Outsourcing Opinions

How to Survive the Recession

Jeff — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 06:16:18 +0000

As we all know, the past 12 – 24 months have been the roughest economic times most of us will ever see in our lifetime. Large corporations have had to make the difficult decision to lay off thousands of employees just to stay afloat. Small businesses haven’t been so “lucky”. These businesses are typically dependent on a smaller number of employees who already wear multiple hats within the business. For them, a decision to cut staff means that they now have trouble providing their services and in many cases just end up closing their doors.

So how can some of these small businesses survive? Outsourcing! Unfortunately, many small business owners aren’t aware that they too can take advantage of outsourcing or they don’t know where to start. Others may even fear outsourcing because it is something so foreign to them (pardon the pun). But taking that leap into outsourcing might mean the difference between survival and demise. And being able to manage your costs will not only help you survive the recession but when the economy starts growing again (which it will) you will come out more profitable then you were prior to the recession. So the key for these small businesses is to arm themselves with knowledge about how they can leverage outsourcing to their advantage.

With a little creativity, these small business owners can take a look at the functions of their employees and try to consolidate all of those roles that can be done remotely. They can then create job descriptions for these new positions, and look to outsourcing companies who provide dedicated employees to fill these roles. These types of companies will allow you to take advantage of the cost savings of outsourcing while maintaining control over your employee. But small business owners should make sure they do their due diligence when selecting an outsourcing partner. They should look for companies who have western management, redundant business-grade internet, back-up power sources, etc. They should also be sure to speak with a principal of that company before making their final selection to make sure they feel comfortable with their new business partner.

When times are tough, a little creative reorganization can go a long way to helping you survive. The global marketplace isn’t just for large corporations with vast resources anymore. Use those resources to not only survive the recession, but hopefully to also come out more profitable.

Jeff Hintze
COO
Phil-Am Outsourcing Solutions, Inc.

Welcome Message

Jeff — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 03:23:26 +0000

Dear Reader,

Thank you for your participation at OutsourcingOpinions.com. I’m excited to be an integral part of this website with the launch of its new Expert Corner.

The main goal of Expert Corner is to give readers direct access to a real person who has working knowledge in outsourcing. You will be able to interact with me by clicking on the link found under my profile picture. I will then post my response as an article here on this page. Ideally, this interaction will help our readers gain more knowledge about outsourcing and how they can take advantage of it, especially in these tough economic times. In addition to answering questions submitted by users, I will occasionally be posting articles on topics that we hope will be of interest to you.

I’m honored to have been chosen to work with Outsourcing Opinions as their outsourcing expert and look forward to interacting with all of you.

Jeff Hintze
COO
Phil-Am Outsourcing Solutions, Inc.

Coming Soon! Our new Expert Corner

winston — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 08:29:24 +0000

OutsourcingOpinions has teamed up with Outsourcing Expert, Jeff Hintze, to provide you even more useful information about Outsourcing. Through our upcoming Expert Corner, you will have direct access to Jeff and will be able to ask him questions about anything related to Outsourcing. Jeff has over a decade of experience working in the outsourcing industry from both sides of the ocean and is currently a partner at Phil-Am Outsourcing Solutions, Inc. based in the Philippines.

7 Ways to Successfully outsource Marketing

winston — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 04:17:55 +0000

Marketing departments are presently driven to reduce spending for their brands yet maintain consistency and drive profit back to the company. That’s one tall order to serve!

However, there is a viable solution: Outsourcing.

Through outsourcing, the first requirement of reducing costs can be easily achieved, while for the following two requirements are also achievable but it takes due diligence and professional commitment. A business organization CAN successfully outsource their marketing operations.

And here are 7 ways to go about it, according to Anurag Mehrotra, VP Corporate Marketing at WNS Global Services.

1. Get a sponsor to promote the viability of marketing outsourcing; preferrably a professional who can prove what s/he’s preaching.

2. Get the Chief Marketing Officer on to back-up the adoption of marketing outsourcing.

3. Get clarifications on what should and should not be outsourced. This is a tried-and-proven practice in outsourcing. It bears reminding.

4. Get small-to-medium services provider and work your scale up.

5. Get every delivery options available.

6. Get a working governance structure and make it go.

7. Get publicity on the positive fruits of the outsourcing initiative once these come.

To know more of these 7 success tips, check these out here

Outsourcing News Round up

winston — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 02:29:09 +0000

Outsourcing Issues and News.

Get your daily dose of professional business information and analyses searched and summarized by Outsourcing Opinions from the world business news agencies and major resource sites.

This week, know more on the state of economy and IT business sectors of the Philippines.

The Philippines is Strong, WB and IMF.

According to two international financial bodies, both the Philippines’ financial system and economy appear resilient to macroeconomic risks, due to the dominating strength of local banks.

World Bank notes that for 2009, the Philippines recorded a 0.9 percent positive growth and predicts that the gross domestic product (GDP) growth this 2010 to reach 3.5 percent and accelerate moderately to 3.8 percent in 2011.

Know why this is so here

Similarly, the International Monetary Fund finds the 10 largest banks in the country to be resilient to a wide range of credit, market and liquidity risks.

Learn more of this here

BPO Sector to recover growth

According to the country’s Commission on Information Communications Technology (CICT), the Philippines’ Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector will reach its usual growth rate of 25 to 30 percent this year after posting ‘lower’ 20 percent growth rate in 2009.

The CICT is set to have 35 more cities, outside Metro Manila and Cebu, transform into golbally-competitive ICT service hubs.

“We did experience a slowdown but not as bad as the other industries. It’s up to us to be more aggressive so that we are in the position for recovery. We have to push Personal Computer (PC) literacy so that more of our workforce will become computer-literate.”

– Ray Anthony Roxas Chua III, Secretary of Commission on Information Communications Technology (CICT).

Davao to take advantage of US Healthcare Law

Davao City’s medical transcription sector finds opportunity in the United States’ recently-approved healthcare law.

More work and careers opportunities in medical transcription as slots in medical coding and health insurance processing will open up as the US pursues its program for uninsured Americans who were not able to get coverage because of health conditions. Not just mere data entry, medical transcription workers can rise in the value services chain.

Learn more about this developing opportunity here

Telecom giant supports Philippine enterprise via ICT

This 2010, Philippines’ premier telecommunications services provider GLOBE starts more programs and new projects to the development of Filipino entrepreneurship, using information communications technology (ICT).

Through Globe’s corporate social responsibility arm “Globe Bridging Communities (Globe BridgeCom)”, trainings on product development and design, an entrepreneurship forum for select youth leaders utilizing information and communications technology (ICT) are going to be introduced. Globe BridgeCom also offers grants and opportunities for market linkages to chosen community enterprises.

Learn more about the GlobeBridgeCom program here

IT Outsourcing – 9 Signs to know it’s Over

winston — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 03:22:12 +0000

Watch out for these 9 symptoms of an outsourcing relationship that is failing and falling apart in order to get out before everything becomes too complicated, too costly for your organization’s business.

Supersized Growth
Key Staff Turnovers
Green SLAs but You’re in the Red
The Merger Factor
Excessive Profiteering
Transformation that was promised but never comes.
Everything costs Extra
The Project Hours Fight
The Satyam Scenario

Learn more about these symptoms here

Outsourcing – UK Firms displeased with Off-shoring?

readmin — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 00:39:29 +0000

According to respondents to a survey by Valueshore Spain– a government-backed IT consultancy group in Spain,75% of the respondents, which are British businesses, are frustrated with the quality of work being provided by their offshorers.

However, 66% of the survey’s respondents are still planning to utilize outsourcers offshore as most of them are still focused on reducing cost despite 94% of the respondents believe that this focus could be detrimental to their projects’ success.

Well, it just makes one wonder where generally are these British firms outsourcing their work offshore? And to whom?

The news did not exactly elaborate if the study included this in their survey, nor does the Valueshore Spain website broadcast a summary of the survey as of this writing.

There is a quote though from the co-founder of Valueshore, reminding businesses that cost reduction can incur ‘hidden’ costs in extra management, travel and trouble shooting.
Reference:

King, Leo. “Businesses disappointed with quality of offshore work.” 23 March 2010. Computer World UK. Accessed 25 March 2010. Link Here

Outsourcing Solutions, Inc. – your outsourcing partner!

Outsourcing Showdown: UK LPO’s Nearshore vs. Offshore

readmin — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:00:03 +0000

Legal process outsourcing (LPO) firms in the United Kingdom place two services delivery models toe-to-toe: near shore versus offshore.

At present, domestic outsourcing of legal services seem to be the more preferred choice as firms hesitate to send out sensitive client information abroad as the key factor.

Read more about this LPO development in the United Kingdom here

Outsourcing Philippines – Report Card

readmin — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 00:42:37 +0000

The Philippines and its outsourcing services sector is presently under evaluation by both internal and external raters.

This April, two international credit rating firms will visit and review the sovereign ratings of the country. A local economics professor presents the results of his survey on Philippine companies’ labor policies. All this and more after the jump.

Better Partnership, Better Infrastructure

Cable&Wireless Worldwide (C&WW) and Philippine Long Distance Telecommunications (PLDT) announced expanding their seven-year long strategic partnership to deliver Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) network connectivity and value-added telecommunications services.

“The partnership between Cable&Wireless Worldwide and PLDT successfully serves enterprise customers seeking secure high speed global connectivity in and out of the Philippines.”

– Nerissa S. Ramos, First Vice President of PLDT.

C&WW and PLDT are set to improve the country’s international connectivity by adding an Asia America Gateway (AAG) international leased line trunk between Philippines and Hong Kong.

Also part of the strategic partnership with PLDT, C&WW will enhance its existing suite of on-net Virtual Private Network (VPN) Quality-of-service (QoS) offerings for its Philippine customers

With significant demand from global providers of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) services for IP-based Contact Center (IPCC) solutions and support services into and out of the Philippines,
C&WW invests in the country’s resilient and secure network infrastructure.

Top Int’l Ratings Firms come this April

Two international credit rating firms will visit the Philippines next month to review the sovereign ratings of the country. Representatives from Standard and Poor’s and officials from Fitch Ratings, Inc. will meet with the Philippines’ economic officials this April 5 and Aprial 20 respectively.

Previously, Fitch forecasted Philippines’ fiscal deficit woes will likely persist this 2010, however its current credit rating is safe, due to strong external payments position. Also, Standard & Poor’s Rating Services reaffirmed their “stable” ratings on the debts of the Philippines.

Based on Survey, Philippine labor laws hurt Business growth

The Philippines’ current labor policies do not contribute to local companies competitiveness nor the business sector’s attractiveness for foreign investments.

This is according to a recent academic paper, “Labor Policies and Philippine Companies: Analysis of Survey Opinions,” where its proponent Dr. Gerardo Sicat of the University of the Philippines-Economics analyzed the opinions of respondents from Philippines companies on minimum wage-setting process, hiring and firing practices, training and holidays.

Based on the survey, Sicat surmised current labor laws are biased, detrimental to local, private firms owned by Philippine citizens compared to foreign-owned companies or multinationals that are operating in the country.

References:

Leyco, Chino. “Top 2 rating firms to review RP status.” 21 March 2010. The Manila Bulletin. Accessed 21 March 2010. Link Here
Lopez, Edu. “Current labor policies unable to attract more foreign investors – study.” 22 March 2010. The Manila Bulletin. Accessed 22 March 2010. Link Here
Tan, Imelad. “Cable&Wireless Worldwide and PLDT Strengthen Partnership to Serve Growing Global Telecom Needs of Philippine Enterprises.” 17 March 2010. EuroInvestor UK. Accessed 20 March 2010. Link Here

Outsourcing Solutions, Inc. – your outsourcing partner!

Lockdowns on Outsourcing?

readmin — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 01:25:59 +0000

From Economic Times of India-Infotech section, “the Data Security Council of India (DSCI) announced it will soon begin implementation of data security and privacy practices in some of the big ticket IT/BPO firms serving overseas clients. Also, the DSCI plan to introduce certification mark that shall act as a trusted mark for India’s outsourcing industry within a year.”

Can anyone note the lack of urgency?

With clients these days becoming more and more cautious and critical when it comes to privacy and data security, I don’t think the DSCI of Nasscom has the luxury to be as laid-back as this news article made them appear to be.

This planned implementation of security regulations and certification should have been implemented yesterday, nay , it should have been months ago. NASSCOM should be stepping up as India is indeed the leader of outsourcing, they should lead.

And here’s something for a heads-up to firms and companies based in the United States.

Though the US Congress is still at odds on whether or not anti-offshoring legislation are going to be passed as law, it would be in your best interests to prepare yourself just in case by updating your contracts with your service providers.

There are three options companies, which are clients to outsourcing providers, can do:

Modify the “change in laws” provisions that should be included in contracts to address compliance issues.
Include a right to benchmark clause if services need to be altered as a result of legislative changes.
To work with service providers who have significant U.S. operations, in the event that they’re forced to move work onshore.

References:

Overby, Stephanie. “Outsourcing: Prepare Now for Anti-Offshoring Legislation.” 17 March 2010. CIO Website. Accessed 18 March 2010. Link Here
“DSCI to implement data security practices in IT/BPO firms soon.” 17 March 2010. CIO Website. Accessed 18 March 2010. Link Here

Outsourcing Solutions, Inc. – your outsourcing partner!