Jane C. Linder
Joseph Sawyer
December 1, 2003
For many executives, the greatest challenge of business process outsourcing (BPO) is not operational but managerial. They struggle to maintain control through their outsourcing provider in order to get the outcomes they want. How they handle the control issue can mean the difference between adequate results and high-performing BPO management that delivers beyond expectations.
Our research, based on 30 in-depth interviews with senior executives who steer Business Process Outsourcing relationships for their organizations, we make three recommendations for how executives get and keep control in BPO management.
- Cultivate a broad view of control. The most successful executives go beyond direct, supervisory control mechanisms to help them achieve BPO objectives.
- Launch broad controls early in the BPO initiative. Leaders resist the temptation to wait until the transition phase of a BPO relationship is complete before setting the groundwork for indirect and enabling management controls.
- Use controls dynamically to maintain ongoing BPO momentum. Every ongoing BPO relationship needs traditional, steady-state controls like service level agreements. However, when it comes time to make the next leap forward, these static approaches quickly reach their limits.
For more information on Accenture’s Outsourcing practice, click here.
For more information, please contact us.
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