In this highly competitive business world, finding the perfect way to conduct your business is vital to run it smoothly. Businesses always try to bring a balance between the activities of the organization and offering excellent service to the clients. However, as the business grows, it becomes difficult to effectively manage all the processes. There are several repetitive and mundane tasks that are unproductive and time-consuming. In such circumstances, businesses opt for business process outsourcing that allows them to minimize the burden of work and concentrate on core activities.
Why Companies Choose to Outsource Their Business Processes
Outsourcing business processes is nothing but the practice of contracting specific work processes to an external service provider.
- Outsourcing provides access to skilled workforce and with more experience, specialized machines and optimized processes, they are able to perform tasks faster and more efficiently than in-house teams working in companies where the process would be non-essential to the business.
- Outsourcing allows enterprises to be more focused, innovative and efficient. When non- essential activities of an organization are outsourced, it helps the business to be more flexible when it comes to managing risks associated with launching a new product or services.
- By outsourcing, the business can assign internal resources to do something more productive and ensure proper allocation of resources.
- Majority of businesses outsource with the sole purpose of minimizing cost but today everyone has started focusing on the value of service provided. This is because the customers are highly educated and aware of all possible failures related to outsourcing. So, the value of the service is more important than getting things done at a cheaper rate so that clients receive quality service with transparency.
- Another reason for outsourcing is that businesses may lack the required skills within the organization while BPO vendors have employees with outstanding skills; they also act transparently and work with the company. They understand the current business needs and anticipate what may be needed in the future to achieve business goals.
Many companies around the world outsource some of their business processes to external vendors. Following are some examples:
- Apple: The design of Apple smartphone is done by Apple in California but it is assembled in China. This is to cope with the rising volume of products.
- Coca Cola: In the case of Coca Cola, production is not their key to success, so they outsourced to another company that is closer to each market. The recipe and the syrup to make the drink are kept internally but packaging and distribution are done by other companies.
- United Airlines: United airlines and other airlines outsource low-wage tasks for ground work at the airport. This helps the airlines minimize costs and run their business cost effectively.
The emerging trends in outsourcing are all geared towards enabling businesses to grow more efficient and productive. Let us look at some of these trends.
- Cloud technology: With the emergence of Big Data, the latest technologies are vital to store and back up customer files and other important business data. Cloud computing enables businesses to rent their outsourcing provider’s IT infrastructure to accommodate their server, storage or networking needs. The advantage is that it requires no huge investment related to developing and owning the cloud technology in-house.
- RPA or robotic process automation: There is increasing use of artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies to automate business processes. In keeping with this, business process outsourcing companies will have to find a balance between assigning repetitive or unskilled tasks to bots while delegating other important roles to human staff. This will help ensure more efficiency and customer satisfaction.
- Increased focus on social media for customer service: A number of people are active on social media for longer times and this offers an opportunity for businesses to reach customers via online platforms. There are outsourcing companies providing services in this direction, with excellent knowledge in using social media tools and features.
- Training processes to enhance skills: Outsourcing companies will focus on enhancing the skills of their team by providing intensive training. This will help meet increasing customer demands and provide the best services possible.
- Customized outsourcing: This is another important thing outsourcing firms will consider to meet customers’ unique requirements. They will strive to provide personalized services to help their clients meet challenges specific to their niche, while also ensuring efficiency and cost savings.
The global business process outsourcing market is highly competitive with a number of players on the scene. With the urge to drive speedy transformation across various processes, automation will continue to be the most popular trend in the outsourcing field. BPO is predicted to grow healthily in the coming years and become even more widely used. It has been proven to be the best way to enhance business performance and bottom line cost-effectively, efficiently, and quickly. Having a good rapport with the outsourced service provider is vital to ensure the long-lasting success of outsourcing.
