In my previous article, we focused on outsourcing and the benefits it can provide for companies. The point of the article was to highlight the issue and to get business owners asking key questions about their business and whether outsourcing certain business functions would benefit them.

Perhaps the key take away from that article was the fact that any business owner approaching this decision must know their business intimately. Just as buying a family holiday home at the coast is a big decision, making key decisions relating to a business that supports a family is equally a significant decision. In this article, we will focus on the how outsourcing helps failing businesses. We will also focus on the types of companies who benefit from outsourcing.

Providing a lifeline

Outside of a franchising, where you are taking over an established brand and a well-known product, being a business owner in the current economic climate can be a tough ask.

One of the biggest killers of business ownership is cost. Spiralling costs affects bottom lines and companies may find themselves spending obscene amounts of money just on cost containment.

This is where outsourcing can offer major benefits. An article on the business.com website showed that with outsourcing, companies can bring in top-quality professionals for a fraction of the price it would cost to hire them in-house. Companies don’t have to worry about obligatory benefit contributions, sick pay, retirement contributions or any of the other extras that pile on top of a normal employee’s salary, and it grants you more flexibility, as you can bring them in as and work arises.

**Access to specialist skills **

The business.com article added that with a limited budget, it’s difficult to entice star employees to join your start-ups or smaller companies. However, outsourcing provides easy access to talented professionals from across the globe at low costs.

Most companies need a marketing person, sales manager, IT technician, bookkeeper and head of HR, but they don’t have the budget or the workload to sustain a full-time, skilled employee.

Outsourcing means that small firms can find the expert assistance they require on a part-time or even hourly basis.

**Stronger team **

The final advantage that the business.com article discusses is the fact that you can build a stronger team through outsourcing.

The article points out that whenever a young entrepreneur asks for advice, they often get told that you can never underestimate the power of working with a team of skilled and passionate people, which means investing a lot of time into recruitment.

GTconsult has seen the benefit of this. Over the past six years, we have been building and cultivating our A Team, a team which provides best quality software consultancy skills and advice to customers to optimise their business processes. While we don’t outsource this function, it is an example of how a strong team that has key skills can benefit a business.  Sometimes outsourcing this function is the only way to access these skills.

IT-Based Solutions

The IT industry is a specialist industry where core skills are hard to come by. An article on thesouthafrican.com shows that outsourcing this function can be a turning point decision for a company.

The article points out that if you take a look at resource centres such as SelectHub.com, you will notice that there is a solution for every business process. Whether you need to tackle HR-related challenges or you want to manage your company’s resources better, you can always find a solution that fit the needs and specific requirements of your business perfectly.

IT-based solutions are leading the charge in this department. Instead of hiring extra employees to do specific tasks, companies in South Africa – primarily small and medium enterprises – are streamlining their business processes with the help of software and pre-built solutions.

Push for Efficiency

The article adds that the big shift towards IT-based solutions and outsourcing began with the need for efficiency. As the market became more competitive, businesses had more steps to gain a competitive edge and stay ahead. This meant doing so much more than cutting costs and streamlining their operations.

Businesses who achieved better efficiency with the help of outsourcing and IT-based solutions were able to lower their overhead costs by a substantial margin. This resulted in lower prices and more leeway when dealing with competitors. At the same time, efficient businesses can allocate the money they save towards marketing and advertising, expanding their reach and bringing their products to more potential customers.

It seems that these solutions are the way forward for small and medium-sized enterprises across South Africa. How can it benefit your business?