There’s a good reason why the old adage, “a jack-of-all-trades, master of none,” has remained in our lexicon hundreds of years after it was coined. It’s because we recognize that almost no one — especially those of us in the world of business — can maintain an equal level of excellence across every single business function without some outside help.
That’s why the world’s leading corporations, even those with hundreds of thousands of employees, have embraced the concept of outsourcing many of their key business processes to cut costs, reduce overhead, conserve capital resources and focus on their core activities.
The good news is there’s no reason why midsized companies can’t enjoy the same benefits that larger corporations have in recent years.
Let’s look at the three platforms that are common to nearly any type of business and why they lend themselves in particular to outsourcing:
Supply management
This can comprise both procurement of goods and services and spend management, which focuses on when you buy and how much you buy. Unless you run one of those leading corporations I referred to above, you’re on your own. And even with your toughest negotiators, you’ll find it nearly impossible to get the same prices for supplies that those companies do.
By aligning your organization with the right business process outsourcing company (BPO), your firm and the other customers of the BPO can leverage your combined purchasing power, thus enjoying pricing consistent with national or global companies.
It’s important to look for a BPO that cannot only deliver the best prices, but also provide information on making smart purchasing decisions. Spend management tools can enable midsize companies to take a fresh look at strategically managing purchasing decisions that may have been previously based on the simple assumption, “That’s the way it’s always been done.”
Managed services
There are a number of non-core services that can usually be outsourced quite effectively while enabling your company to continue focusing its resources on its core activities. These include asset financing, remarketing and transportation. In each instance, the partnership with the BPO will elevate the level of activity to that of a much larger corporation.
For example, the right BPO often has access to flexible and multiple financing solutions that a smaller company on its own might not be able to capture. When it comes time to divest your company of inventory or outmoded company equipment, the same BPO should be able to handle the planning, marketing and execution of the sale, freeing up your employees to pursue core functions.
Financial process automation
Finally, by outsourcing time consuming back-office functions like accounts payable, accounts receivable and credit and collections, midsize companies can stay on the leading edge of technology without investing heavily in IT resources and talent, cutting down on labor, improving accuracy and dramatically improving customer service.
Cash flow is the lifeblood of businesses. The faster your payments, the healthier your business can remain.
Here is one final bit of advice to midsize companies considering outsourcing. Choose a BPO that takes the word “partner” seriously. Look for a BPO with a culture that aligns with yours. Look for one that can prove it can deliver exactly what it promises to do — reduce costs.
Doug Clark has served as president, CEO and a director of AmeriQuest Business Services, a business-process outsourcing company, since founding it in 1997. His professional experience includes stints in public accounting, investment banking and as a transportation entrepreneur. AmeriQuest Business Services assists more than 1,500 customers throughout North America. For more information, visit ameriquestcorp.com.
