However, the fact that they have prior transition experience can, in and of itself, also result in unexpected challenges. Does this sound counterintuitive?… Read the rest

1. Jeopardy
2. An Essential Element for Outsourcing Success
3. Second Time Around

The retail industry has seen upheaval with the global economic crisis and intensely competitive environment, where margins are slimming down and customer loyalty is constantly fluctuating. It is critical for retailers to obtain insights to decide how much and what merchandize to stock, how to operate, and which customers they should fight to retain so that they can… Read the rest

There is a better way. Clients looking to confirm market competitiveness are increasingly relying on screening benchmarks (often referred to as “pre-benchmarks” or screening benchmarks) that help… Read the rest

Headline: “Nation’s jobs have gone overseas to the detriment of the U.S.”
Letter: “All I hear is, “Where are the jobs? The answer is they are overseas. … I don’t see other countries sending their jobs to the USA. How come?”

The jingoistic… Read the rest

1. Wipro’s Azim Premji Maps Out the Course
2. How Indian Outsourcers Can Successfully Achieve Being Glocal

Engaging middle managers in the details surrounding the sourcing process will:

1. Enlist their vast operational knowledge
2. Convey your value and trust in them
3. Keep them well informed so they can communicate appropriately to the broader

… Read the rest

Partnering helped them get through the transition phase easier and helped them try to resolve challenges in a win-win manner; but when the business situation changed and thus impacted the buyer’s savings or the service provider’s margins, most of them still hit a wall despite the partnering approach. 

There were foundational

… Read the rest

1. The Truth about Gain-Sharing in Outsourcing
2. Second Time Around
3. The T-Word in Outsourcing

• Words are abbreviated into scant “code” in text messages
• Corporate branding messages are squished down to 140 characters on Twitter
• Paragraphs or even entire pages in articles and reports are shortened to bullet lists

Funny how this sound-byte way of communicating cajoles us into thinking we can similarly truncate our behaviors yet still be successful in the relationships in our lives. 

Reality says that’s not the case. There are all sorts of entangling knots within relationships, and the potential for damage is high when we don’t slow down and take the time – read… Read the rest

1. Are You Protecting Your Outsourcing Relationship?

But maybe not. Let’s look at the bigger picture.

When a competing provider enters a market, an incumbent provider’s customers are vulnerable. The “hunters” on the new… Read the rest

1. Influencing Success in Outsourcing

Those who equate Vested Outsourcing as meaning the same thing as gain-sharing clearly haven’t read Vitasek’s book. (I have, and I’ve blogged about it before, here and here.)

And those who think gain-sharing “doesn’t work” are not correct. Here’s why.

While it’s true that some sourcing relationships with a gain-share component encounter problems, it’s usually because they didn’t structure the gain-share agreement correctly. I’ve talked with more 20 buyers of outsourcing services who, when they ran into… Read the rest

By far, the majority stated the governance meetings were absolutely essential. However, most also stated that the ad hoc, informal communications were more effective at managing issues more quickly.

When I asked buyers which method of communication was more effective in managing the relationship itself, there was a greater variance in opinion. I was reminded of this recently when I watched a program about hiking the… Read the rest

1. Influencing Success in Outsourcing
2. Are You Protecting Your Outsourcing Relationship?
3. Tip for Executives in How to Ensure their Return on Investment in Outsourcing