In an article entitled “How Outsourcing Has Changed The Traditional Way Of Doing Business” Forbes explains how all companies, irrespective of their size, scope of work or other factors, can indisputably outsource some of the most tedious tasks with few resources while keeping a rational budget. How?

Outsourcing: what are its results?

Let us look at a few figures about outsourcing that speak for themselves

• Up to 48% of companies choose offshore outsourcing
• 45% of companies have planned to increase their outsourcing since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic due to a lack of in-house expertise.
• Cost reduction is the primary reason for outsourcing for 70% of companies.
• Up to 85% of logistics managers expect an increase in the outsourcing budget.
• The main driver of outsourcing for about 90% of companies is cloud computing.
• 62% of companies worldwide are looking to renegotiate their outsourcing terms and contracts.
• 32% of companies believe they will outsource less after the COVID-19 pandemic ends.
• IBM is the largest outsourcing company in the world.

(Source: https://www.founderjar.com/outsourcing-statistics/ )

Businesses are in the midst of a revolution

According to the Forbes article, the traditional way companies operate is undergoing a radical transformation. They have realized that they finally are able to save substantial amounts of money, time, efficiency and security simply by delegating the execution of certain tasks to a specialized company.

How has outsourcing transformed the traditional way of doing business?

Companies that choose to outsource benefit in several ways

Outsourcing is a way to outperform the competition

With outsourcing, small businesses finally have a way to match the bigger companies. Indeed, thanks to offshore outsourcing, these small companies can recruit talent at rates that are unaffordable in their country of location. In addition, the availability of an offshore workforce can help a company gain scale and expand into foreign markets without having to create physical structures.

• Let’s take the example of ProContact. As BPO specialists, we handle several aspects of a business:
  Telephone reception
• Remote secretary services
• Polls, surveys, satisfaction studies
• Remote marketing and prospecting (appointment setting, prospecting…)
• Files classification
• Management and enrichment of databases
• Customer loyalty
• Technical assistance (hotline, webhelp, technical support)
• After-sales service, customer service
• B2B / B2C prospecting;
• Customer relations;
• CRM tool and software;
• Satisfaction surveys;
• Human resources;
• Digital.

Outsourcing to save on costs

It is an undeniable fact that outsourcing allows for significant savings. The client company no longer needs to spend on:

• recruitment campaigns;
• salaries;
• equipment;
• training.

Outsourcing gives access to specialized skills and resources

Outsourcing is the tangible proof that each company has its own set of expertise. Not all expertise is available internally and to achieve its objectives, the company cannot skimp on skills or a poor distribution of its resources.

Outsourcing provides access to specialized skills at a reasonable price, allowing the company to focus on its core business. In addition, it saves time: no more waiting weeks or months for a project to be completed internally.

Outsourcing to improve quality and efficiency

Outsourcing certain non-strategic functions, such as tasks, allows the company to free up internal resources so that they can really focus on the important aspects of the business, such as product development. These increases employee productivity, allowing short, medium and long term profitability.

Outsourcing provides the opportunity to increase or reduce resources

As a company grows, it must increase or decrease its activities according to its needs. Outsourcing provides this flexibility, which is not possible in a traditional environment. It eliminates the need for the company to start from scratch by training new resources. This is on the condition that you find more than just a service provider, but instead a partner capable of understanding and responding instantly to your client’s immediate needs.

How to use outsourcing to grow your business?

There are a series of best practices to apply as soon as possible in order to take full advantage of the outsourcing revolution in post-pandemic times.

Take the time to compare outsourcing providers and above all, avoid selecting a partner based on its very low rates. This is critical, because the cheaper the provider, the more likely the company is to end up paying hidden fees.

Set clear goals for your team members and make sure they know exactly what you expect of them.

Hold regular team meetings for the most effective collaboration possible.

Choose an outsourcing provider with a reputation for reliability, expertise, solid integrity and communication skills.

Put in place all the tools that will allow the company to achieve the expected results on time.

In collaboration with your service provider, establish a clear and realistic timeline that they can rely on to meet your needs in a timely manner.

Be clear about your expectations in terms of schedules, meetings, points, etc.

Clarify any grey areas as soon as they arise.

Choose a service provider who shares your culture, especially in terms of language. ProContact offers a multilingual team of qualified, versatile and expert tele-actors who are entirely dedicated to customer satisfaction. Yours, of course, but also that of your clients.

Get involved in the recruitment and management of your outsourced team, in collaboration with your service provider.

In conclusion

For many companies, outsourcing has become a business strategy in its own right. Allowing to maximize savings, to make investments profitable and to reduce the duration of the cost cycle, outsourcing is now part of the sine qua non conditions for the development and the durability of the company.

Outsourcing is a business strategy that consists in delegating certain tasks to a company specialized in the field. While it is not without risk, there are several factors that should be strongly considered, especially when building the service contract. Here is our advice.

A clear and detailed description of the services

The outsourcing contract should include a detailed description of the project and its scope. In the case of a partnership, do not hesitate to include requests for proposals and the provider’s subsequent response.

Key elements of this part of the contract are

• All client service requirements;
• Description of each service required;
• General service standards that must be met (compliance with international standards, etc.);
• A clause describing the functions not specified in the statement of work, but which must be included in the services provided (optional) by the contractor.

Service levels

“The service level relate to the type of services that, on the one hand, are tailored to the needs and desires of the clients the firm wishes to attract and, on the other hand, are not so high as to significantly reduce profits” according to Relationclientmag.fr.

By clearly describing the expected service levels, the provider understands the company’s expectations. This also confirms the provider’s mission, objectives and quality, should they wish to renew their contract.

Other aspects of the service level:

• Milestone dates and contractual penalties for service level failures by the provider;
• Compensation for poor service;
• The detailed process in case the client or provider needs to modify the contract;
• Key performance indicators (KPIs) or other metrics related to the outsourced services.

Costs

Each party, both the provider and the company, must be clear on the costs applied for one and the total amount due for the services rendered for the other.

The cost of outsourcing depends on many factors, so it is imperative that the issue is clearly raised during negotiations. The objective is to avoid hidden costs!

It is also important to include a clause for negotiating the contractual conditions due to changing market conditions.

The duration of the contract

 

It is vital that both parties know exactly how long the outsourcing contract will last. This requires a clause that also includes the reasons for early termination. The idea is to avoid any practice of tacit renewal of a contract that does not satisfy either the service provider or the company.

Compensation

What compensation is provided for the company in case of mistakes by the service provider? The contract must therefore include an indemnification clause specifying the responsibilities of the latter in case of negligence or inability to deliver. The client company is thus protected and reassured regarding compensation in case of failure during or after the project, from the outsourcing provider.

Data protection

Outsourcing services, such as customer service and payroll, require outsourced agents to access confidential information such as bank details, addresses, etc. To secure the information, both parties must legally comply with the laws in their respective regions.

For example, if the customer is in the European Union, the service provider must comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)!

Performance monitoring

The performance of an outsourced team should be measured by regular audits. By proceeding according to the best practices in force, the company in demand manages to quickly take corrective measures when they are necessary.

Dispute resolution

In the event of an abrupt termination of an outsourcing contract following a dispute (failure to meet service levels, etc.), to protect the client company, the contract must include an amicable settlement clause. In many cases, this avoids legal situations that consume time, energy and financial resources!

Business continuity and recovery after a disaster

As the Covid-19 pandemic has shown us very recently, companies that are able to ensure business continuity and recovery allow their customers to operate in a smooth, transparent manner.

In addition to the virus, many other events can interrupt a company’s business:

• Computer attacks;
• Supply chain difficulties;
• Changes in regulations;
• Too significant human resources turnover.

In conclusion

The success of an outsourcing contract lies in the ability of each party to put down the most essential, most concrete keys. With clearly expressed expectations and results, each partner can work in tandem with the other without losing time.

The contract is the keystone of a successful outsourcing. More than a document, it serves as a support to the client company in case of misunderstanding, questioning, etc.

Contact us!

Outsourcing is our business! At ProContact, we work closely with you to include this solution in your business strategy. We can offer you an unprecedented adaptation of your way of working thanks to the arrival of resources located elsewhere, without losing time, money or quality.

ProContact is more than a contact centre. Thanks to trained, qualified, hand-picked and multilingual agents, we enable companies that choose us to gain credibility and above all to satisfy their customers, whatever the situation and in complete transparency:

• Telephone reception
• Remote secretary services
• Polls, surveys, satisfaction studies
• Remote marketing and remote prospecting (appointment setting, prospecting…)
• Files classification
• Management and enrichment of databases
• Customer loyalty
• Technical assistance (hotline, webhelp, technical support)
• After-sales service (SAV), customer service
• B2B / B2C prospecting;
• Customer relations;
• CRM tool and software;
• Satisfaction surveys;
• Human resources;
• Digital.

Outsourcing has become a tangible and concrete business strategy for the development of the company. To find out more about our services and for a quality partnership, click on our contact form, send us an e-mail or call us on (+33) 1 77 75 04 50.

If many competitors in your sector have opted for outsourcing, it is only natural to ask yourself whether this solution is appropriate. Is outsourcing the answer to the many problems you are facing since the end of the Covid-19 pandemic? Here are the 5 signs that clearly indicate the need for a change in your operating mode.

Reasons to include outsourcing in your business operations

Often confused with offshoring, outsourcing regained its prominence in 2020, the year the Covid-19 pandemic exploded. So much so that 2021 figures show a real comeback for this strategy:

• Nearly 54% of companies worldwide have implemented an outsourcing strategy to connect with customers;
• Globally, companies spent $75.2 billion on security outsourcing last year;
• 78% of companies worldwide have a positive view of their outsourcing providers; and
• 71% of financial services executives are outsourcing or offshoring some of their services.

The next few years should confirm this trend, and if your company is considering this option, take note of Forbes’ article, which reminds us about the various motivating factors to leverage outsourcing.

Signification reduction in costs
Cost is the primary motivation expressed by many companies that have chosen to integrate outsourcing into their operations. It is a proven business strategy that can save up to 70% of operational expenses over the long term.

Risk sharing

In addition to real expenses, the client and provider share their operational risks.

Concrete improvement in customer experience

Since customer experience is one of the pillars of a company’s development, outsourcing can significantly improve it in various ways. At ProContact, we offer a wide range of outsourced services to our clients:

• Telephone reception
• Remote secretary services
• Polls, surveys, satisfaction studies
• Remote marketing and prospecting (appointment setting, prospecting…)
• Qualification of files
• Management and enrichment of databases
• Customer loyalty
• Technical assistance (hotline, webhelp, technical support)
• After-sales service, customer service
• B2B / B2C prospecting;
• Remote secretary services
• Customer relations;
• CRM tool and software;
• Satisfaction surveys;
• Human resources;
• Digital.

Business continuity

Outsourcing has become the best solution to allow any company to continue to provide its services, even in complex periods, as was the case with the containments and lockdowns.

To respond to internal work overload

Employees are human beings and some projects can naturally give them a legitimate feeling of being overloaded.

To avoid burnout, demotivation, to avoid subjecting employees to long working hours, outsourcing takes over, but in a healthy and efficient way. This solution is not intended to reduce the number of employees, but to allow the employer to implement them in a rational and responsible way.

Risks incurred in the event of poor management of internal resources

The time has come to reorganize and optimize internal operations. The company must find a sustainable solution and engage the services of a real partner if it faces the following challenges.

When it misses growth opportunities

When a company is short on employees or relevant skills in order to cut expenses, it risks missing out on growth opportunities. Between the lack of time, the high cost of recruitment, resignations due to demotivation and mental fatigue, it cannot afford to take risks when it comes to customer satisfaction and to prevent growth.

To free up time and manage its current resources in an optimal way, outsourcing takes over.

When it can no longer meet the demands of all of its clients

As a company grows, its customer base naturally increases, and so does the number of challenges it faces. To avoid being overwhelmed by this increase, consider outsourcing low value-added but essential tasks (customer relations, loyalty, satisfaction studies, etc.).

When skills are lacking locally

The West now faces two challenges: the lack of skills and the cost of recruitment. More and more companies agree that there is a ‘skills gap’ in the workforce, despite the low unemployment rate in developed countries.

This is one of the reasons why companies have been outsourcing for decades: to recruit the best possible talent for their team, while saving on costs.

Successful Outsourcing

Our tips for a successful outsourcing project

Choose an experienced provider

Every company has its own needs and not all providers are qualified to meet them. Select a service provider whose dimensions correspond to those of your company!

Beware of hidden costs

Beware, the lowest rates often hide additional costs. Since outsourcing is a way to save on costs, choose a provider capable of delivering clear and transparent pricing for a consistently high quality!

Legal compliance

Finally, legal issues in terms of intellectual property, tax compliance and others should be discussed in advanced so that there are no issues between you and your provider.

Contact us!

Outsourcing is our business! At ProContact, we work closely with you to include this solution in your business strategy. We can offer you an unprecedented adaptation of your way of working thanks to the arrival of resources located elsewhere, without losing time, money or quality.

ProContact is more than a contact centre. Thanks to trained, qualified, hand-picked and multilingual agents, we enable the companies that choose us to gain credibility and above all to satisfy their customers, regardless of the situation and in complete transparency.

Outsourcing has become a tangible and concrete business strategy for the development of the company. To find out more about our services, for a quality partnership, click on our contact form, send us an e-mail or call us at (+33) 1 77 75 04 50.

For a long time, outsourcing was considered as a recourse based entirely on cost reduction, at the expense of quality. However, far from being comparable to offshoring, outsourcing has become a real business strategy, to be integrated into the company’s operations. The advantages are numerous and there are now millions of companies around the world that have turned to this solution; even more so since the world has begun its digitalization transformation while skills are becoming increasingly scarce.

Given this context, it is important to properly plan your outsourcing. We have identified 10 essential rules to respect in order to succeed. Here they are!

Study the company’s operations to determine the tasks to be outsourced

A company’s competencies are based on a unique set of skills, knowledge and expertise. These skills allow the company to stay competitive and provide value to each customer. By taking a close look at the functioning of the company, of each department, but also of each product and project, it is much easier to find the time-consuming, low-value-added, but essential tasks that require external intervention, which is possible thanks to outsourcing.

The range of ProContact’s offers is wide enough to help you implement your outsourcing project:

• Telephone reception
• Remote secretary services
• Polls, surveys, satisfaction studies
• Remote marketing and prospecting (appointment setting, prospecting, etc.)
• Qualification of files
• Management and enrichment of databases
• Customer loyalty
• Technical assistance (hotline, webhelp, technical support)
• After-sales service, customer service
• B2B / B2C prospecting;
• Customer relations;
• CRM tool and software;
• Satisfaction surveys;
• Human resources;
• Digital.

Creating a central outsourcing management team

It is impossible to entrust the management of an outsourced service to employees based on their free time. It is therefore essential to create a central management team whose mission will be to generate the right internal conditions to facilitate outsourcing. This team will also need to ensure that your provider delivers the expected quality in a secure and well-managed environment. This same team will need to work not only before the contract is signed, but also after that as well!

The importance of KPIs as a management tool

KPIs (key performance indicators) are indicators designed to measure performance. Particularly present in the field of marketing, they allow you to measure the impact of marketing campaigns and actions, especially digital ones. They are an excellent monitoring tool to stay on track and allow the service provider to demonstrate progress. Aspects such as quality, timeliness and respect of deadlines can become motivational goals if the KPIs are managed correctly.

The right infrastructure and tools

In offshore outsourcing, communication tools should be leveraged to their fullest extent, whether it’s Trello, Slack, Zoom, etc., they should become a given.

Creating a unique team

It is not uncommon for internal and external teams to differentiate themselves on a daily basis, perhaps even more so during challenging times. Work to erase the boundaries that may separate internal company employees from talent elsewhere. This can be done through occasional meetings between the two teams, creating a common communication channel, etc.

A transparent and clear business case

In order to find a provider who can quickly and accurately understand the company’s needs, the company must present realistic projections for the project. It must also take into account aspects such as infrastructure costs, internal support, travel, etc.

Expertise gained from elsewhere

A good outsourcing provider sees more than a financial contract between itself and its clients! As a specialist in many fields, like ProContact, he must be proactive in sharing his knowledge and expertise. When he is well established in his sector, his experience allows him to share the lessons learned from his past experiences. As a sponsor, take advantage of this!

Prepare the transition thoroughly

The initial phase of transitioning from a traditional model to outsourcing is undoubtedly the most critical. Make sure you have a documented plan and that all stakeholders, including those within the company, have a clear understanding of the issues involved in such a strategy. Make sure the provider understands the tasks assigned to them.

Agile methods for successful outsourcing

In software engineering, agile practices emphasize collaboration between self-organized, multidisciplinary teams and their clients. They rely on the use of a light but sufficient methodological framework focused on people and communication. They advocate adaptive planning, evolutionary development, early delivery and continuous improvement, and encourage flexible responses to change. (Wikipedia)

As explored, these methods facilitate daily communication, timely delivery of results, planning and meetings. Agile methods are extremely powerful tools to promote successful cooperation in an outsourcing context and are far from being a passing trend.

Create a relationship of trust

As with any professional and commercial relationship, in order for it to produce the expected results, outsourcing must take place in an environment of trust!

ProContact, your offshore outsourcing partner!

Outsourcing simplifies the development of the company, which gains in agility, skills and quality, without having to invest huge sums!

Present in Mauritius for more than 18 years, ProContact has become a reference in the contact centre sector. Today, the company uses state-of-the-art techniques in the field of outsourcing and offshore call centres (telephone call centres). Thanks to trained, qualified, hand-picked and multilingual agents, we enable the companies that choose us to maintain their credibility and above all to satisfy their customers. To find out more about our services, for a quality partnership, click on our contact form, send us an e-mail or call us on (+33) 1 77 75 04 50.

The Covid-19 pandemic caused an economic crisis that the world could have done without. However, it has also shaken up the world of outsourcing, which has offered unparalleled flexibility to businesses. Its ability to adapt to any situation has helped companies calibrate their resources. They have gained in speed and dexterity to achieve their long-term strategic objectives.

Outsourcing, a sector that continues to convince

One would have thought that in the post-Covid era, companies would be happy to go back to the way things were. However, according to Marketwatch.com, “the global business process outsourcing (BPO) services market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.8% to €335.23 billion by 2024 during the forecast period. The global business process outsourcing (BPO) services market has been segmented on the basis of type, deployment, organization size, verticality and region”.

Comparison between outsourcing and insourcing

Nevertheless, it is important to give companies the power to make the best choice for their operations. Here is a comparison between the advantages of insourcing and outsourcing.

The advantages of insourcing

Investopedia defines insourcing as follows: “Insourcing occurs when a transaction is handled by an entity itself rather than by someone else. This process can apply to commercial and investment transactions, or to the corporate world”.

Companies that have opted for internalisation can benefit from the following advantages, provided they are prepared to invest in additional resources or facilities, thereby increasing expenses:

• Higher profitability due to the absence of certain costs associated with outsourcing;
• Higher profits for the brokers, who can earn money from the difference between the purchase price and the selling price;
• Allows delivery of products to customers using own resources, without the help of an external transport company.

Benefits of outsourcing

Following Investopedia’s argument, “Outsourcing is a business practice that involves hiring a party outside the company to provide services or create goods that were traditionally provided internally by the company’s employees and staff. Outsourcing is a practice generally adopted by companies to reduce costs”.

We know that globally:

• Nearly 54% of companies have implemented an outsourcing strategy to get closer to their customers;
• Companies spent $75.2 billion on security outsourcing in 2020;
• 78% of companies have a positive view of their outsourcing providers;
• 71% of financial services executives are outsourcing or offshoring some of their services.

Why is outsourcing so popular?

According to Deloitte, companies most often turn to outsourcing for five main reasons:

• The need to reduce their operating costs;
• The need to focus on their core business;
• Lack of in-house skills;
• Lack of skills in the labour market;
• Various business needs.

Less operating costs: the key benefit of outsourcing

Outsourcing allows you to recruit additional resources at a lower cost. Indeed, this option has built its reputation in particular by offering offshore skills, specialised in certain tasks that are generally of low added value for companies.

ProContact is one of these service providers recognized for the quality of their outsourcing services. Our range of offers is sufficiently wide to allow companies to outsource all tasks that are certainly essential but known to be time-consuming:

• Telephone reception
• Remote secretary services
• Polls, surveys, satisfaction studies
• Remote marketing and prospecting (appointment setting, prospecting…)
• Qualification of files
• Management and enrichment of databases
• Customer loyalty
• Technical assistance (hotline, webhelp, technical support)
• After-sales service, customer service
• B2B / B2C prospecting;
• Remote secretary services
•  Customer relations;
• CRM tool and software;
• Satisfaction surveys;
• Human resources;
• Digital.

With regard to our human resources, once again, we focus on unprecedented quality:

• A highly qualified and positive team capable of ensuring a tailor-made follow-up of each operation;
• A demanding recruitment process;
• A dense and continuous training related to inbound calls, outbound calls, marketing, webmarketing… ;
• A motivating and human managerial management; supervisors who listen to their employees and to you;
• An independent quality department with a single goal: customer satisfaction

 

Outsourcing also allows the client company to achieve greater flexibility and eliminate redundant expenses, such as recruitment, training, equipment, etc. In addition, outsourcing allows the client to choose a country known for its low cost of living and lack of hourly rates.

Better focus on the company’s core business

A team whose expertise is not used intelligently is a team that is demotivated and tired which results in loss of time and efficiency. The consequences are obvious: lower productivity in the long term and an increase in sick leave.

Outsourcing is a strategy focused on the evolution of the company. As such, by relieving employees of tasks that do not fit into their real job, companies leave their teams with only one desire: to participate in the development of their company!

Reduce the problem of lack of internal skills

The reality is that when employees work overtime, the company always ends up losing resources and money. By turning to outsourcing, by bringing in outside skills, the company sends a strong signal to its employees that everything is being done to allow them to focus and work on long-term productivity.

Reduce the problem of lack of local skills

Outsourcing allows you to get away from technological constraints and the scarcity of local skills. It offers a customized solution and a similar level of expertise, at reduced costs.