عملکردهای پشتیبانی برون سپاری: شناسایی و مدیریت خوب، بد، زشت

Outsourcing the purchase of components or “hard goods” is not a new phenomenon: it is known as the “buy” portion of a company's common make-or-buy decisions. In the current service-oriented economy, however, make-or-buy decisions are now often do-or-buy decisions that reflect the strategic question of whether outside entities should be hired to perform significant support service activities. Support functions such as information technology and customer service can be outsourced to provide many organizational benefits. Companies frequently point to the cost savings for labor and training, but also cite the benefits of releasing corporate resources for alternative uses and allowing the business to focus on its core competencies. Outsourcing support functions is not simple, though, and companies must manage the related strategic, quantitative, and qualitative risk factors. This article discusses some of the potential risks that must be faced when a company outsources internal support functions, and describes how the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission's Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) model can assist in managing and controlling these risks.

Competitive advantage is the reward for organizations that are able to adopt new technologies, achieve economies of scale and scope, serve global markets, change product range regularly, and satisfy customers through high quality and timely delivery. Since few companies have resources and competencies to meet all of these diverse pursuits, there has been widespread resort to alliances to meet the needs of this new economic order. Support service outsourcing can be an important component in a winning business strategy; however, this type of outsourcing arrangement also has risks that can undermine the potential benefits offered. Outsourcing allows a firm to strategically use outside vendors to perform service activities that traditionally have been internal functions. Firms have found that support functions such as information technology (IT), human resources, or accounting can be accomplished by an outside vendor and can result in lower cost, higher quality, or both. Activities can be outsourced from one firm to another domestic firm, to a “nearshore” firm (one that is located on the same continent or in a substantially similar cultural environment), or to an offshore firm (one that is located on a different continent or in a substantially different cultural environment). Although this article takes a U.S. perspective, outsourcing risks are similar across the global environment. Support service outsourcing agreements are often highly customized to the needs and capabilities of both the firm and the vendor. Outsourced tasks can range from the performance of a support function by an external vendor, to a “blended” co-sourcing arrangement whereby services of in-house and external suppliers are conducted in a combined workplace. These blended co-sourcing arrangements can be highly varied, but should be crafted to work to the best advantage of the outsourcing firm. Some companies have created new firms by spinning off organizational units and have outsourced support services to these new firms. In other situations, companies have sold organizational units to vendors, which then hire the selling firms’ employees to perform the same tasks that were performed for their original employer.

It is undeniable that changes in the competitive environment, such as technological advances and globalization, are driving companies toward new ways of operating. In striving to become flexible, lean, and more competitive, companies have been increasingly apt to externalize support service functions. Firms should carefully analyze the impacts of their outsourcing decisions, especially in consideration of the extent to which organizational competencies and competitive advantage could be affected. Outsourcing support services may certainly help companies become more efficient, have access to new skills and resources, and focus on the core business—but only as long as the benefits accruing from the intangible assets are achieved and contribute to the company's goals, objectives, and competitive advantage. The sole way to avoid support service outsourcing risks entirely is to perform all service tasks in-house. This level of risk avoidance can come at an unacceptably high cost, given the compelling strategic and financial benefits that can be realized by outsourcing. For most companies, a better approach is to control—rather than eliminate—outsourcing risks. This article highlights some of the major risks associated with support service outsourcing, including losses of control, innovation, and organizational trust, and increases in unanticipated costs. When identifying and controlling these risks, support service outsourcing risk management should be included as a part of the organization's enterprise-wide risk management strategy. COSO's Enterprise Risk Management framework provides a mechanism for examining outsourcing risk on a company-wide basis, and can help ensure that the appropriate risk control activities are enacted and evaluated at all organizational levels. Ex-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld once famously stated, “I would not say that the future is necessarily less predictable than the past. I think the past was not predictable when it started.” Managers need to remember that the same unpredictability, both past and future, applies to outsourcing.