Each and every business, whether start-up or already established, aims to feel confident about their business growth and also their customer service.

It's only in recent years that Maltese companies and organizations from small businesses to large entities, are leveraging with the idea of outsourcing. It's easy to see why. The main reason for outsourcing non-core operations was always mainly to save money, but that is not the only benefit of outsourcing. Companies of all sizes can benefit from hiring a flexible and agile workforce to take on some of their projects without increasing their headcount.

Businesses who outsource also benefit from an improved performance, but above all, they also avoid any headaches when it comes to recruiting.  Finding the right candidate to fill up a vacant post within an organisation takes time and effort, but if that operation within the business is outsourced, the right human resources are already set in place.

What function should be outsourced and why?

Though there are several functions which a business can outsource. How can a business select the right ones and bring most benefit?

If the growth of your business outpaces the growth of your team, your business is not able to keep with the demand. This in itself is of course a positive thing but attempting to keep-up with the demand, can often stunt your business growth.

If a company has reached this position, the point of start is an analysis of the workflow and operations that includes assessing the skill set.

This will give a clearer picture of those functions that can be outsourced and the ones that are best kept in-house. It is advisable to keep core competencies in-house.

Then your best bet would be to set clear goals which are specific, such as, whether you'd like to cut certain costs or free up resources in order to use them on another initiative.

Usually the best tasks to outsource would be those which are repeatable but consume a lot of time and resources, such as accounts and administrative work.

Always keep in mind that outsourcing a certain workload can help free up resources which in turn you would be able to use on other initiatives. Initiatives which for years you might have shouldered for some time now due to financial reasons.

As Tim Ferriss said, "what we fear doing most is usually what we most need to do."

It's also highly important to be ready for change as outsourcing will be changing your company, for the better. It's an opportunity in which requires planning, not only for you or the board of directors but also for your employees and the workflow.

Outsourcing will change your team's workflow, and though you might think it'll be difficult to adapt, you'll shortly realise how beneficial it was to outsource a function and use those resources on other departments which needed the extra push.

Keep in mind, as the father of management thinking, Peter Drucker once said "Do what you do best. Outsource the rest," and rightly so. Outsourcing the rest will help you keep your focus on what you do best without having to worry on trivial functions which take up your time.

What are the benefits?

Outsourcing has many benefits, but you must first realise that if you do not put yourself in the game, your business can lose.

The first Prime Minister of Singapore, commonly referred to by his initials, LKY, Lee Kuan Yew, was quoted saying that "if you deprive yourself of outsourcing and your competitors do not, you're putting yourself out of business." The reason is that once the force that drives the economy was set in motion, it is beyond impossible to stop it and even more difficult to swim against the current when your competitors have already dived in the waters to better their chances.

Your business can increase its efficiency while also increase its focus on strategy and its core competencies. As already mentioned, you can focus on the main roles of the company, while the rest is being handled through outsourcing. Your company will be working less, and achieving more because certain tasks which must be performed to maintain operations but do not help the company grow, can be outsourced without the need to take up too much of your time.

More so, outsourcing can also help in bringing new clients and revenue in.

A case in point is when a company outsources the sales department, by using sales call management in which you hire another company to bring new leads. This will help your company gain more clients, through the use of specialised agents with a set of skills and who are well trained and whose job is solely placing the right sales calls for you. While you are benefitting from the business growth, you also steer away from the unnecessary process of hiring new people, training them and also managing another department that takes up your time and energy to manage.

Your local provider for outsourcing - Zenith Connect

Zenith Connect is a contact centre set-up offering both outbound and inbound services catering for professionals, SMEs and large organisations based in Malta. Zenith Connect is committed in working together with our clients towards finding the best option to fit their individual needs. We invite you to set an appointment with our outsourcing experts at Zenith Connect by calling our offices on 21 332200. Zenith - reaching heights together.