Today’s dynamic business world has led to many different models employed by companies to maximise efficiency, minimise waste and boost productivity and outsourcing is one of the most effective ways to do so.
Some companies choose to keep everything in-house while others engage external consultants or freelancers to perform niche tasks that they specialise in. There is also a third model which is proving to be gaining in popularity and that is outsourcing entire departments to other companies that are experts in the field.
The signs that your business is ready to move to the cloud and make the most of the modern accounting model are often very clear and undeniable.
In this article, we highlight the 8 clear signs that your company is ready to embrace outsourcing. The 8 signs will not relate to each and every business, but if you see that the vast majority of them apply to yours, then you should consider the fact that your company might be ready to take the next step and enjoy the benefits of outsourcing.
1 – Your team is not all in the same place
In the modern business environment, companies often have team members placed in different locations and branches. You may also offer flexi-time and work-from-home options to employees who keep in touch through video conferencing, messaging and workflow apps such as Asana. If your team is already working from different places, it shows that your business is already setup to deal with outsourced help in areas such as IT, digital marketing, traditional marketing, bookkeeping and accounting functions.
2 – A specific need to address
Certain business areas are target specific, meaning that they are easier to navigate in terms of sourcing outside sub-contract support. Accounting, marketing and IT are three of the main skill set areas which are ripe for outsourcing. Because the overheads are much cheaper and you can pay professionals for their expertise for a particular project, you can make big savings. You’re also not paying for excess capacity and only for what you need!
3- You already use the cloud
Most businesses start out small and when they grow, owners often purchase cloud subscriptions to software packages to allow them to keep their own books, schedule payments, blog posts and get business insights. This often leads to a situation where business owners get overwhelmed as their business grows.
Just like you have outsourced your accounting functions to our cloud-based system, you can do the same with other business areas such as newsletters, blog posts, social media marketing, inventory management and much more!
4 – Security is a priority
Data breaches can destroy a business and you are 100 percent correct to be concerned. While the occasional data breach makes the headlines, the breaches that occur at the workplace occur far more often and can leave you exposed to penalties and fines.
More data is lost by employees leaving usb sticks around and losing laptops and tablets than any other way. If you outsource your marketing, accounting or IT systems to experts using cloud-based technology, you can rest assured that data exchange is limited to the need to know.
An outsourced expert will do the job professionally and switch off when they leave the office. You can rest assured that they will not be talking about your business’ finances or marketing plans in the kitchen or on friday night drinks, as can sometimes happen in-house.
5 – You want fixed fees with no surprises
Growing businesses need to be certain of their cash flow and the traditional model of doing business can mean charges by the hour and for each consultation. Third party businesses who pitch specifically for outsourced work will offer you fixed-fee scalable packages which allows you to plan ahead and forecast you cash flow. You will know exactly what you are paying for and what to expect.
6 – Office politics
Office politics are part and parcel of every organisation. Egos, personalities, character quirks and more come into play… With outsourcing, this will never happen as the person handling the transaction has no tie – positive or negative – to the other person involved in the transaction. Outsourcing means that attitude goes out of the window.
7 – Keep an eye on the workload
While your business was growing, you may have had people doing too many things at once. Sometimes, they end up with so many things on their plate that it is practically impossible to do anything properly.
If you notice that your team’s performance is slipping due to workload, then it’s definitely time to consider bringing in outside help. An individual only has so much bandwidth whereas an outsourced provider can very quickly scale up or down to support your business.
8 – Your business is growing!
There is nothing quite as satisfactory for an entrepreneur to watch their business grow and take on a life of its own. The line you need to draw in the sand is how much you can effectively manage. Outsourcing can help you with this. You can always start small and scale up. When you outsource, you should always do your research.
You can use freelancer websites such as Upwork or Speedlancer and apps such as Airtasker to find people who have skills ranging from graphic design to plastering and anything in between.
If you delegate into the hands of people who know what they are doing, you can concentrate on what you do best: Making it grow!
If you enjoyed this blog post, you can read out two-part series on offshoring. Part 1 & Part 2.
