All About Outsourcing

There has never been a better time to decide if outsourcing is a strategy that could work for your business. We’ve found that the decision to outsource vs. hire in-house often comes down to how forward-thinking we are when it comes to taking risks. We must also determine how fast we can get needed talent with needed skills at the right price. There are many ways for companies to be efficient, cut costs and gain competitive advantage, and outsourcing may or may not be the answer. But with remote work not going away and every organization already operating with some version of a hybrid model, sourcing external knowledge to fill talent gaps has become an essential ingredient for innovation.

Here’s how to identify if it’s right for you:

In-House vs. Outsourcing Pros and Cons. There are three vital factors to consider: cost, expertise and flexibility. Outsourcing enables businesses to quickly scale and mobilize on a project, access experienced talent in a targeted discipline and get assignments completed and delivered faster.

On the flip side, it’s important to understand the drawbacks it can have on company culture. While outsourcing can give your company strategic expertise, it can lower employee morale if employees feel they are being replaced. Clear communication, team building and opportunities for advancement and training can help your staff feel valued and optimistic.

7 outsourcing trends to watch:

Companies can save time and money outsourcing to experts who can help employees understand the digital universe and apply the tools they need to work smarter and faster. As cloud technology and AI expands, vendors may begin consolidating services to make it easier for companies to access ongoing insight, training and support. For example, a CRM expert could be used to build out a new system, provide initial training and monitor for three to six months to troubleshoot.

A growing number of companies are hiring fractional CFOs (chief financial officers) and plug-in finance departments or accounting teams to help manage spending, financial strategy and risk management. If you’re a small business or a start-up, you can hire an experienced fractional CFO with deep industry knowledge who doesn’t require a lengthy tenure and is an objective, cost-effective problem solver at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire.

Fractional CMOs (chief marketing officers) are ideal for medium-sized businesses without the resources to hire a full-time marketing director or marketing services team or agency to help with market research, collateral, content and digital marketing. Like other fractional C-suite positions, interim executives bring perspective, experience and an understanding of the industry and target audience without the overhead of a full-time salaried position.

Fractional CROs (chief revenue officers) give companies a boost in sales leadership without the cost and effort that it takes to recruit and onboard a full-time sales leader position in a tight labor market. For business owners looking to accelerate revenue growth, outsourcing to an experienced executive on an interim basis can jump start the process.

Further down the org chart are non-customer facing operational functions being outsourced to external companies with specialized expertise in front- or back-office functions that can fill critical needs in payroll, cost estimating, validation studies, property mapping, safety training and procurement.

For businesses with less than 200 employees, outsourcing various HR services such as employee compensation and benefits administration, workforce administration, legal compliance, workers’ comp, talent management, recruiting and onboarding to industry specific experts solves capacity issues, delegates non-core work, and puts the people-focused work of human resources back to the internal human who does it best, without administrative overload.

A growing industry of articulate and knowledgeable customer concierge and CRM experts are becoming essential value-adds, offering 24/7 customizable support and handling everything from fielding inbound and outbound calls, leads and emails, analytics and website visitors.