Previously, we asked the question, when should your business outsource? We identified that when the time and money it takes to manage a specific process, starts to exceed the time and money it takes to manage your core business activities; then that’s when your company should outsource that function and engage with a Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) Provider such as SGH Asia. Today, we will talk about how to select an Outsourcing Solutions Provider suitable for your company and the selection criteria that you should establish and implement.

Location
A good starting point is to identify a shortlist of locations where the BPO service will be provided from, as this location will obviously impact human resource costs, access to a dynamic labour market, available technical skill-sets, and language and communication skills. Furthermore, what are the data privacy regulations of that specific country and the certifications that the BPO provider has obtained? There will be certain locations that are significantly more suitable to the specific business function that you want to outsource.

This is why SGH Asia pioneered the BPO service provider model in Vietnam, as we identified that with the country’s low median age, a dynamic and educated workforce with 96% literacy rate and 80% of college graduates holding degrees in technical related fields, and with labour costs significantly lower than most western countries, that Vietnam was the perfect location to support our worldwide clients with innovative, cost-effective, and ISO Certified technology solutions.

Communication and Engagement
In addition, you also need to identify how accessible the BPO provider is, how easy it is to communicate with them, and how often you want to interact with them. For example, do you prefer a micro-management approach and communicate with them on a regular basis, or a hands-off approach where you establish the service parameters and liaise with them infrequently? How and when you want to communicate with the BPO provider is an important criteria to define when evaluating whether or not they have the support infrastructure and organizational structure to fulfil your requirements.

For every project, SGH Asia allocates a dedicated Client Relationship Manager (CRM) and a Service Delivery Manager (SDM) who both communicate in the native language of our client. While the CRM is the first point of contact (POC) managing the day to day needs of the client, the SDM defines the project requirements, translates business requirements into technical specifications, and provides ongoing pre and post implementation project management support. Furthermore, the CRM and SDM are supported by our Global Service Desk that provides our clients with “follow the sun” help-desk support in multiple languages.

Corporate Culture
Finally, it is vital to source a BPO provider that has an experienced international management team with a corporate culture that is compatible and complimentary to your own. For example, is your company entrepreneurial or traditional, team-spirited or structured, sales or customer-centric? Outsourcing business functions results in exponential benefits over time, so it’s important that you select a BPO provider that you can partner with long into the future. During your BPO provider evaluation process, don’t forget to ask questions ranging from corporate culture, technology capabilities, talent acquisition and development, through to management team background and experience.

The SGH Asia executive leadership team averages over 20 years of experience in the technology industry specializing in the fields of digital transformation, process automation and optimization, innovation and creativity, and breakthrough technologies such as AI and blockchain. We deliver innovation-led technology solutions for both our Fortune 500, multi-national, and small to medium enterprise (SME) clients throughout the North American, European, and Asia-Pacific Regions.

Contact us to learn more about how SGH Asia can also be your perfect Outsourcing Solutions Provider and long-term business partner