Recently we wrote on some tips on how to make the most of Outsourcing as a strategy to accomplish more business goals with less. In case you missed it you can find the full article here. In this article, we suggest even more practical tips to make your Outsourcing journey a successful one. Enjoy reading!
- Start Out Small
When contracting a service provider for the first time, begin with a project that is comparatively small in scope. This will give you an idea of the provider’s approach and proficiencies before you assign a more important project to them.
- Match Payments to Milestones
As expected, be specific about project scope, ensure that you outline a work plan for the outsourced project with distinctly defined milestones. One practical way to make sure that you meet your deadline is to maintain scheduled checkpoints from which you review the project status and check to see that the final product meets your standards at each stage. Hinge the vendor’s payments on these milestones. Some projects pay a maximum of 40% of the total price upfront, and the balance awarded in installments on the completion of 2 or 3 milestones.
- Negotiate Project Ownership from the Start
With all types of outsourced project, ensure that you are decided on who owns the final work product and any key components of the product. Ensure that the service provider comprehends how you plan to use the deliverables that they are assenting to provide.
- Project Ends Support Continues
With most types of projects (especially technology projects), it’s a wise idea to stipulate either a warranty or a support clause so that you are guaranteed of some extent of ongoing support from the vendor after the project is delivered. It is a lot more convenient to negotiate a support clause prior to the start of the work than at project completion.
- Put in writing
During the progression of a service contract, the project scope, deliverables or even the approved price could change. Ensure that you communicate any amendments to your service provider and get confirmation from them as well, in writing. Make sure to properly document and secure copies of e-mail and any paperwork that contains changes to the original contract.
You can engage first-class expertise when you need to, without incurring the overheads of full-time staff hire. Focus on your core competencies and hire specialized freelance for your other requirements.
Discover how Sullivan Taylor Company can assist your organization with Global Process Outsourcing. We are headquartered in New York but have staffing specialists in our partner offices around the world to help you engage the best talent for your needs.
