Alia Shkurdoda
Agata Tomasik
Increasing business efficiency is an essential task for every tech company. Outsourcing has emerged as a powerful strategy to achieve this goal. By delegating certain IT functions to external specialists, organizations can concentrate on strategic areas of work, reduce costs, and maintain high-quality work from internal teams.
In this article, we’ll explore the common reasons for IT outsourcing decisions and examine how companies of different sizes can benefit from this strategy. From startups looking to scale quickly to large enterprises seeking to optimize their operations, we’ll discuss how outsourcing can address specific challenges and create opportunities across various business landscapes.
By understanding these IT outsourcing benefits, you’ll be better equipped to make informed decisions about leveraging external expertise for your organization’s growth and success.
Key takeaways:
- Outsourcing IT functions can lead to significant cost savings, with potential reductions of up to 40%.
- With 50% of executives identifying talent acquisition as a top challenge, outsourcing has become a viable option to bridge the skills gap, especially in critical areas like cybersecurity, AI, and cloud services.
- Outsourcing offers businesses of all sizes the ability to scale quickly and adapt to changing market demands.
Top reasons for outsourcing business processes
Many companies are turning to outsourcing as a strategic solution to various challenges. While the decision to delegate their IT services to external providers should always be tailored to an organization’s specific needs, there are three primary scenarios where IT outsourcing can be particularly advantageous:
- All the processes within the company are already lined up, and outsourcing some of the functions can increase their efficiency.
- The company implements a new process, which extends beyond its core activities, and does not want or can not spend a lot of resources on its control.
- The company outsources everything except the business processes, constituting its competitive advantage.
Let’s examine the primary factors that lead companies to consider outsourcing their IT functions and how this approach can address key business objectives in our technology-driven world.
Cost reduction
Outsourcing is a cost-effective solution that allows businesses to manage their budgets more effectively. Restructuring the team and moving some business operations to a distant country can lead to 40% cost savings. Outsourcing helps cut expenses by eliminating the need for a full in-house tech team, saving on:
- payroll taxes;
- insurance deductions;
- sick leave;
- vacation pay;
- retirement plans;
- bonuses.
Apart from labor costs, companies also save on expensive workplace equipment, office space, and infrastructure management. Outsourcing companies typically shoulder the costs of hardware, development tools, server maintenance, network administration, and specialized software licenses.
Furthermore, IT service providers often implement advanced, automated systems that offer a clear, real-time view of the client’s IT operations. Imagine having a dashboard that shows your entire IT landscape at a glance – from network performance to software updates. With these transparent systems in place, businesses spend less time and resources on internal IT management and audits.
To understand how outsourcing through managed services can benefit you, you must first analyze how much time, investments, and other resources you spend on IT-related work and then compare outsourcing offers.
Focus on the core business activities
Some companies are willing to hand over non-core functions to external experts so that they can focus on their primary business objectives. While essential for operations, things like implementing new technologies, database development, quality assurance, and data storage management still take up a lot of time, resources, and attention.
Outsourcing can tackle these issues. It provides access to ready-made IT solutions, infrastructure, and specialists without investing in extensive training, allowing companies to redirect internal resources to core competencies.
In addition, outsourcing emphasizes outcomes rather than processes, leading to more precise performance metrics. It also helps reduce administrative burden by eliminating the need to manage IT staff recruitment, onboarding, payroll, tax calculations, and other related tasks.
External expertise
IT outsourcing offers a powerful solution to the growing talent shortage in the tech industry. As organizations face increasing challenges in acquiring and retaining skilled professionals, especially in rapidly evolving fields like cybersecurity, AI, cloud services, machine learning, and data science, outsourcing provides access to a global pool of expertise.
By partnering with external service providers, businesses can quickly adapt to changing requirements and address skill gaps that might otherwise hinder their digital transformation efforts. This flexibility is precious in a world where 50% of executives identify talent acquisition as a top internal challenge.
As the competition for tech talent intensifies, with unfilled software engineering jobs in the US alone expected to reach 1.2 million by 2026, outsourcing provides a reliable pipeline of skilled professionals. The same is true for companies in Western Europe, where 70-80% of organizations report difficulties in finding experienced tech specialists locally.
Outsourcing also offers a strategic advantage in workforce planning. With 87% of organizations now considering external staff as part of their workforce, companies can create a diverse and agile talent ecosystem. This approach helps mitigate the risks associated with staff turnover and allows businesses to tap into specialized knowledge on demand.
Key benefits of IT outsourcing
Depending on their size, existing workforce, infrastructure, budget, and global coverage, different companies will have their unique rationale behind the decision to work with overseas contractors. Here at Neontri, we’ve observed that while the specific motivations may vary, most businesses seek outsourcing solutions that offer flexibility, expertise, and the ability to scale efficiently. Let’s explore some common considerations for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), startups, and international corporations.
Benefits of IT outsourcing for small and medium businesses
For many enterprises, outsourcing software development stems from the need to optimize costs and enhance their technological capabilities. IT outsourcing can give these businesses significant advantages, helping them compete more effectively in the digital landscape.
- Access to advanced technologies
With IT outsourcing, SMEs can take advantage of cutting-edge technologies without substantial upfront investments. Outsourcing partners typically have access to the latest software, hardware, and cloud-based solutions that might be hard for smaller businesses to acquire independently. This way, SMEs can use enterprise-grade tools and platforms previously only available to larger corporations at a fraction of the cost.
- Uninterrupted workflow
IT outsourcing offers rapid error fixing and minimizes downtime, which is crucial for business continuity. Remote dedicated teams proactively manage IT infrastructure, quickly detecting and resolving issues that in-house staff might miss due to other commitments. They implement robust backup strategies and disaster recovery plans, reducing the risk of prolonged outages.
- Improved efficiency
By delegating IT tasks to outsourcing pros, SMEs can streamline their operations and focus on higher-priority tasks. New employees bring expertise and best practices that can speed up the development process, reduce downtime, and enhance overall system performance. This improved efficiency can lead to faster project completions, better customer service, and increased productivity across the organization.
Neontri’s Total Talent Management (TTM) exemplifies these outsourcing benefits by providing a swift and effective solution for talent sourcing. It helps meticulously match candidates to specific requirements, ensuring they possess the right skills and experience for each role. By leveraging this model, companies can fill critical IT positions in as little as three days. Such rapid deployment of qualified professionals enables businesses to maintain momentum on essential projects, minimize operational disruptions, and quickly bridge their technology gaps.
Benefits of IT outsourcing for startups
Startups often face the dual challenge of rapid growth and ever-changing requirements. To future-proof their business, founders must make strategic decisions that maximize their company’s agility, innovation, and resource efficiency. Business process outsourcing offers a range of benefits that align perfectly with the needs of budding companies, enabling them to increase productivity, scale quickly, and adapt to market demands.
- Faster time to market
Being first is a serious bid for success and competitiveness in the modern tech world. Therefore, startups usually feel a significant urgency to launch their projects as quickly as possible. Speed can be crucial for capturing market share, attracting early adopters, and outpacing rivals.
Outsourcing allows startups to leverage external expertise and technical skills, bypass the time-consuming process of building an in-house team, and utilize established development processes and infrastructure. As a result, new businesses can significantly accelerate their time to market, giving them a competitive edge in rapidly evolving industries.
For example, at Neontri, we’ve utilized our proprietary Mobile Banking Framework (MBF) to help a fintech startup rapidly develop and deploy a feature-rich mobile application. This white-label solution provides essential components and pre-built functionality, allowing us to bypass repetitive tasks and significantly speed up the development process. By leveraging MBF our client was able to launch their product faster and more efficiently, without compromising on quality or security.
- Scalability
Partnering with an external service provider offers unparalleled flexibility in team structure and resource allocation. Unlike in-house teams, offshore outsourcing allows startups to rapidly adjust their workforce based on evolving project needs. For instance, they might focus on front-end developers early on and then incorporate more back-end experts as the project progresses. This dynamic approach ensures that startups always have the perfect blend of skills for each development phase without the overhead of maintaining a large, diverse in-house team.
- Innovative thinking
Engaging offshore developers brings a wealth of various experiences, cultural backgrounds, and problem-solving approaches, fostering creativity and innovation. This diversity often leads to unique solutions and product improvements that might not emerge from a more homogeneous team.
By tapping into a global talent pool, startups gain access to cutting-edge technologies and methodologies, enabling them to adapt quickly to market changes and remain competitive. Combining fresh perspectives and the ability to pivot swiftly can spark progressive ideas, gives startups a significant advantage in bringing groundbreaking products to market.
Benefits of IT outsourcing for international corporations
With their extensive resources and global reach, international companies often have a different approach to outsourcing compared to smaller businesses. These large-scale enterprises typically maintain comprehensive in-house departments and have established networks of contractors to handle various tasks. However, the scale and complexity of their operations can still make outsourcing an attractive option in certain scenarios, such as:
- Round-the-clock availability
When it comes to offshore software development, time differences are usually considered challenges rather than virtues. However, there is a silver lining: by leveraging time zone disparity, companies can achieve round-the-clock activity and faster product delivery. This approach enables companies to provide constant support to their global client base, promptly addressing customer needs and requirements at any hour.
Having a distributed team across various locations ensures that work on projects continues 24/7 and there is always someone available to address any arising issues. This model also eliminates the need for onsite staff to work late shifts or overtime during major updates or service maintenance.
- Local market expertise
The ultimate goal of every large enterprise is to expand their business and take their operations across the border. Entering a partnership with a can help increase the company’s local market presence and reduce barriers to entry.
Outsourcing providers can offer insights into local technology trends, compliance requirements, and cultural nuances that might impact business strategies. This local expertise can help companies avoid costly mistakes, optimize their operations, and accelerate growth in specific regions.
- Multi-language support
Global businesses require IT support in multiple languages to effectively serve their diverse customer base and workforce. IT outsourcing providers often have multilingual teams that can provide technical support, documentation, and user interfaces in various languages. This capability ensures seamless communication, enhancing user experience and operational efficiency.
- Diversification of operational risks
International companies operating across multiple countries and regions face unique challenges in managing their IT infrastructure and services. By distributing IT operations across different geographical locations, international companies can significantly reduce their operational risks.
This approach helps mitigate the impact of local disruptions such as natural disasters, political instability, or economic fluctuations in any single region. If one location faces issues, operations can be quickly shifted to other sites, ensuring business continuity.
Final thoughts
IT outsourcing can be a powerful tool for businesses looking to optimize their operations, focus on core competencies, and access specialized skills. It’s particularly beneficial when companies want to concentrate their resources on essential functions, embark on new projects without in-house expertise, or lack the time and staff to handle specific tasks.
The decision to outsource should be made carefully, taking into account the unique needs and circumstances of each business. For those considering this path, it’s crucial to partner with a reliable and experienced outsourcing provider.
Neontri 100% matches that description. With our 10+ years of experience across banking, retail, and fintech industries, we understand the intricacies of successful outsourcing relationships. Our team of experts is adept at quickly grasping complex business processes and seamlessly integrating with your existing operations. We offer tailored solutions that align with your specific needs, whether you’re looking to streamline operations, access specialized skills, or scale your business efficiently.
By choosing Neontri, you’re gaining a strategic partner committed to your success. Reach out to us to start the cooperation.
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