Outsourcing for Startups: Should You Consider It?
Starting from the bottom is never easy, which is why startups need to be prudent when it comes spending their precious few resources. With a flurry of business activities to handle, startup company owners could consider outsourcing to be able to focus on the more critical aspects of their operations.
The biggest challenge for any startup is to meet customer demand while ensuring that quality is maintained. Taking on several tasks that are beyond one’s expertise could negatively affect the delivery of services.
Why choose to outsource?
Most startups only have enough financial and human resources to get started, but these could run out if the business fails to take off. Around 70% of startups, unfortunately, fail due to premature scaling of their operations. It involves spending more than they have on things that aren’t essential to the business. For instance, some startup owners spend money on leasing an office or paying for expensive marketing rather than prioritizing on making their product viable for the target market.
Companies today are choosing to outsource to transform operations into an agile, effective, and efficient business. Also, the emergence of the cloud and robotic process automation (RPA) has elevated the demand for outsourcing. Startups should strongly consider outsourcing to get an edge in the market.
Here are more reasons why startups should outsource some of their business activities.
Reducing Costs
Overhead expenses like hiring and training staff can take a lot out of the startup’s funds. Outsourcing provides access to professionals who are already experienced and knowledgeable in the field. Tapping an expert allows the flexibility to pay only for the services needed.
Additionally, outsourcing cuts the need for infrastructure maintenance or upgrades. For example, managed IT services enable a company to avail of the latest technologies without having to build the infrastructure on their own. It’s a cost-efficient way of setting up operations without hurting the budget.
Saving Time
Startup owners tend to oversee many things at the same time, but not only does that spell more effort, but it also keeps them out of the core points of the business. Having outsourced personnel to handle other tasks such as administrative, digital marketing or even IT tasks frees up valuable time for the staff to fulfill business-critical activities such as focusing on product development.
Some founders are choosing to outsource back-office jobs like accounting and taxes, payroll, customer service, and legal processes since these tasks are learned by training and experience. Outsourcing these to skilled and more seasoned professionals ensures that crucial back-office functions get done quickly and efficiently.
Meeting Global Expertise
Outsourcing allows you to meet a pool of talent from across the globe. Top outsourcing destinations like the Philippines and India have a skilled workforce known for quality, efficiency and affordable labor cost. They are also up-to-date with the global trends on outsourcing, helping startups stay competitive.
Promoting Flexibility
Flexibility is another reason startups should consider outsourcing. For instance, product development delegated to a remote experienced tech team can help a startup achieve faster time-to-market. Outsourcing professionals know how to adjust according to client requirements and provide an agile approach to the changes a job entails.
Fewer Risks
The development process sometimes gets delayed because there are so many things to do when trying to get a startup to take off. Outsourcing it can increase productivity and ensure that quality is met because the team will be focused on doing that one task only. The service level agreement (SLA) will help mitigate the risk of product delays as the team will do its utmost best to stick to deadlines that have been agreed upon in writing.
What Should You Outsource?
Some startup founders are aware that outsourcing can provide many benefits for the business, but it’s not easy to identify the tasks to be handled by an external team. It’s not easy to trust an external team to get the job done while staying true to your brand identity. However, these professionals have the experience of fulfilling specific tasks based on their client’s vision and goals.
Some tasks that startups can delegate to an outsourcing firm are:
- IT services. Time to market is essential for any startup. Launching a product should be done in time so that it stays relevant to current trends in technology. Outsourcing IT assets of the startup can significantly help in the faster deployment of the business.
- Administrative duties. Tasks like scheduling, email marketing, and client relations can be outsourced to free up more time especially for a startup team with no HR department.
- Payroll. Outsourcing the payroll might seem unconventional, but if taking into account the excessive fines that small businesses pay for incorrect payroll data, then it’s better to let experts handle it.
World-class Outsourcing Expert
If you are a startup looking to increase your productivity in a cost-effective manner, Yempo is the world-class outsourcing partner you can trust to handle specific aspects of your business. We offer IT, finance and accounting, digital marketing, engineering, human resources, business development, administrative and research services. Contact us today to learn more about our services.