Internal or External - Outsourcing is a Hot Topic
In our still struggling economic times, we still are seeing companies try to manage their labor and maintain a leaner workforce than we have seen in the past. It has made all of us more efficient, better at time management and multi-tasking than ever before. It has also made many companies or departments within a company look to the possibility of outsourcing various jobs or duties.
Take for instance executive recruiting. Many companies spend money on advertising in the Wall Street Journal, local papers, Craigslist, H Careers and use their internal HR department to recruit management. This may or may not work for an organization, you have to compare cost to benefit and see where you end up. I recently dealt with a Executive Recruiter and had a phenomenal experience with her, I would recommend hands down that anyone who is looking for upper level management throughout the USA, use this Chicago based company. I was never a big fan of using executive search firms for many reasons, primarily price and quality. For what I would spend in placing ads, plus my time and my team’s time, it is worth it to outsource with this company in these instances.
There are many things that can be outsourced such as payroll or benefits administration. It all depends on the organizational structure of your company and the cost to benefit ratio of each segment. Another consideration I take as a department head is the level of expertise needed in each area and what your team’s strengths and weaknesses are. There may be some things that can be learned in house, or by sending one of your team members to a class or to get a certification which would bring the company a long term gain by investing in its people.
Outsourcing is a gray area, you want to maximize your efficiency and effectiveness, but also want to invest in your own people. Walking the fine line is difficult for any business, so doing a needs assessment of each area is always a wise first move. Once this is completed, you can move on to analyzing both internal and external strengths and weaknesses. Outsourcing is only an option for some things; many things should always be kept internal – such as Employee Relations.
I like to find the middle ground in any company I am with. I am a huge believer in investing in my team and using our resources to build long term gains for the company. But when I encounter a greater expert on something in my department I like to learn from it, embrace it and make the best choice for the team overall.
