The Benefits of Outsourcing

The Benefits of Outsourcing: What You Should Outsource and Why

Outsourcing has become an increasingly popular way of managing a business. In today’s fast-paced digital economy, businesses need to cut costs and increase efficiency to remain competitive. Outsourcing can be an answer to your business needs, whether you are looking for cost-cutting measures, to streamline your operations or just see you over a really busy period. Outsourcing is a flexible and efficient way of handling tasks that do not require specialised training or experience. Many organisations trust the expertise of professional service providers when it comes to executing tasks without fully understanding their impact on the organisation as a whole. Here is why you should consider outsourcing:

?Why should you outsource?

There are many reasons why you should consider outsourcing. When you outsource, the cost of certain tasks is reduced without the cost of hiring additional staff. Outsourcing allows you to scale back on your operations, if necessary, without impacting your business’s profitability. If you have a large number of tasks that need to be completed but you do not have the resources to carry them out yourself, outsourcing can free up your time so that you can focus on other tasks that require more attention. As costs are reduced by outsourcing, the benefits are greater than they are with in-house operations.

?The benefits of outsourcing

The main benefit of outsourcing is that you will be hiring experts to carry out tasks in a cost efficient way.

Think about it this way - if your hourly rate is ￡100 per hour and you are spending 5 hours per week creating content and posting on social media, answering emails, filing receipts or doing payroll, none of which is your skillset, that's ￡500 per week you have available to outsource to someone who will be:

• quicker, thus saving you time
• cheaper, thus saving you money

Even better, because they are not an employee, you will not be paying on-costs like tax, NI, pension, holiday and sick pay - and you also don't pay for dead time like tea breaks and loo breaks - an all-round win!

?When should you outsource?

There are certain situations in which outsourcing is a good idea:

• repetitive tasks - the ones you do each day, week or month but which could be easily done by someone else
• tasks you don't want to do - the ones which you keep putting off and never get done
• tasks you don't know how to do - let someone who does know complete them in less time, or show you how to do them

Anything which takes a lot of time without generating income directly but still needs doing - those are the tasks which can be outsourced.

?Choose an outsourcing partner

Choosing an outsourcing partner can be tricky. You need to find someone who can:

• provide you with quality services
• charge a reasonable price
• be responsive to your needs
• understand your business
• understand how outsourcing will help your company

It is also important to be sure that, if things don't work out, you can terminate the agreement easily.

Do your research! It is important to be sure that your prospective partner is offering everything you need, will respond promptly and has the appropriate skills for the tasks you need.

?Transparent pricing is also important - a quote is all very well but can be based on an interpretation of the work involved. Once the job is started, it can become apparent that there is more work involved and the client must be kept informed if this involves more cost. There should never be a surprise bill - apart from being bad for cash flow, it also erodes trust in the service provider.

Find partners that are easy to work with and that are easy to communicate with; that understand your business’s needs, are responsive to client requests, and offer regular updates.

Communication is key! That goes both ways, by the way - there is no point asking someone to do some work for you and then not keeping them informed about changes in direction, process or just an idea you have had. Be clear about what you want and expect, and expect them to do the same. Many outsourced tasks change as the task progresses - this is normal and is often a result of two-way communication developing ideas and improving processes.

?Last word…

The benefits of outsourcing are many and varied. Working with a great outsourcing partner can reduce costs in your business, increase profitability and promote growth. The key to this is finding the right partner at the right price and keeping the lines of communication open.

?If you would like to find out more about how Pink Spaghetti can help with all the things discussed here, why not check out our website www.pink-spaghetti.co.uk and find out who your local Pink Spaghetti PA is.