Business process outsourcing (BPO) is the act of contracting work processes to external service providers as auxiliary – as opposed to core – business functions that can be either technical or non-technical.
Todas las empresas subcontratan servicios, desde las nuevas empresas hasta las de la lista Fortune 500, y a medida que más empresas tratan de adelantarse a la competencia, la demanda de BPO ha aumentado drásticamente. Utilizado a menudo como alternativa a la migración laboral, el BPO es una excelente forma de aprovechar las habilidades del talento internacional permitiéndoles permanecer en sus países de origen.
Diferentes categorías de BPO
A menudo se divide en dos tipos principales de servicios, el BPO puede prestarse para aplicaciones de back-office y front-office. Los procesos empresariales internos, como las compras, forman parte de los servicios de back-office, mientras que los servicios de front-office incluyen el marketing y el soporte técnico. Gracias al BPO, es fácil consolidar estos servicios para que funcionen como una unidad en lugar de dos departamentos de servicios separados.
El BPO también puede entrar en una de estas tres categorías, y dependiendo de dónde se encuentre el proveedor, el proceso puede ser offshore, nearshore u onshore.
Offshore vendors are located outside of the organization’s home country. An excellent example of an offshore vendor is a Spanish company using an offshore BPO vendor in South Africa.
Nearshore refers to BPO vendors that are in the contracting company’s neighboring country. For example, a BPO in the United States is a nearshore option in Canada.
Onshore BPO vendors are in the same country as the contracting company, albeit they might be in another geographical area. A contractor in Seattle (U.S) might use an onshore vendor located in Texas.
Los beneficios de BPO
There are various reasons why organizations choose to outsource services. In addition to reduced taxes when dealing with offshore BPO vendors, U.S. companies also choose to outsource to reduce operating costs, expand their global presence, and increase the speed and efficacy of their operations. Here’s a deeper look at the benefits of BPO.
Business Process Outsourcing Reduces Operating Costs
Hay un factor sustancial de ahorro de costes que entra en juego cuando las empresas deciden externalizar servicios en lugar de contratar mano de obra interna a tiempo completo. Las empresas también pueden utilizar modelos de costes variables cuando subcontratan en lugar de desplegar modelos de costes fijos que deben utilizarse para retener a los empleados locales.
Permite a las empresas centrarse en las funciones clave
Many businesses choose to outsource services that aren’t directly related to their core functions and processes. For example, a U.S.-based brand won’t have to monitor localization projects as closely when they choose to use a Language Service Provider that is highly experienced in the matter. Instead, the company can focus on business growth, and together with its BPO services, the company will gain a competitive advantage, increase profits, and enhance its customer satisfaction ratings.
Permite a las empresas ampliar su alcance global
Some outsourcing companies can service customers in many languages 365 days a year, relieving the contracting company of those responsibilities. Companies that outsource can strengthen their presence in multiple countries without risking having local divisions going redundant.
Business Process Outsourcing Enhances Flexibility
Businesses that outsource services are often better equipped to react to risks involved with launching new products and services. By outsourcing, the business can also realign its internal resources to ensure core business functions are placed on the top tier of the priority list. Since the contracting company turns to specialists for certain services, they’ll save time, improve accuracy, and increase their capacity simultaneously.
¿Qué tipos de servicios pueden externalizar las empresas?
There are several services that BPO providers now offer in an attempt to help fills gaps within organizations. Some industries that participate in BPO initiatives include business services, language services, retail and e-commerce, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, energy, automotive, telecom, banking, supply chain, capacity solutions, and asset management, to name but a few. Thanks to the rising popularity of BPO, many subspecialties have emerged. These include:
ITES
ITES -o servicios habilitados por la tecnología de la información- BPO ofrece servicios de TI a través de Internet. Estos servicios suelen incluir funciones como las de analista de TI y analista de servicios.
KPO
Knowledge process outsourcing (KPO) BPO focuses on research, analysis, and data processing services. In many instances, KPO services form part of core business functions, enabling them to sometimes make low-level business decisions. These services are often also linked to the vendor’s value chain since the sourcing business hires talent experienced in specific fields.
LPO (legal process outsourcing) also forms part of KPO, a subset comprising higher-level legal work that goes above legal transcription. Research process outsourcing (RPO) also forms part of KPOs and mainly focuses on research and analysis that supports marketing, biotech, investment, and business firms.
Viajes
As the name implies, this type of BPO pertains to all operations a business relies on for its travel logistics, such as car rentals and hotel reservations. Many airline companies engage in BPO to help streamline front- or back-office processes.
In general, BPOs specialize in specific services. They fall into following major sectors:
- Servicios de interacción con el cliente
- Transacciones de back-office
- Servicios informáticos y de software
- Servicios financieros y contables
- Recursos Humanos
- Servicios de conocimiento
Ready to Thrive with a Business Process Outsourcing Strategy?
Due to recent shifts in consumer behavior and a higher demand for multichannel communication, the BPO industry has grown exponentially over the last few years. With more companies relying on cloud technologies, technical services like HR, web design, and accounting are at the forefront of the BPO industry’s focus.
La externalización de la transformación del negocio (BTO) también ha ido en aumento, ya que permite a las organizaciones acceder a servicios de consultoría que ofrecen funciones de apoyo tradicionales y la capacidad de renovar sus procesos para aumentar el crecimiento general del negocio.