Outsourcing to India has for long been the buzzword in the western world. India offers not just cheap labour and reduced infrastructure costs, it boasts some of the best talent in the world, making the average Indian employee a very valuable member of the team, whether it is in the field of IT, BPO, web designing or medical transcription.
But, outsourcing is a major decision and cannot be undertaken on a whim or a presumption because of its long-reaching impact on the ongoing business. Some serious spadework needs to be done.
So, assuming you are a SME and wish to outsource some business functions, here are the top 10 tips before you actually start outsourcing to India:
1. If this is the first time that you are outsourcing then start with the less complex projects or something on a small scale to test the waters, so to speak. So, even if you have a not-so-good experience, the dent will be manageable.
2. It is essential to have identified the reason behind your decision to outsource. Has the decision been motivated by a desire to cut costs, increase efficiency, concentrate on your core competencies while leaving the non-core business functions to the outsourcing service provider? It helps to circle this option because then it decides your approach and expectations from the outsourcing vendor.
3. What business functions do you wish to outsource? IT, engineering, transcription, call centre related, accounts? There are outsourcing companies in India who specialize in certain fields and it makes more sense to recruit employees form the ones who have a greater expertise and experience in your chosen domain.
4. Freelancer or a dedicated employee? What is the nature of the work that you wish to outsource? Is it a short-term project like, say, website designing, that can be completed in a fixed time frame? Is it an ongoing process like data management? A freelancer would probably be more suitable for the former and a dedicated, full-time employee for the latter.
5. Choose the right vendor. The importance of this cannot be stressed enough. A reputed, well-established outsourcing service provider will be able to meet any requirement that you have regarding a job position that needs to be filled. So, you need to evaluate the vendor's credentials carefully.
6. Infrastructure. Alright, let's say that you are an SME and are looking to hire ten virtual employees to work on a long-term accounting project. Does the remote staffing vendor's office support your requirement with the necessary infrastructure? Is the building lightning and earthquake-resistant (important considerations in India)? Are the latest hardware and software installed in the laptops and PCs? How is the internet speed and connectivity?
7. Past client testimonials. Testimonials speak louder than whatever may have been written on the vendor's website. See how many happy clients the vendor has had prior to you and what each one says about the quality of work received. Few testimonials are not such an encouraging sign but it is definitely better than no testimonials at all!
8. How often do you need to communicate with your employee? Does the work that you have outsourced, like Dot Net development need regular inputs from you? These are vital issues that need to be worked out before you sign on the dotted line. It is these very issues that could later become a bottleneck in achieving a smooth interpersonal relationship. Is the remote staffing company offering you the basics of communicating with your employee - telephone access, Skype chat, Video Conferencing, and email?
9. How much control or intervention do you need? Do you require that your employee work in a proper office environment that has HR managers to keep track of the virtual employee's work performance and send those reports to you? Make sure the vendor has such resources in place.
10. What are the security measures adopted by the outsourcing service as far as data protection is concerned? This is one of the most burning concerns for any organization that probably also passes along sensitive information while outsourcing. This concern is justified considering a third party in a foreign country thousands of miles away is handing confidential data.
But, outsourcing is a major decision and cannot be undertaken on a whim or a presumption because of its long-reaching impact on the ongoing business. Some serious spadework needs to be done.
So, assuming you are a SME and wish to outsource some business functions, here are the top 10 tips before you actually start outsourcing to India:
1. If this is the first time that you are outsourcing then start with the less complex projects or something on a small scale to test the waters, so to speak. So, even if you have a not-so-good experience, the dent will be manageable.
2. It is essential to have identified the reason behind your decision to outsource. Has the decision been motivated by a desire to cut costs, increase efficiency, concentrate on your core competencies while leaving the non-core business functions to the outsourcing service provider? It helps to circle this option because then it decides your approach and expectations from the outsourcing vendor.
3. What business functions do you wish to outsource? IT, engineering, transcription, call centre related, accounts? There are outsourcing companies in India who specialize in certain fields and it makes more sense to recruit employees form the ones who have a greater expertise and experience in your chosen domain.
4. Freelancer or a dedicated employee? What is the nature of the work that you wish to outsource? Is it a short-term project like, say, website designing, that can be completed in a fixed time frame? Is it an ongoing process like data management? A freelancer would probably be more suitable for the former and a dedicated, full-time employee for the latter.
5. Choose the right vendor. The importance of this cannot be stressed enough. A reputed, well-established outsourcing service provider will be able to meet any requirement that you have regarding a job position that needs to be filled. So, you need to evaluate the vendor's credentials carefully.
6. Infrastructure. Alright, let's say that you are an SME and are looking to hire ten virtual employees to work on a long-term accounting project. Does the remote staffing vendor's office support your requirement with the necessary infrastructure? Is the building lightning and earthquake-resistant (important considerations in India)? Are the latest hardware and software installed in the laptops and PCs? How is the internet speed and connectivity?
7. Past client testimonials. Testimonials speak louder than whatever may have been written on the vendor's website. See how many happy clients the vendor has had prior to you and what each one says about the quality of work received. Few testimonials are not such an encouraging sign but it is definitely better than no testimonials at all!
8. How often do you need to communicate with your employee? Does the work that you have outsourced, like Dot Net development need regular inputs from you? These are vital issues that need to be worked out before you sign on the dotted line. It is these very issues that could later become a bottleneck in achieving a smooth interpersonal relationship. Is the remote staffing company offering you the basics of communicating with your employee - telephone access, Skype chat, Video Conferencing, and email?
9. How much control or intervention do you need? Do you require that your employee work in a proper office environment that has HR managers to keep track of the virtual employee's work performance and send those reports to you? Make sure the vendor has such resources in place.
10. What are the security measures adopted by the outsourcing service as far as data protection is concerned? This is one of the most burning concerns for any organization that probably also passes along sensitive information while outsourcing. This concern is justified considering a third party in a foreign country thousands of miles away is handing confidential data.
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