When choosing an outsourcing vendor, very often companies put an emphasis on responsibility. We in our turn think that meeting the deadline is the most crucial thing as it protects your business from unfavorable factors and at the same time guarantees reliability and high quality of work.
Sometimes when using outsourcing services a client can be shocked and even struck dumb with astonishment when they get a bill payable. Statistics show outturn costs can exceed expected by 65%. That does not mean a vendor wants to fool you, not at all.
The thing is many clients do not take into consideration unobvious outsourcing principles. They see only costs that lie on the surface. That’s why, when the work is done, they often get blindsided by the huge sums of money they need to pay for the services as this may not fit their budgets.
So, you have already made up your mind what kind of outsourcing services you need and how to choose an appropriate vendor. Now you need to make the RFP (request for proposal), and this is the main topic of our today’s post.
Firstly, let’s clear up what RFP is exactly (request for proposal).
Request For Proposal, or RFP is a request for commercial quotation from a potential outsourcing vendor. In other words, Continue reading How to write and manage the RFP for software vendor
Today we finish our series of articles about the most effective way of choosing an appropriate outsourcing vendor. In our previous posts we examined the key criteria of choosing the vendor if your company is a start-up or a small/medium enterprise with sustainable growth.
Now we would like to cover the main issues one has to take into consideration when searching for the right outsourcing vendor if your company can be characterized as the one with sustainable growth, long experience and of medium e size.
So, there are 10 questions one has to answer for himself to choose the right outsourcing vendor Continue reading How to choose the right Software Outsourcing Vendor for big companies?
What qualities should an outsourcing vendor possess to meet the needs of your company in the most optimal way? An outsourcing vendor for small and mid businesses should match the following criteria Continue reading How to choose the right Software Outsourcing Vendor – for SMB
Start-up companies are new entrants, that’s why, the things that really matter to them are rapid growth and sub-vertical development restricted with small budget.
For such companies outsourcing vendor should be selected according to the following criteria:
• the process/scheme of rendering the services
• meeting deadlines of services delivery
• relatively low price
Also, it should be noted that in the first line one needs to find out some information about the potential outsourcing vendor. This applies not only to start-ups, but also to Continue reading How to choose the right Software Outsourcing Vendor for a Start-up
Following the article “To Outsource or not to Outsource” we would like to draw your attention to the risk factors that can occur when working with a handpicked outsourcing vendor.
Hereafter we will review the key aspects you should take into consideration if you decide to make use of software outsourcing services Continue reading To Outsource or not to Outsource: Risk Factors
There have been and still are a lot of debates about the outsourcing some business processes to outside organizations. Many start-ups, small, medium and large business wonder which processes should be delegated to services providers and which should be developed in-house. We have statistical information based on our long experience and experience of our clients that both speak to the truth of the statement – one should outsource only those processes which are not crucial for the company, which don’t give a competitive edge or which require investing significant funds into the infrastructure or human resources and this, perhaps, is not affordable at current stage of company growth.
Outsourcing has many advantages such as possibility to concentrate on core business, no need to duplicate key specialists, adaptation of innovative technology, quality improvement and service reliability.
Nevertheless, many companies question the effectiveness of outsourcing.
We would like you to ask yourself a string of questions that will allow you to make a sound decision:
• Will software outsourcing give you more time to focus your attention and efforts on the strengths of your company? If yes, then this will help your employees concentrate more on the reinforcing the strengths, major tasks and future development strategy of the company.
• Will software outsourcing improve your effectiveness and quality of service? Choose such an outsourcing company that specializes on the processes and services that will work for your company welfare.
• Will your business get a competitive advantage? Outsourcing can add flexibility to your business, converting your fixed costs into variable, releasing human resources and assets. Also, it can give your business an advantage when adapting to changing market conditions.
You might want to rush headlong into outsourcing – hold it! For a start, set aside some time to think over which processes are best to outsource and which vender is the most appropriate to work with. Let us examine the following:
• What are your key strengths and what are secondary? Which processes are you going to outsource and why?
• What are the costs of implementing this process within the company? Including hidden costs such as office space, recruiting and payment.
• Calculate ROI – ask your potential vendor to help you out with this as nowadays many of them offer such a service.
• Is it worth cooperating with an independent advisor who will search for an appropriate vendor? Doesn’t the advisor recommend the company which he has special arrangements with?
• What are the costs if not outsourcing? Will your business suffer if you don’t invest into knowledge and artifacts your partner already has and can supply you with.
Also, we strongly encourage to ask yourself the following questions before outsourcing:
• Are your expectations realistic?
• Are you ready to regularly set aside time and effort for managing outsourcing relationships (managing the work of outsourcing partner)? Or can you assign a special person who will manage the communication and create tasks for an outsourcing partner?
• Is this process a key concern which your company should address directly for the sake of future competitiveness?
Also, one shouldn’t forget about potential risks that can arise when working with outsourcing partners>>.
Please, do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions, or would like to get any clarifications or consulting.