Many companies have tried and failed with outsourcing from the UK. Yet a field that is booming in the outsourcing community is the information technology departments. Everything from call centres to specialised computer languages is being handed over to outsourcing companies.
There are many fields of Information Technology that can and have been used by outsourcing companies. Some examples are as follows: C++, SQL, Vb.net, Wed Design, C#, Asp.net, Website Developer, Java, Dreamweaver and I.T Support. The most popular of these is the I.T Support. Even leading I.T companies are outsourcing this task to multiple outsourcing companies to provide efficient and fast responses to clients needs. The leading Internet Service Provider for 2010 TalkTalk Direct are an excellent example of outsourcing. They provide outsourcing for majority of there tasks from call centres to support desks. This is a unique case as they researched outsourcing companies and jobs thoroughly whilst acquiring recommendations from large organisations. The biggest recommendation they received was from Fujitsu. Fujitsu acted as a consultant to TalkTalk Direct in ways of maximising efficiency, they were provided three options for progression:
Option 1 - buying in of generic development/ programming resources as needed
Option 2 - adopting a flexible resourcing model to acquire specific skills, probably as part of a Time & Materials contract or on a fixed price per project basis
Option 3 - contracting with a supplier to deliver a full-time service for a steady core workload.
During this time TalkTalk were guided to find out what outsourcing companies to use and also what to outsource and where. Most things are now seen as available to being outsourced but to make an effective business decision only certain tasks were eventually handed to outsourcing companies globally.
The initial agreement was to find a low value support work enabling this company to move to more strategic projects when they felt they have used outsourcing effectively. With the consultancy provided by Fujitsu to TalkTalk Direct were shown benefits such as reducing risk, improving performance, optimising operational agility, increasing revenue and enhancing decision making.
Reducing Risks: TalkTalk Direct analyzed the most effective outsourcing strategies using independent analysers to see all viewpoints and requirements. This was done due to Fujistsu's previous experiences to avoid costly pitfalls.
Improve Performance: having a clear analysis of TalkTalk Directs strengths and needs to set targets and plans to achieve long term goals, these may change the initial plans set out.
Optimise operational agility - will be able to efficiently and cost-effectively manage peaks and troughs in demand
Increase revenue - have the proven capability and capacity to attract significantly more new business
Enhance decision-making - comprehensive management information will be available to help optimise service performance and resource allocation.
Using these strategy changes and previous experiences by Fujitsu, TalkTalk Direct went on to become a leading company with great expansion and huge growth.
This is an example of how outsourcing has helped a small company that started of as a part of a bigger chain went on to be a leading organisation in the field of its desire.
Outsourcing has revolutionised this company. This is a perfect example of how outsourcing can be beneficial in the Information Technology fields. More companies are stepping up to the option of outsourcing as TalkTalk Direct did to ensure expansion and growth and larger profits.
Previous Internet Service Providers have also tried this and succeeded for a short periods, Pipex being one of them. Back in 2002 it was the ISP of the year, now 8 years later Pipex has been bought over by Opal due to lack of sales and efficient service. A mistake they made was showing the public that they were outsourcing. They used offshore call centres with thick foreign accents and staff that struggled to understands the situation presented in front of them. The staff used preset databases to provide a solution for your difficulties when the only information they had was also available through the help services on there own website. If that didn’t solve your problem then the helpdesk wasn’t very helpful. Pipex were wrongly guided into outsourcing and may have done a better job if they selected employees with neutral accents or trained better. Even if they had specialists in the field of Internet support a possibility of long term success was an option.
In conclusion, if used effectively with the correct guidance and proper strategic planning. Companies can benefit in the long term by using outsourcing companies, whether it is via outsourcing companies or even freelancers. It is also important to get accurate guidance and analysis on the projects outsourced and what you can and can’t outsource effectively. It may have an impact on costs short term but for the long run be effective, get a consultant or an advisor to look at your company and advise on what to outsource and where. If your company deals with larger clients get recommendations as everyone gets outside help for there business whatever the need. Deal with companies that have used outsourcing or individuals as they will have the knowledge to decide if it’s a good investment or if you are better off doing it in house.
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