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In today’s business landscape, innovation is key to progress and success. Companies must find ways to improve their products and services and provide real value to their customers to stay ahead of the curve.
Enter business process outsourcing (BPO). It is a viable solution for organizations seeking to undergo meaningful transformation. But how do you go about achieving substantial change?
With support from actual case studies, this page shares seven strategies for fostering innovation in outsourcing. Read below to discover how to unlock innovation through BPO.
Seven Effective Strategies to Foster Innovation in Outsourcing
Understanding what BPO is and how it works is crucial for promoting business innovation. This business strategy involves hiring a third-party service provider to handle your non-core business processes.
Outsourcing gives you access to three key ingredients: skilled talent, modern technology, and ample resources. These ingredients make up the recipe for improved customer satisfaction through successful BPO and business innovation. Hiring a reliable BPO partner can help optimize your operations and scale your business.
To pursue innovation projects, consider the following BPO strategies and learn from the case studies below:
1. Access a Pool of Skilled Professionals and Experts
One of the strategies for fostering innovation in outsourcing is accessing a vast pool of talent. Ensure your BPO provider employs skilled professionals and diverse experts. Qualified professionals can streamline your workflows while experts scale your business. Your workforce can be instrumental to your outsourcing success and business innovation.
Case Study: Slack Capitalizing on the Expertise of MetaLab
Slack’s hiring of niche experts is a perfect example of outsourcing innovation. The company partnered with a Canadian design team called MetaLab to develop a beta version of its product. It outsourced functions such as logo design and mobile applications.
By working with a third-party web development team, Slack secured a $250 million investment. What began as a messaging startup has become a popular online tool for business communication. Ultimately, outsourcing allowed Slack to innovate by tapping into expertise.
2. Leverage Digital Tools and Modern Technologies
Innovation thrives on technological advancements. Leveraging digital tools and modern technologies is likewise one of the most effective strategies for fostering innovation in outsourcing. So when outsourcing, consider top enablers such as automation, single-instance enterprise resource planning (ERP), case and service management, and cloud technology.
Case Study: An E-commerce Business Leveraging Unity Communications’s Technologies
An e-commerce business specializing in arts and crafts hired Unity Communications to handle administrative, marketing, and customer service functions. We supplied highly trained back-office team members to handle these tasks for the client.
Technology played a crucial role in this outsourcing partnership. We integrated customer relationship management (CRM) with Facebook for customer inquiries and marketing campaigns. We also established their presence on Shopify, Amazon, and Etsy. All these factors helped scale the business’s e-commerce operations in just two weeks.
3. Provide Development Programs and Learning Opportunities
Investing in your team’s professional development is one of the strategies for fostering innovation when outsourcing. When working with a BPO partner, provide newly hired agents with process training before they hit production. Likewise, offers regular employees ongoing training programs and other learning opportunities. Such investments cultivate a culture of transformation!
Case Study: Oktopost Creating a Remote Development Hub
Oktopost, a social media management platform, once capitalized on outsourcing for progress and development. The company operates in three countries (Israel, Ukraine, and the United States) with about 22 employees.
Oktopost hired nearshore software developers through Grid Dynamics for business mapping and flexibility. Establishing a development hub remotely through outsourcing gave the platform access to a skilled talent pool and allowed it to develop new features and functionalities for its software product.
4. Establish Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
Developing standard operating procedures (SOPs) is one of the strategies for fostering innovation when outsourcing. By setting SOPs, you can simplify workflows, remove potential barriers, and ensure seamless communication between you and your BPO partner. Well-defined SOPs are crucial for ensuring efficient collaboration and pursuing business innovation.
Case Study: Unity Communications Establishing SOPs for an Amazon E-commerce Brand
An Amazon e-commerce company partnered with Unity Communications for their customer support. This business needed scalable solutions for customer service inquiries, search engine optimization (SEO), comment monitoring, shipping resolutions, data capture, intellectual property (IP) protection, and more.
As such, we built an e-commerce contact center team for this client. Most importantly, we implemented SOPs for the consistent execution of critical processes. The company increased margins, achieved growth targets, and expanded operations with scalable procedures and a high-performing team.
5. Conduct Team Monitoring, Performance Review, and Process Improvements
Team monitoring, performance reviews, and process improvements are vital strategies for fostering innovation when outsourcing. First, establish a quality assurance (QA) team to audit your BPO operations. Second, ask for regular reports to review your outsourcing performance. Finally, identify improvement areas and seek ways to address them. All these steps lead to innovation.
Case Study: Unity Communications Helping Improve an E-learning Company’s Processes
Unity Communications assisted an e-learning company in optimizing its help desk operations. Considering its business growth and expansion, we established an offshore team to handle phone calls, emails, and chat support.
Our team leader oversaw operations, tracked attendance, and conducted quality audits. To improve further, Call Flow Solution helped create an efficient ticketing process for this client. In two weeks, we handled 90% of the user requests, achieving a satisfaction rate of up to 92% and reducing labor costs by up to 65%.
6. Develop a Service-level Agreement (SLA)
Setting a clear SLA is one of the strategies for fostering innovation when outsourcing. This legally binding contract defines your relationship with your BPO service provider, including your business goals, key performance indicators (KPIs), and scope of work. An SLA guides your service provider toward hitting their targets and meeting your goals, paving the way for innovation.
Case Study: Unity Communications Developing an SLA for a Wireless Management Company
A wireless management company hired Unity Communications to address absenteeism, overtime, human resources (HR), and staffing problems. We established a call center with trained staff to handle time-consuming and repetitive tasks.
We implemented a custom SLA with measurable KPIs for our primary and offline teams operating 24/7 to ensure success. Ultimately, we exceeded the SLA targets, improved service quality, and helped the company save on payroll.
7. Hire a Reputable BPO Service Provider
Choosing a reliable BPO service provider is one of the strategies for fostering innovation in outsourcing. A reputable partner brings domain expertise, industry best practices, and a track record of successful innovation. Hiring the right service provider lets you tap into its expertise, leverage its technology, and capitalize on its innovative solutions.
Case Study: P&G Hiring Reputable BPO Providers to Pursue Innovation
Procter and Gamble (P&G) is a renowned consumer goods company known for its various products. This company needed to keep up with growing demands while focusing on its core competency, innovation.
As such, it decided to outsource various functions to reliable partners, such as IBM and JLL. Its vested agreement with JLL, in particular, led to a remarkable 60% increase in innovation productivity. Partnering with reliable service providers helped achieve outsourcing success and foster innovation.
The Bottom Line
Business innovation has never been more critical than it is now. Companies should constantly seek ways to drive progress and achieve success. Outsourcing is the answer.
BPO offers a compelling solution for innovation, allowing businesses to access real expertise, modern technology, and available resources. However, consider the seven strategies above. Learn from the BPO case studies showing how organizations have leveraged BPO to achieve true innovation.
More importantly, hire a reputable third-party service provider to transform your company for growth and success. Outsourcing lets you undergo real innovation and unlock the true potential of your business over the long term.
Looking to promote business innovation? Consider working with Unity Communications! With our expert workforce and modern technology, we can help optimize your operations and scale your business. Let’s connect today to get started with outsourcing!
