Why Outsource Field Service Projects

Outsourcing Chiefly Reduces Costs

Outsourcing has long been a popular strategic tool for businesses looking for a better bottom line. It’s tried and true in reducing labour costs, if done correctly. Traditionally, the reason for cost savings has been the employment of labour at much lower rates, more commonly labour in Asia who cost a fraction of what Western countries’ labour cost. But cost savings are not just restricted to offshore outsourcing. Even local outsourcing can be cost-effective as you typically pay for exactly the deliverable you need to be completed. It provides an easier and more transparent level of monetization, and sometimes that also comes with the added bonus of a reduced all in rate per labour. It offers more flexibility than using existing employees or hiring new employees for certain tasks and potentially reduces travel costs. 

How Outsourcing Field Projects Benefits Businesses

For field services, the benefits of outsourcing include cost savings and beyond. The nature of fieldwork makes contracting out an outside party for certain projects very appealing, specifically for the following reasons:

• Maintain focus on core competencies and tasks

In times of rapid growth, operations can deviate from core business tasks that made the company profitable in the first place. Outsourcing field services to third parties can facilitate expansion initiatives for companies while still allowing them to stick to core business tasks and maintain the level of service that helped build their existing customer base.  

• Adjust to cyclical demand

Demand can often go through peaks and valleys, and companies need the flexibility to easily help them navigate these fluctuations in terms of capacity. The last thing companies want is for service levels to drop because demand is outpacing capacity and they can’t capitalize on periods of high demand. Outsourcing fills the gaps on that front and helps companies make the most of peak seasons. 

• Implementation of projects in remote areas

Companies often want to do business in remote locations that don’t have many service field-level engineers. The costs of hiring, onboarding, managing and creating an internal team for remote projects can be hard to justify, and even difficult to implement. Contracting out field services to generate more business in remote areas makes all the sense and perhaps may be the only option here.

• Meet 24/7 service and support needs

Companies may need to provide 24/7 support to customers around the world, specifically for services related to technology and communications. They may also need a support team that makes sure operations are running smoothly 24/7, and thus require a team that resolves potential issues instantly. Outsourcing can be transformational in that respect as plenty of field service companies facilitate 24/7 SLAs.

How to Ensure Successful Outsourcing of Projects

The benefits of outsourcing can be alluring and deceivingly guarantee success. Outsourcing does entail delegating projects to third parties, but perhaps the key determinant to its success is treating the outsourced team as anything but a third party.

• High involvement of top management

It is pivotal for management to be highly engaged with the contracted team and look at the engagement as a partnership more so than a temporary, ancillary field service project. As with any partnership, there should be clearly defined common goals, a strategy on how to achieve them, clearly defined metrics, and regular tracking and reporting. Transparency and trust make all the difference.

• Comprehensive knowledge transfer

The outsourced party conducting fieldwork should be sufficiently trained on the company’s products and services to the extent possible. The initial training phase should be comprehensive enough with specific goals and objectives and shouldn’t be signed off until those are met. 

• Refine processes proactively

Working with an outsourced partner on field projects is an adjustment for all parties involved, and that kind of adjustment needs to be flexible enough to be consistently refined and honed. When things don’t go as planned, the company and its outsourcing partner must initiate a formal monitoring and resolution process. Every pitfall should be documented, thoroughly analyzed in terms of the root cause with an endeavour to resolve the problem and not the symptom.