Original Publication: Customer Management Insight - August 2008
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Many companies think of outsourcing as a perfect way to lower both costs and headaches. Yet, many times, outsourcing relationships bring disappointment and frustration. When I’m called in to resolve outsourcing problems, I find that most of the time, it comes down to a poor match between the company and the outsourcing vendor, something that could have been prevented through a better selection process. The following are tips on selecting the right outsourcer.
What Are Your Call Center Needs?
Outsourcers are not mind readers, nor do they cater to the entire spectrum of support centers. Whether you are looking for a small team to support a highly complex set of products or a large team for order-entry tasks, there is a good outsourcer for you — but likely not the same for both.
Start by defining your needs as clearly as possible: type of work, expected volume, hours of operation, support channels (phone, email, chat) and whether you expect the outsourcer to use your tracking and phone systems or theirs. Any serious outsourcer will want to have this basic information before proceeding, and it will help to avoid serious mismatches.
Does Location Matter?
Although working through an outsourcer dampens tactical issues related to the location of the support center, you still want to make sure that the location is likely to yield appropriate results. This is especially true if you’re thinking of an offshore location. Do you need excellent spoken English? Even in English-speaking countries, regional accents may create a barrier with your customers. Are you considering a country in a different time zone? If so, shift work may make it very difficult to recruit and especially retain staff. Do you need very specific technical expertise? Some locations may simply not have the talent pool that you need — and the outsourcers may not grasp or disclose limitations associated with the location. It’s up to you to investigate.
Create a Outsourcer Checklist
Because your requirements are unique, your outsourcer requirements checklist will also be unique, but the components are universal. They include:
> Company. An outsourcing relationship is likely to last for several years and have a strong impact on your customers, so include criteria such as company size, longevity and existing successful clients similar to you.
> Talent Pool. In my mind, this is the most important piece. Include both specific technical requirements (Does the staff need to troubleshoot Linux problems? Understand nursing protocols? Hold specific certifi-cations?) as well as language and other communication requirements. While the outsourcer’s methods of recruitment and retention are important to maintain a good talent pool, it cannot overcome local conditions. For instance looking for flawless spoken English in China is probably unrealistic at this point in time.
Turnover is another area that’s highly influenced by the competitiveness of the overall job market.
> Processes. This covers all management processes, including recruiting, training, retention practices, the startup process for new clients, and account management (including metrics). Even established outsourcers can be surprisingly lax in their methods, so it’s worth investigating processes thoroughly.
> Geography and Politics. This vast category ranges from practical items, such as time zone, to more holistic issues, such as political stability and cultural fit with U.S. business practices. There’s little the individual outsourcer can do to overcome local limitations in this area.
> Infrastructure. Especially for overseas locations you cannot take infrastructure for granted: Is there a convenient airport with flights to your location? Is there a reliable supply of electricity? Is the computer network stable?
> Technical Setup and Tools. This covers the outsourcer’s specific infrastructure. What tracking tools are available? Is there a redundant setup for equipment?
> Cost. While you won’t be able to get a specific quote until late in the investigation, it’s useful to note any requirements you may have, whether in terms of maximum cost or pricing structure. For instance, many outsourcers function under a headcount model, so if you want to use another method, such as transaction-based, you should investigate it from the start.
Aim for the checklist to include no more than 50 items or so at this point. Once you have a solid list of requirements, assign weights to them. This will help you to score each provider fairly.
Use a Two-Step Outsourcer Selection Process
The first step is to investigate likely candidates through direct research and a request for information (RFI) for items directly related to the candidates. For the more general items, such as talent pool, use direct research to get an unbiased view. For country-specific information, look for information from a variety of international groups about educational records, infrastructure, expected inflation, etc. Yes, it’s time-consuming to do the research, but you will gain a deeper understanding of the likely challenges and what you can do to minimize problems. You will end up with scores for each provider.
After you complete the initial assessment, you will have identified a handful of providers worthy of a more detailed investigation. At this point, an onsite investigation is required. It’s very easy to create a pretty PowerPoint presentation showing redundant systems. Once you peek into the server room, you will know whether they really exist. Same thing with staff: Insist on strolling through the center and listening in to random conversations. And check references thoroughly. No outsourcing relationship is perfect, so probe for what issues came up and how they were handled.
International Call Center — or Local Pretender?
Offshore outsourcers offer several advantages, with lower cost often at the top of the list — and their markets are growing all over the world. But there are challenges and risks involved in making the decision to include them in your operation.
Language qualifications are often a high priority: Does the outsourcer’s staff speak the same language as your customers — and speak it well? Many companies, unfortunately, never scratch much further below the surface than this one requirement.
Wasseem Boraie, CEO of New Jersey-based Beyond Media Ventures LLC and its Cairo, Egypt, subsidiary Amecotech Corporation, says there are more important things to investigate.
Even in Cairo, where there’s a pro-American attitude and tens of thousands of graduates have taken the U.S. Basic IT Skills and Language program, and where power supplies are strong and regular, there’s a reason to be wary.
“There is a growing proportion of local language call center providers that are advertising as ‘international call centers.’ Yet, out of the 6,000 seats that are currently operational in Cairo, only about 1,000 are geared toward U.S. business clients. Approximately 1,500 serve European markets, and the remainder are providing local market services where ‘best practices’ take a backseat to lowest-price practices,” says Boraie. “It is these local providers that proffer to do everything for international clients, yet that are not equipped to handle the needs of a sophisticated client via both technology and management. In my opinion, these local ‘pretenders’ sully the reputation of the Cairo market, as the few quality centers that are focused on U.S. business are on par with any high-performing call center in either India or the Philippines.”
Outsourcing shoppers might want to keep this in mind no matter where they’re looking for services.
Francoise Tourniaire is the founder and owner of the consulting firm FT Works. www.ftworks.com