Outsourcing For Dummies

Think outsourcing may be the best way to enlarge your talent pool and increase your profits? Outsourcing For Dummies gives you hands-on, step-by-step guidance in implementing an effective and productive outsourcing program that reduces costs and improves your company’s capabilities. This practical, plain-English guide helps you prepare your people and plan an effective sourcing strategy. You’ll find plenty of tips on negotiating with vendors, get help in drafting a binding contract, and find out how to verify and maintain compliance. Plus you’ll get a handle on the importance of communicating with vendors; find ways to measure performance, productivity, and cost-effectiveness; get the lowdown on troubleshooting and solving outsourcing problems; and, if the arrangement isn’t working out, get advice on ending the deal. Discover how to: Determine the costs and risks of outsourcing Identify qualified suppliers and consultants Minimize the impact of outsourcing on your employees Define the scope of your outsourcing program Decide whether to go offshore, nearshore, or onshore Understand the impact of cultural differences on outsourcing Document objectives and review proposals Plan for the disruption in business operations Deal with international employees and vendors Manage outsourcing relationships Protect your data from piracy Avoid common outsourcing mistakes Outsourcing can be the best decision your company has ever made —or the worst! Read Outsourcing For Dummies today, and get it right the first time.

Outsourcing is one of the most complex and controversial issues in business today. In an effort to remain competitive, many leading companies--from Microsoft to Nike to Pfizer--are incorporating outsourcing as a strategic part of their management decision-making. Yet, for managers responsible for outsourcing, domestically or internationally, this field often seems complex, if not impossible. The Managers Step-by-Step Guide to Outsourcing presents a clear, detailed method for effectively planning and executing an outsourcing strategy in any company, large or small. Top Fortune 500 consultant Linda Dominguez provides all the tools you need to achieve successful, real-world implementation, giving you the power to cut costs, increase efficiency and productivity, generate higher returns, and stay ahead of your competition. Sharing the invaluable guidance of her clients as well as the advice of outsourcing experts, Dominguez helps you develop a strategic plan for your own initiative. She imparts the new skills executives, managers, and employees must learn to deliver results, and best practices for creating sustainable shareholder value without sacrificing quality, productivity, relationships, or control. As you prepare your blueprint for action, you'll discover how to: Decide to outsource a business unit or function on or offshore Weigh potential cost savings against the potential risks Select the best vendor for your specific needs Make the transition process swift and effective Anticipate and manage outsourcing problems and challenges Identify and navigate cultural and style differences Recall an outsourced unit back in-house when necessary You'll also find sound advice and tips executives who have successfully outsourced as well as from those who found their projects did not meet their expectations. Complete with a thorough implementation checklist, The Managers Step-by-Step Guide to Outsourcing is the only resource you need to ensure the long-term success of your outsourcing project.

The plain language guide to getting things running smoothly in the world of business Operations management is all about efficiency, and Operations Management For Dummies is all about efficiently teaching you what you need to know about this business hot topic. This book tracks typical operations management MBA courses, and it will help you un-muddle concepts like process mapping, bottlenecks, Lean Production, and supply chain management. Learn to step into a business, see what needs improving, and plug in the latest tools and ideas to shape things up in any industry. This latest edition covers, you guessed it, digital transformation. Technology is completely upending operations management, and Dummies walks you through the latest, so you can stay at the front of the pack. Other new stuff inside: supply chain traceability, ethical sourcing and carbon footprint, business resiliency, and modularizing the supply chain. It’s all here! Optimize operations and increase revenue with strategies and ideas that make businesses run better and cheaper Get easy-to-understand explanations of complex topics and theories in operations management Learn how operations management is affected by digital transformation and sustainability concerns Evaluate, design, improve, and scale all sorts of processes, regardless of business size or area of operation Businesses can't operate successfully without effective operations and supply management. That makes Operations Management For Dummies a must—for MBA students and business professionals alike.

In this must-have guide for creating and implementing successful outsourcing processes and partnerships, Vitasek drives the principles of Vested Outsourcing beyond theory into practice. From shared vision, desired outcomes to win-win and long-term success the manual will help managers build an agreement vested in each other's success.

Whether you are an entrepreneur looking to build a company or an IT professional looking to work with software developers, this downloadable ebook will help you plan and better communicate with your development team. VenturePact has worked on over one hundred software projects. Along the way, we have learned many lessons. This eBook is a brief culmination of our experiences with global software projects including large scale ERPs, Google Glass apps, innovative websites and mobile applications. In this guide, you will learn how to: Decide whether outsourcing is right for you Select and compare developers Setup contracts with developers Avoid common outsourcing pitfalls

Demystifying Outsourcing emphasizes the importance of building partnerships with consultants and vendors to achieve results. Training managers who utilize this resource will build their confidence and strengthen their outsourcing capabilities as they navigate complex outsourced projects. As a comprehensive toolkit, the book takes the reader step by step through an outsourced initiative. Numerous stories bring the challenges of outsourcing to light. Practical tips and tools, and worksheets on the accompanying CD can be tailored easily to any project. Topics include: Current trends and guiding principles in outsourcing A strategic sourcing decision model to help managers make wise choices about what to outsource and what to retain Identifying and selecting outsourcing partners The RFP process and contract negotiations Positioning consultants and vendors in the organization Design, delivery and program evaluation of outsourced initiatives Special situations such as dealing with conflict, inheriting a consultant and working with multiple consultants and vendors Debbie Friedman is Operating Vice President at Federated Department Stores, where she heads up the Federated Leadership Institute, a training function whose mission is to strengthen the leadership capabilities of the top 1,800 executives.

Outsourcing is the movement of workload to another source which can provide assistance in that particular area for an agreed price either as a onetime service or as an ongoing complementing service. In doing so, the principal company can effectively save time, get staff to be more committed and speedier work results. The essence of outsourcing is simply engaging the services of an individual or organization outside your full time staff to handle certain aspects of your business plan. These aspects may be public relations, marketing, clerical and administrative functions, or IT management. In fact, with today's virtual environment, there is really no part of the business that could not be outsourced effectively. Of course, the big question is whether or not there are any benefits to outsourcing, especially for persons who are building their business on the Internet. There are several good reasons to outsource certain functions. Often times, an Internet business is set up with a shoestring budget and one person doing all the work. As the business grows, it is easy to get caught up in dealing with general office functions, such as answering emails, handling correspondence and maintaining client lists. By outsourcing your clerical support needs, you can spend more time focusing on the expansion of your business, not the day-to-day details of running it. Second, promoting your online presence is a full time job all by itself. You can hardly manage that and still be involved in making the big decisions that impact the overall operations of your company. Using outside agents to promote your presence and to stimulate sales makes it possible for you to do what owners need to do, which is grow the companies' roster of goods and services. Last, outsourcing allows you not to get bogged down with employee taxes, withholding and providing a benefit package.

This book draws together the experience of the global technology and sourcing team at DLA Piper in order to address the complete lifecycle of an outsourcing contract and the variety of legal and contractual issues that can arise in connection with such a project, from the initial genesis of the proposal to outsource all the way through the procurement process and onto post-contract signature contract management. It also breaks down the core outsourcing contract into its constituent parts, explains the rationale for the relevant provisions (from both a customer and service provider perspective), and provides guidance as to current market practice, options and trends.

"As companies in growing numbers look to outsource functions not related to their core competencies, Bragg's work provides an excellent road map. Demonstrating a firm grasp of the topic, he intelligently walks the reader through the maze, analyzing all aspects of the process (including whether the function should or should not be outsourced). This is a must-read for both novices and veterans alike." --Mary S. Schaeffer Editorial Director and Publisher Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow "Steve Bragg's Outsourcing gives business decision-makers the insights needed to make the case for or against outsourcing. The first half provides a thorough discussion of all aspects, including evaluating risks and rewards, selecting, contracting, and terminating. The second half provides in-depth analysis of ten different types of outsourcing services, including janitorial, customer service, and accounting. This book provides practical advice that will benefit everyone regardless of the extent of their prior experience." --Dr. Will Yancey, PHD, CPA Independent Consultant "Once again, Steve Bragg has compiled a comprehensive, well-written book that will yield an excellent return on time invested by readers. This is a must-have guide in outsourcing for any manager, whether newly exposed or an expert. I came away with some great ideas from the book!" --James A. Bologa Executive Vice President and CFO Daticon Inc. "Use of carefully considered outsourcing can be a critical component of any corporate strategy. In Outsourcing, Steve Bragg has given an excellent overview of why and when outsourcing should be considered, some precautionary thoughts, and specifics of how to successfully implement and manage any outsourced functions. He has created an excellent guide to the use of outsourcing as a means to enhance corporate success in today's challenging business climate." --Richard V. Souders President and CEO Premier Data Services

Nowadays just about anything can be outsourced. From telemarketing to inventory management, collecting receivables to answering the phone, email account hosting to company management, it's all up for grabs. Business owners, managers at mid-level companies, and entrepreneurs who are even thinking about outsourcing some part of the business need The Complete Idiot's Guide to Successful Outsourcing. Included- The historical and global issues of outsourcing that may affect outsourcing decisions Tips on how to determine whether or not to outsource at all Advice on how to decide the costs and benefits of outsourcing Guidance on hiring and managing the outsourced help An explanation of ways to stay within government compliance