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There is so much talk about outsourcing as a way to boost our business, improve the bottom line, and inspire significant change, that it can seem like a very obvious solution. But when we start to outsource components, there are various concerns that we need to take on board. It's so easy for us to outsource pretty much everything. But when we start to consider how we should outsource, and whether we should outsource everything, what are the questions we need to ask ourselves?
Outsourcing is not about siphoning off pieces of your company bit by bit but it's about looking at the components where you are not able to perform sufficiently. Sometimes we have to look at our budget, and get rid of the smaller things, like administration, but we also need to look at those skills that are somewhat niche. And if we don't have them in-house, or we spend too much money upskilling employees, we could get rid of these components, and this is where companies like WES Ltd work with the manufacturing industries to improve their engineering and welding components. When we look at the little things that are proving expensive, we can outsource these without issue. When we look at the smaller things, they don’t cause seismic changes to the company. But when we start to go further into the process of outsourcing, we may very well find that we are getting rid of aspects that betray the ethics of the business.
The big problem is that if we end up outsourcing too much we betray the overall integrity of the company. Keeping this integrity intact can prove troublesome. We have to look at the business and prioritise the tasks that need outsourcing. Ultimately, the maxim “it's not personal, just business” may prove beneficial. And if you think that you will need to get rid of employees, you may want to look at those who work part-time rather than those that are are embedded in the way of the business. It's so difficult to maintain the overall integrity of the business when you outsource everything, but by ensuring that you continue to evaluate where you are, this means that you don't outsource more than is necessary.
If we outsource everything, do we have any employees willing to stay on board? We need to use outsourcing as a way to inspire our employees, and this is easier said than done but this is where consistent communication proves vital. Outsourcing is not about cutting away the business piece by piece, but it's about using this opportunity to address the things that we don't need in-house. Sometimes this can highlight our skills gaps, but on occasion, it can help us to focus on the things that really matter. When we are speaking to our employees, it's worth taking this angle. Inspiring our employees to work better for the sake of the business, by reassuring them that we don't want to get rid of the company completely, means that we shouldn't outsource everything, but the things that we do outsource can help our employees to work better and improve the business overall.
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