Going offshore? Consider this first.

As the march of globalisation continues, more and more companies are looking to "go offshore", to take advantage of global talent pools, best practice and lower costs. The question for many is not "should we?" but "how should we". For beyond the glamour of elite frequent flyer clubs and multi-cultural team conferences, there are a variety of offshore market entry models ranging from establishing a captive centre to end-to-end outsourcing to a third party vendor – and everything in between. Locations Central to selection of the appropriate operating model is also the location of the service. From an Australian or New Zealand perspective the main offshore locations vying for business are: The Philippines India China Vietnam Malaysia South Africa Fiji The regulatory environment, tax regimes and maturity of these markets vary wildly, and some locations are more suitable to the different models below versus others. Let’s take a look at the distinctive features of each offshore operating model. Traditional outsourcing By far and away the most common, "traditional" operating model offshore is business process outsourcing (BPO) to a third party. There is no shortage of BPO vendors clamouring for business, ensuring a highly competitive process. At the large enterprise end of the market, the trend here is away from a siloed outsourcing approach and more towards the creation of holistic "centres of excellence" - for example, in IT or Finance – which multiple business units can leverage under a shared services arrangement. Pricing is often per hour per FTE or per transaction, overlaid with a KPI scorecard which can tip the baseline prices up or down. The key advantages of this approach are: Uncomplicated– Since the BPO vendor is contracted to manage the hiring, training, technology and operational performance, and there is no requirement to establish an entity on the ground, the complexity from an HR, operational and legal perspective is relatively low. Low risk– The risk is also low, assuming a reputable vendor with proven expertise delivering similar contracts is selected. DBOT DBOT, or Design-Build-Operate-Transfer, is an extension of the outsourcing model, where the articulated goal after a certain number of years of outsourcing is to transfer ownership of the operation, including people, property and technology assets, from the BPO vendor to the client. The key advantage here is that once the transfer of the high-performance operation is executed, there is no longer a requirement to pay the BPO a margin – which at 10% of a large operation, is a substantial sum. Captive The same rationale can be applied to the captive model, where the key difference with DBOT is that the operation is in-house from day one. Typically this model only makes sense when there is large scale, and internal expertise in implementing. QBE is an example of an Australian company that has taken the captive approach, in the Philippines. The advantages of captive are not only removing the BPO’s margin, but in taking total control and arguably having greater agility as the asset is owned by you. For most, however, the risk and complexity of setting up a captive centre in an unfamiliar market are too high. Co-sourcing Co-sourcing is where you work with a third party to establish an optimal mix of their services and people and yours. For example, you would likely control and directly manage the bulk of the workforce, but the third party would provide the infrastructure and shared support services, such as HR and IT. Facilities outsourcing Facilities outsourcing is where all you need offshore is a facility from which to conduct the work, and you take care of the rest, dipping in to a menu of support services on an ad hoc basis, as needs arise. The pricing model is usually a monthly per seat leasing arrangement, with a rate card for optional services. Joint venture or acquisition There are a number of drivers for considering a JV offshore – one may be to instantly access a vendor’s expertise and at the same time – unlike traditional outsourcing – ensure the vendor has an equity stake in the business therefore a built-in incentive to delivering the required outcomes. In highly regulated markets, a JV may be seen as the next-best option when a 100% locally incorporated entity is difficult to establish. Creation of a JV may also have a profit imperative, as the JV can offer its services to the external market. As with a captive, this option is typically reserved for large-scale players with hundreds or thousands of FTE to start. The next level to a JV is an outright acquisition (just as Xerox did when it decided to enter the BPO market through an acquisition of ACS for more than $6 billion). However this option is not for the faint-hearted and the considerations are outside the scope of this post! Note: You can meet Sharon at the 18th Annual Australasian Shared Services & Outsourcing Week in June! Download the event guide below. [eventpdf]

Going offshore? Consider this first.

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