Category: Outsourcing

Having employees or freelancers several thousand miles away in a different time zone can present its own set of problems, regardless of the difficulties of just trying to get everybody on the same page with a development.

The Agile and Scrum processes were direct responses to the needs of modern businesses, where employees might be clocking in in the morning as their comrades left for the evening. Having tasks chopped down into manageable and (very importantly) trackable chunks meant that it was suddenly possible to coordinate complex tasks across continents and get a result.

Communication is Key

There are a number of communication platforms that everybody can use together to keep communications and tasks in one place. Skype, WhatsApp, Google, they’ve all got ways of making sure everybody gets the message and knows what they’re doing. Uploading tasks to the cloud so everybody can access it, comment on, test and review it makes successful development much faster and more comprehensive. You need a revision quick? Push it into the cloud and see who can be allocated the task.

Meetings

Yes, meetings. They shouldn’t be what everybody dreads, and with Agile they’re supposed to be kept to a minimum 10 minute “stand up” at the start of each work session. Not often the case in reality as there’s often a lot to discuss, when done right they can ensure everybody knows what they’re doing and when to do it. Outsourced tasks are treated largely the same as tasks taken inboard with the Scrum process, making it a (hopefully smooth) process.

When a development task is broken up into small slices and allocated in the Scrum process, employees are generally going away to work on their task and reporting in when they need help or have finished. To avoid this being isolating, having a meeting where everybody gets to report both helps people feel part of a team and makes sure everybody is doing the right thing. It’s not uncommon for someone to say in a meeting “no, that’s not what I asked for!” And that’s the benefit.

Work it out

What needs to be outsourced and what needs to be kept onshore? That is the question. An analysis with Agile can show you who has what skills and what time available, giving you a pretty quick answer to the question. You can then Scrum it and allocate where needs be. It sounds much simpler than it often is, but it is efficient when you get it right.

Time Differences

If you can, exploit the time difference. If they’re doing it right, at the end of the day all your employees and freelancers will report in at given times, meaning you can set tasks for the “night shift” to do in preparation for your “day shift”. This works for everybody as it keeps nobody waiting and makes everything much faster.

Know the Goal

Everyone on every team needs to know what they’re working towards and a rough path of how to get there. Especially your outsourced help, talk to them as much as possible, as often as possible about developments, improvements, revisions and the tasks at hand.

Are you looking for a good courier service? Have you had bad experience with your previous provider? If so, we may help. If you are a business owner, choosing the best service provider may have a great impact on the productivity and efficiency of your business. So, if you want to boost the efficiency and productivity of your enterprise, we suggest that you choose the right courier service based on the 5 tips given in this article. Read on.

Immediate Availability

The first thing that you want to keep in mind that the service you choose should be available at all times. This is to make sure that the package will be picked up and delivered in time. You don’t want a service that won’t provide the services it claims or one that is not reputable.

Weight and size Limitations

Secondly, you need to find out what the weight and size limitations are for the packages the company can deliver. This won’t be a big deal for a law firm that delivers files back and forth; however, it can be a very important consideration for a good furniture retailer.

Proof of Delivery

You don’t want to hire a provider that won’t deliver your packages and shipments to the destination on time. In other words, you may want to use a courier service that will give you a proof of delivery. This way you can easily check if your package has been delivered or not.

Aside from this, tracking will be more useful if you have been thinking of sending goods through a courier that needs several days to get the package delivered. On the other hand, if the courier takes a few hours for delivery, you won’t benefit a lot form the tracking service. You can ask the company as to how you can get the proof of delivery. Usually, you can get the proof via email, phone, fax or the company website.

Cost and the Value

Your next step is to take into account the fees and costs of the courier service. Keep in mind that the lowest cost should not be a factor that your hiring decision should be based on. However, if you know that the inexpensive service that you are considering provides all the services you need, then you go ahead and try out the service.

Insurance

Again, this factor is very important if you are looking for a good service. If your shipment or package doesn’t get delivered to the given address and the goods are very valuable or confidential, then make sure you choose a service that is insured. Insurance will give you peace of mind that your goods are secure and that you can file a claim in case your package gets lost or damaged during transit.

Long story short, if you have been looking for a good service provider, we suggest that you take into account these factors first. This will ensure that you will get the best service provider for your money.

Establishing a business is challenging in almost all of its aspects. From creating innovative and marketable ideas, complying with legalities, securing financial and technical capital, managing routine processes, and maintaining customer relations, it is ideal to be knowledgeable on the significant parts a business is built on. At a certain point, a visionary entrepreneur may ask, “Wouldn’t it be more valuable if I could just focus my time planning for the bigger picture?”. Yes, it is indeed more beneficial that way. Making a business grow needs a reliable mechanism to keep it running efficiently and ensuring a sustainable environment for steady progress. With this, it may be strategic to explore options for expanding human and intellectual resources, particularly with the existence of today’s technology. Here are some of the top benefits of hiring a virtual assistant, and how it can be a welcome asset to a business.

1. VAs can help reduce workload so that entrepreneurs can focus on core operations and envisioning future goals. Some business person may find it difficult to delegate routine tasks because they were employees themselves before being business owners. It may seem unproductive to them not doing necessary everyday jobs that they used to do. Others may be reluctant to impart and entrust learned skills and business procedures. However, these are things that would add up to limiting business growth and must be addressed. It is all about finding the right VA to trust that is suitable for the business.

2. VAs can help increase market presence especially since online activity is becoming essential for business development. Planning for the strengthened web visibility, and providing active social media interaction and support is now an advantageous strategy for a business. Most VAs have fundamental skills in these fields, but there are also those who specialize in it, depending on the business requirements.

3. VAs allow more work done at decreased operational costs. They are paid only for the amount and quality of work that they do. This can also be matched with the business requirements, and have them work just for specified periods of time when the additional workforce is needed the most. Again, it is all about finding the right VA, taking into consideration their working location as well. This is one of the added benefits of hiring virtual assistants from the Philippines since costs can be lower than those in other regions.

4. VAs can address flexible workspace needs. An upside to virtual work relationships is potential savings from having no physical office space and no additional equipment to pay for or maintain. This is also perfect for entrepreneurs who are home-based, or those who are regularly traveling.

5. VAs can provide diverse skill sets and round-the-clock business support if needed. Another good thing about online service providers is that there is access to international talents, wherein the best person for the business can be selected. Whether there is a need for a general or specific skill set that is outside the entrepreneur’s expertise, the abundance of online workers makes it possible to acquire such skills for business growth. Having VAs from different time zones also enable 24/7 availability of services, creating more productive time that may be crucial for expanding operations.

The overall benefits of hiring a virtual assistant include establishing an excellent professional, and even personal, relationship between the VA and entrepreneur. Some business people may still be hesitant to spend on online service providers. However, it is important to note that VAs are, in a way, business owners themselves. Just like how a person aims for their business to grow, build up its name and secure more customers, online workers continuously strive to improve their services for their reputation is their business. A growing enterprise means increasing human resource needs as well, so it should be in the entrepreneur’s interest to venture into means where they can get more work done in less time and expenses.

Are you in the banking sector? Or you have a manufacturing unit or a retail store; whatever may be your domain, IT services are a must to keep pace with the modern day business style. A Network Operations Center (NOC) manages the network infrastructure of your business; which involves routers, switches, VoIP phones, laptops, computers and internet connection. This is a critical aspect of your business and hence you should go for NOC service outsourcing. Why? For the following reasons.

Focus on Core Jobs

Though NOC service maintenance is an important aspect it is not your core business. Hence by outsourcing this part of job to experts you can invest more time in your core job. Outsourcing also means you are engaging a talent pool into your business. These companies have the best workforce and hence you get the best services without much involvement.

Flexible

When you are engaging a NOC service outsourcing company you are assured of flexible services. If required, they can expand their arena of services and provide more network infrastructure easily. Similarly, when you need to shrink services you can just ask them to cut down the same. It is easier to wrap up business from NOC service outsourcing company rather than asking your employees to leave.

Economical

NOC service outsourcing is cost effective. You need not incur the cost of installing expensive equipment for data center management and backup. Also, the cost involved in recruiting expert network engineers reduces. Hence, even without increasing investment you are sure to get the best network monitoring and maintenance services.

All Time Availability

The companies providing NOC services can keep an eye on your network infrastructure round the clock. Hence even when you are not at office you are sure your customers are enjoying seamless services and every hardware and software is running perfectly fine.

Utmost Security

The constant monitoring of the services means you are free from the threat of viruses and hacking. Plus, these companies have sound knowledge of the recent upgradation in the technology and hence you can enjoy the best technology with a premium NOC service provider.

Some of the services that a NOC service provider offers are:

• Data Center Management: In this category you get services like storing of data on servers and networking.

• Transition: This involves installation of network infrastructure.

• Backup: A Network Operations Center service provider arranges support to help you in case the primary connection fails. This means minimal downtime.

• Operations Management: Incident Management, Request and Problem Management.

Network Operations Center service outsourcing is an indirect revenue generator for your business as it enables complete security to your online customers and helps you get the job done easily.

Healthcare service has turned out to be one of the largest industries for outsourcing- both in terms of income and work. Healthcare services involve doctor’s facilities, medical devices, clinical trials, outsourcing, telemedicine, restorative tourism, medical coverage and medical equipment. The global insurance interest in outsourcing has developed greatly in the current years because of the industry’s drive to lessen costs while as yet having the capacity to give quality healthcare services.

Earlier, the industry constrained their outsourcing to medical data entry and medical transcription. Yet, with the developing mindfulness that outsourcing has more prominent advantages for healthcare associations and doctor’s facilities, many are investigating into insurance data administration frameworks, clinical research, big data, medical billing, and IT to keep patient information secured among numerous others.

As indicated by Jonathan Clarke, Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Administration at Penn State University, “Outsourcing is something we ought to consider, particularly when it energizes proficiency and grows access to human services, however we should be canny about it so as not to put tolerant wellbeing at hazard.” He likewise expressed that around 90% of the doctor’s facilities in the United States are outsourcing a few services especially radiology benefit.

Four reasons the healthcare industry ought to contemplate outsourcing their non-restorative operations are:

Critical mistakes are avoided: – As per Tom Lowery in his article entitled 8 Ways Outsourcing Can Help Hospitals and Patients, US healing centres leave about $125 billion on the table every year as a result of poor medical billing practices. Also, 80% of hospital expenses contain blunders. One element that adds to this is a few hospitals are not updated with currently changing billing rules and regulations. With outsourcing, healthcare organisations can have a devoted group of prepared experts that spotlights on billing purposes.

Diminished training costs: – Healthcare organisations that outsource their procedures don’t likewise need to stress over spending additional cash for instruction, programming or staff preparing since the outsourcing accomplice sees to it that their representatives are fully informed regarding the most recent changes in benchmarks and controls.

More opportunity to concentrate on giving quality patient care:- With an outsourcing accomplice dealing with searching for a healthcare association’s staff and preparing them, healthcare providers have the capacity to concentrate on the more imperative things in the business – in this case, giving the best quality care for patients. Outsourcing will help providers to diminish their dull authoritative and overseeing workload, and permit them to give a positive patient care involvement and enhance it as well.

Save on cost without trading off quality of business: – The greatest favourable advantage of outsourcing is the lessened expenses in healthcare operations. Outsourcing brings in huge savings with its ease labour and framework. Healthcare services outsourcing can help spare organisations 30-60% of expenses. Besides dealing with staff obtaining and maintenance, having an outsourcing accomplice likewise decreases excess managerial costs since the immediate advantage of outsourcing is monetary surge.

If you are a purchaser at Amazon perhaps you’ve answered a couple of surveys and feedback questions about packaging; was the size of the package right, was the merchandise protected, etc.? Obviously, shippers are trying to reduce costs and Amazon Prime is trying to reduce its shipping costs too, as well they should, remember efficiency means higher profits, but let’s take this conversation to a higher level shall we?

You see, there was a worthy article in the Wall Street Journal titled; “Bubble Wrap Is Losing Its Pop,” by Loretta Chao published on July 2, 2015. There is also a brilliant YouTube video by the same title you can watch online (Wall Street Journal YouTube Channel). The YouTube video description states: “Sealed Air Corp. has revamped its iconic Bubble Wrap. The new product dubbed iBubble Wrap looks like the traditional packaging material but there’s one catch: it doesn’t pop,” and the video states the new material ships ‘flat’ without air at 50-times the width on the role, meaning 50-times more product can ship out prior to use. WSJ article states that, shippers can pump the air in On-Site as needed, saving the shipping and logistics costs for the iBubble Wrap.

This is a brilliant innovation for the shipping industry and will save shippers millions of dollars, and cut down on the need for huge buildings and rooms to store it all.

Oh, and by the way, while I am still on this topic; it’s time to redesign cardboard too, it needs to use 30-50% material but remain the same to better strength – it can be done, needs to be done, and there is a shortage of cardboard for recycling and it is quite costly too. Not to mention the trees. This was actually a subject of dialogue at one of our recent think tank meetings. Why you ask? Simple, we will have to cut down fewer trees, send less recycled cardboard to China and also have the contents safer meaning less breakage and fewer returns for shippers, online retailers, manufacturers and the gifts you send out during Christmas.

Each rendition of the iPhone we expect improvements right? Sure, but what about the packaging it is shipped in, the packaging and boxes everything seems to be shipped in, what has changed? Sure a few changes but if you went to sleep 30-years ago and woke up living as homeless person in a cardboard box you’d still feel right at home, nothing has changed, so get your mind out of the gutter and start thinking beyond chanty town.

If you are an entrepreneur, or venturing into the startup world, you will realize something very quickly. Hiring quality talent is difficult and expensive. While startups and businesses, in general, fail because of a broad range of reasons, inability to hire quality talent is one of the major reasons. If you need quality talent, but lack the budget to hire full-time, looking to freelancers may be the answer.

The freelance labor market allows you to cherry-pick top talent and pay relatively low amounts to acquire their services. Be warned, however, that the freelance marketplace is not without its challenges. In this article, we give you some tips to navigate these choppy waters to find a freelance solution that works for you.

How to Hire

How you hire plays a big part in who you hire and, the outcome of that hire. Some things that could go wrong include; hiring unskilled persons, time zone mismatching, language barriers, and a host of others. Here are some points to follow to avoid these pitfalls.

• Requirements

First, write down your project requirements. Unlike a full-time hire who will be around as you figure out the way forward, freelancers require a highly specified project plan to deliver results. Determine the timelines, deliverables, milestones and every other detail you can squeeze into the project plan. Rule of thumb: the more detailed it is, the better.

• Budget

Next, set a budget. This is the trickiest part. If you go recruiting with a blank check, you will get quotes from as low as a few hundred dollars to thousands of dollars. To properly gauge your budget, talk to a few friends and bounce budget ideas off them. You can also look at what other clients are paying for similar projects. Consider setting a minimum and maximum so you allow room for negotiating.

• Recruit

Cast your net wide. Look for as many quality freelancers as you can and invite them to come for an interview. What you are looking for here is availability. The best talent is useless to you if they are unavailable. Once you lock down several freelancers with top skills, who have shown interest in your project, it is time to review.

• Review

Peruse their past projects. What did past clients have to say? How were they rated? How many similar projects have they undertaken? Never take a freelancer’s word concerning their skills. Test all of them to determine their skill level. Once you find one that works, interview the freelancer and then get started.

Where to Hire

Now that you have a good idea of what to do when hiring a freelancer, where do you find them? Here are some places to look.

• Major Marketplaces

Today, major marketplaces that you can find freelancers include Upwork, Freelancer, Fiverr, and Guru. The main advantage of going with these marketplaces is the depth and breadth of talent available. The main challenge, on the other hand, is sifting the wheat from the chaff. You will have to work harder to surface and hire the right talent for your project.

• Specialized Marketplaces

These are smaller niche sites like 99designs, Toptal, QuiGig – hire now, Matchist and others. These sites offer a better experience because they invest a lot in recruiting quality talent for their platforms, as well as in value-added platform features. This makes it easy to get top talent. One notable downside is they are often more expensive.

• Portfolio Sites

These include sites like Behance, Dribbble, Stack Overflow and GitHub. On these sites, you have an opportunity to see upfront what the freelancer has accomplished. The main challenge with these platforms is they do not provide project management tools and, it is often difficult to ascertain the authenticity of a portfolio.

• Social Platforms

Facebook, LinkedIn, and Reddit also offer a fertile ground for recruitment. Most of these platforms have groups, or communities, of freelancers where you can go and post a job and get proposals. While this is an easy option, you will face the challenge of vetting proposals and figuring out how to move forward once you hire.

Hiring the best freelancers takes time and patient reviewing and vetting. However, a talented and reliable freelancer, once discovered, can add exceptional value to your project over time.

In recent times, digitization of documents and data generation has created high volumes of data in almost all industries. It is definitely not easy for entrepreneurs and business owners to manage the large volumes of data and maintain quality, accuracy, and reliability at the same time. Whether your firm is small, medium or big, effective data management is time-consuming and highly complicated. When you are running a business, it is always advisable to invest time in core business activities and hire a data entry outsourcing agency for managing voluminous data.

However, before you hire an outsourcing agency, considering a few important factors is important. Let’s take a look:

1. Experience

The process of data entry demands great accuracy. It is important to ensure that the company you hire is capable of managing all the different tasks and is highly efficient. The most trusted way to judge the experience of an outsourcing company is by reviewing the case studies of similar projects and reading the testimonials of the past clients. Reading the feedback of past customers is a great way to measure and analyze the capabilities of an outsourcing partner.

2. Latest Technology and Infrastructure

Before outsourcing data entry services, ensure that the outsourcing partner has access to the latest technologies and proper infrastructure settings. Apart from high-speed data connectivity, the outsourcing agency should also have backup facilities and data security measures for faultless and continuous services.

3. Flexibility

While choosing the right outsourcing partner for data entry services, it is ideal to go for a flexible working environment. Factors such as flexible timing and pricing help strengthen the bond with an outsourcing partner. Moreover, when there is a flexible working environment, employees can also provide customized solutions.

4. Clear Communication

In order to achieve effective results, communicating your exact requirements clearly is important. Without clear communication, your outsourcing partner will not understand your specific requirements and this, in turn, may end up hampering your business goals in the long-run.

5. Round-the-Clock Maintenance and Support

Before finalizing an outsourcing agency, ensure that the service provider offers 24/7 maintenance and support. For instance, if you have an e-commerce site, significant downtimes can make your prospective customers make their purchases elsewhere. Moreover, when you outsource your services, it is equally important to ensure that the transactional data and log-in data remain secure.

6. Quality

Checking the quality of data entry services is crucial. So, before outsourcing your requirement, make an attempt to know how proficient the service providers are. Using a free trial before you sign the final agreement is advisable. This process also helps you figure out the quality of the services on offer.

7. Cost

The primary objective behind outsourcing is to avail the benefits of skilled manpower at budget-friendly rates. Before you decide to sign a contract, understand the clauses and make sure that there are no hidden rates such as overtime charges or opportunity costs.

Outsourcing data entry services is an easy way to reduce operational costs, improve turnaround time and concentrate on core business activities. Data entry outsourcing is reliable in terms of sales turnover, profit, and quality.