPO mistakes? Here’s the thing: BPO is not like dropping off your dirty clothes at the dry cleaner and having …

When Should You Begin to Prepare for the End of an Outsourcing Contract?

Robert Joslin, Managing Director, Alsbridge

Hint: 12 Months Out is TOO Late When should you start working on your next outsourcing contract? Many organizations do not address the end of a contract until the last year of its term. The notification period in the contract, typically 6-to-12 months, usually triggers this discussion. However I believe this is a mistake. Developing …

Less Haste, More Speed: Improving the ROI on Outsourcing Transactions

Linda Tuck Chapman, President, ONTALA Performance Solutions Ltd.

Despite quantum improvements to outsourcing deals and governance over the past 10 to 15 years, when it comes to achieving outsourcing process excellence there’s still plenty of opportunity. Part of the challenge is that once the decision is made to outsource or change providers, the clock starts ticking….fast. It takes real discipline to know when …

Outsourcing Service Providers Craft FAO Offerings for the Midmarket Keen on Cost Savings

Outsourcing Center, Bruce McCracken, Business Writer

Improving Processes, Going Offshore Best Ways to Reduce G&A Costs Outsourcing service providers servicing midmarket companies (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, …

Eight Biggest Areas of Risk for Buyers of Outsourcing Services

Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer

New delivery models, new pricing models, service providers’ new marketing strategies, moving up the value chain to intellectual arbitrage, new technologies, real-time customer interaction, globalization, and new standards and regulations – these factors set the stage for risks for buyers of outsourcing services in the next two to five years. (Read Forces of Change Shaping …

Decision-Making Insights for Companies Outsourcing HR Functions

Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer

Outsourcing HR went through a shake-out over the past two years due to the continual issues around scope and other challenges that buyers and service providers encountered over the past decade. The dust has settled from the revamping efforts, but there are new challenges on the horizon. Here’s what your company needs to know for …

Four Tips for Effective Management of the Outsourcing Transition

Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer

The possible perils that can impact the success of an outsourcing relationship‘s transition phase are well known. These days, most buyers are as aware as service providers of the need for a robust governance framework that facilitates the parties’ identification of challenges and working collaboratively to address them quickly. Most have also read tales of …

New Outsourcing Service: Independent Governance of the Relationship

Outsourcing Center, Kathleen Goolsby, Senior Writer

At Outsourcing Center, a frequent comment we hear from buyers of outsourcing services is: “If I had it to do all over again, I would put in place a more effective structure for managing the service provider and the relationship.” The problem is significant enough that it spawns many advice-oriented articles with titles such as: …

How a Well-Planned Outsourcing Transition Weathered a Changing Economy and Vendor Challenges

Outsourcing Center, Beth Ellyn Rosenthal, Senior Writer

There are always unanticipated challenges in even the most well-thought-out transition. This relationship faced two major ones. First, a software vendor tried to extract $300,000 from Dell Services by forcing it to pay a licensing fee. Then, the global recession changed everything. The successful solutions were a harbinger of good things to come.

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