OUTSOURCING: BENEFITTING THE WORLD
By: Kathryna R. Ahorro

Outsourcing is one of the trends in the field of labor brought about by the advent of technological advancement. Why outsource? There are many benefits that different companies, big and small, may enjoy by outsourcing. It is basically brought about in order to help businesses develop exponentially by allowing them to focus more on their areas of expertise or their core competencies.

Outsourcing enables companies and businesses to redirect their finances, time, and human resources from tasks that are not part of their core competencies, thus, adding more to their income-adding tasks.

One major benefit of outsourcing is lowering costs. Asia, for example, offers cheaper labor compared to in-house hiring of companies in the U.S. and yet produces a high quality of work. Since it involves a third party where to “outsource” from, major manufacturers may, instead of building a new manufacturing facility, outsource their products to a local subcontractor in Asia, thereby minimizing fixed infrastructure expenses. Human resources and production expenses may decrease up to 70%, doing away with things like training and overhead costs as well as peak season staffing processes.

Businesses also gain more by having highly skilled workers through outsourcing. Since outsourcing companies or third party contractors want to gain credibility and trust from their clients, they are more sensitive to international standards of approval, therefore being acute to their own hiring process. They cleverly match the qualifications asked by their clients or even have the tendency to provide more.

Since non-core tasks are redirected upon outsourcing, the companies do away with lots of processes that may take more time in relation to in house practices. This results to an easier work flow within the company. The executive team, for example, may have lesser day-to-day process problems.

Outsourcing is the trend to follow nowadays. With the brooding economic downturn worldwide, this is the solution that provides a win-win situation for both the outsourcer and the service provider. Overall, for the company, it reduces costs, improves efficiencies, and increases productivity.