Outsourcing is simply the practice of engaging a third party – someone outside of the business – to take on some tasks for you. Although it seems like it should be an easy decision, some business owners are loathe to try it; it costs money, and they might even feel as though they are losing some of the control they have in their business if someone else is dealing with things.
In some cases, however, outsourcing really can be a good idea, and something that can help overworked business owners (and their staff) to be much more efficient and productive. Here are some of the reasons outsourcing could be a good idea for your business.
Free Up Time
As your business grows, the amount of time you have to work on certain aspects of it will diminish. If you’re already at capacity, trying to add more to your workload is a recipe for disaster; it will make you even busier and yet more unproductive. You could try to delegate tasks to your employees (assuming you have reached a stage where you have some), but if they are also busy then you are overburdening them too.
In this case, outsourcing is not only a good idea, but vital. Your team will remain productive and you will be able to concentrate on some of the more pressing matters within your business while a professional deals with the rest.
Expertise
When you outsource something, you are handing a job over to someone who knows exactly what they are doing. Whereas you will need to wear a variety of different hats as a business owner, your third party outsourced company or individual will concentrate only on what they are best at, and that means that the jobs that you hand them will be done more quickly and to a higher standard. You can find people who will be able to do anything you need them to do, from accountants to marketers to those who are experts at creating PCBs using Altium.
Even if you are also an expert, it is something a good idea to step back and look at what it is necessary for you to do, and what you can outsource. One of the keys to good leadership is that you know when to delegate.
Maintain Control
One of the things that worries many business owners about outsourcing is the lack of control they think they will feel once they give their tasks away to someone else. That doesn’t have to be the case; if you take your time to research exactly the kind of outsourcing setup that you want, you can maintain as much control as you need.
You might choose to use a company that completely takes your order and does it without needing to check in with you. That will work perfectly for some business owners. Others will certainly want progress updates. In most cases, the company will work with you to create a custom plan to keep you as much, or as little in the loop as you want.
