Five Outsourcing Levers to Weather the Recession

In a period of economic downturn you have to squeeze, we all know that. And it really doesn’t matter if you’re looking at an outsource service or a shared service, there is going to be pressure. There’s going to be pressure around reducing prices, but of course without sacrificing the quality or the levels of some of the key services.
I think the real point as we look at shared services and outsourcing, and compare and contrast them, is the question: "How much do those levers differ?" "What are the things that you can do in one that you maybe can’t do in the other?" "Which of them, if either, offers more flexibility than the other?" And how do you approach non-owned resources, contracted resources, as opposed to those which you already have under your own management?

What I would suggest we all have to do is remember that even in a time of recession, when sometimes there’s pressure for panic action, we really do need to be thinking about the impacts of what we’re doing on the future. I’m sure you, as internal owners of, for example, a shared services group, would always push back and fight against draconian actions that you know would destabilize you or disable you for the future, for when the upturn comes. Of course it’s already, according our research, on the way.

And the same applies if you’re into the outsourcing world, that we need to consider what we’re doing today and its impact upon the future. It’s also very important if you’re into outsourcing, to stop for a moment and remember why you’re there. And to pick up and learn some lessons from the recession—make sure that you don’t lose the benefit of the things that you are learning now and that you will learn over the next few months.