Small Business Outsourcing: Should You Outsource or Do It Yourself?

Up until now, outsourcing back office, IT, and infrastructure management was a privilege reserved for large organizations and enterprises. Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) often gave outsourcing no consideration. This was due in part to the cost, which was structured for larger organizations – the ROI simply wasn’t there for SMBs. It was also due to a pecking order. The large outsourcing vendors that seemingly dominated the market and were designed to optimize for enterprises rarely paid proper attention to SMBs. In order to secure an outsourcing vendor, a SMB used to have to have a laser-like focus on and understanding of the market – and the right connections and business volume to attract a vendor.

However, things have changed drastically in recent years and SMBs stand to benefit greatly from a new outsourcing market. Advances in technology and interconnectedness have made the marketplace broader and more competitive. As such, outsourcing back office functions, infrastructure and technology are suddenly viable options for SMBs. And for SMBs, the process is easier than ever.

The time is right

Since these developments are somewhat recent, having come about in the last five years or so, there understandably remains some hesitation from some SMBs when they consider outsourcing. Lingering notions of a legacy outsourcing system that all but excluded them lead to concerns that they won’t get the attention they deserve.

The truth is that legitimate vendors now cater to SMBs, understanding how the vast benefits to be gained from outsourcing can be made available to organizations of any size. There are outsourcing providers that tailor their solutions to fit the unique business needs and challenges of SMBs. They understand the SMB market, and their services and approach are optimized for smaller, rather than larger, businesses. These vendors focus on the growth potential of their clients and endeavor to become true business partners in order to ensure that the client reaps full rewards when it comes to the outsourcing partnership.

“It takes great skill in meeting the demands of this market with the right balance of agility, process, and proven solutions,” said Frank Bianchi, VP of sales and technology outsourcing at CGS, a New York-based outsourcing provider with global service locations. In Nearshore Americas, Bianchi expounds upon the value and potential of SMBs – and believes it will only increase over time. SMBs face similar issues as their enterprise counterparts – disaster recovery, data storage in the cloud and cybersecurity and protection – but with greater challenges stemming from infrastructure, budget, staff and hiring constraints and limitations.

“We expect the pace of outsourcing to continue well into 2020 as the small- to medium-sized businesses better understand the price points and ROI,” said Bianchi.

Outsourcing is the new frontier for SMBs, who stand to gain business benefits that go beyond cost savings and running a more cost-efficient IT operation. From cloud adoption to disaster recovery to traditional outsourcing, SMBs are beginning to realize that the benefits to be gained from outsourcing are no longer reserved for larger enterprises only.

Does your business outsource? Let us know in comments below.