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  1. #1
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    Jun 2004
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    Considering Outsourcing Support

    Reading all of the recent posts, I'm compelled to ask what the outsourced support firms do by type of service AND what is the quality. What is claimed is different than what they can really do. For example, many of them will do basic support ("can you change the e-mail address...?"). I would like to know if they can truly handle all support or if I should leave it to simple support requests.

    Right now, I outsource some development to an overseas company so I know the basics of how to work with an overseas firm. What I do not know is the level of network admin knowledge and if its even worth exploring.

    And, what makes a great outsourced support team?

    I've seen the recent posts on outsourcing support and some have degenerated into "don't outsource jobs from the US". I do not want this post to do that.

    Thanks in advance for all of the comments.
    Bill Dotson
    http://www.billdotson.com
    Looking for hosts to buy: http://iwantwebhosts.com/

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2003
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    Bluesquare dc, Uk
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    Ok,

    From my experience you'll find the owner and a select few have excellent knowledge. However the "change-the-email" question is about all some are capable of.

    It really depends on the invididual who deals with your request at the specific time.
    Olly | INX-Gaming
    Call of Duty 4 hosting

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
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    New York
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    There's just been a thread about it at http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showth...hreadid=299261

    Make sure to check it out, as it can prevent you from having a pretty bad experience with outsourcing companies.

    Boris
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  4. #4
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    It really does depend on what company you choose.

    When I try to hire people for my outsourcing company I make sure they know what they are talking about. There are tech support who obviosuly do not do much system admin but they can do the basics but there is also always a system admin on hand to fix anything if it arises.

    Outsourcing companies generally give good coverage and response times...

    look at bobcares, tripodsupport. And of course do a search on these forums on any one of them before you go with them.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
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    Cincinnati, OH
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    Although Tris can't say it himself (because it would be self promotion), I will for him.

    www.seeksadmin.com << Great

  6. #6
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    Jun 2004
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    Thanks for all of the responses. The pricing from most of the firms seems very low -- even for offshore companies -- and it causes me to worry about response time and knowledge.

    These comments help.
    Bill Dotson
    http://www.billdotson.com
    Looking for hosts to buy: http://iwantwebhosts.com/

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2001
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    India, US, Germany
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    1,609
    Originally posted by bdotson
    Thanks for all of the responses. The pricing from most of the firms seems very low -- even for offshore companies -- and it causes me to worry about response time and knowledge.

    These comments help.
    Hi!
    I could agree more with you about the prices. However, I have had so many people call us very expensive. That too we have only engineers in our group....

    They say that they can get high school kids for that price there. I generally say that you'll be spoiling the kids life. High School is the time for them to enjoy with friends and study. But then, that is just me and my thoughts.

    Anyway, in outsourcing the first step is to define your needs well. If there is no need to outsource, you must not. Once you have defined your needs, select a group which can meet your requirements. Then work with them as a team closely till they are well settled. Once you have gone through this drill with any company, I'll sure you'll be very happy with the results.

    Have a nice day

    Regards
    Amar
    A student once asked his teacher, "Master, what is enlightenment?"
    The master replied, "When hungry, eat. When tired, sleep. When you need care, come to bobcares....
    https://bobcares.in

  8. #8
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    Well said Amar,

    You have to think about whether your company needs it. It isnt something you should step into lightly

  9. #9
    Join Date
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    The pricing from most of the firms seems very low -- even for offshore companies -- and it causes me to worry about response time and knowledge.

    Recently I was in Singapore addressing BPO and issues related to it. The first and the most important thing is outsourcing can save cost to you but in the process if you have to compromise on quality then it’s not worth it. One has to make sure that you are outsourcing the process and not leaving your business on vendor’s hand. If you are only thinking about the cost then you are looking from the wrong side of the telescope. I understand many a times cost become an issue not because its high but because its I very low and that creates the doubts about the credibility and quality of the service, But before jumping on to conclusion we need to find out why is it low .

    One must remember following things before you outsource.

    1. Identifying Agency Needs
    The first step in the decision-making process is to identify the organizations' needs. These needs lay the framework for projects and activities. Address the strategic interests and goals of the company - The strategic plan, the information sources and the company's performance measures should all be taken into consideration while identifying the company's needs. The goals of the company serve as a basis for determining a project's success. Core competencies, by and large, should not be outsourced. However, this might change if it is found viable that resources or knowledge from an external source could supplement the available in-house resources. Specify the service to be provided and identify the rationale behind the outsourcing. The needs could include cutting costs, enhancing service levels, moving to a different technology platform, increasing technical know-how and skills within the organization.

    2. Selecting the Vendor

    Outsourcing skeptics believe that an outsider cannot provide the same attention as the in-house team. Therefore, a thorough vendor scrutiny becomes vital before assigning critical technical roadmaps and confidential information to him. Understanding the emphasis of a vendor's business, or what it is that drives the vendor, is essential while choosing the appropriate vendor to meet the specific needs. A vendor selection team should be developed that would recognize business areas for the project. The vendor selection team should comprise senior management, legal staff with contract expertise, technical staff, end users and financial staff.

    Following is a vendor selection checklist. The parameters on which the vendor should be assessed have been carefully chosen, and it is advised that before entering into a relationship, the vendor selection checklist must be completed. Further, while taking a decision based on our vendor selection checklist, it is advisable to assign weights to the parameters mentioned. The three most important factors considered while choosing an outsourcing vendor included price, quality and flexibility.

    3. Experiences and Expertise

    As with any procurement process even in an outsourcing initiative the relevant past experience and skill-sets of the prospective vendor should be considered and given due weightage. This will not only ensure that best practices are adopted in the outsourced activity but also high efficiency is likely to be maintained. Besides selecting a vendor with relevant past experience is likely to give the company a further edge in terms of reduction of training time and costs.

    A strong track record and a positive reputation of the vendor are other important criterion, which will ensure that the partnership has been struck with the correct match. This could further be ensured by undertaking a reference check.

    4. In-house facilities to meet the agency’s needs

    It is important that the prospective vendor already has their processes and infrastructure in place to handle the assignments to be outsourced to them. The vendor should be financially sound. Any investment made by the vendor should be towards improving the processes rather than towards architecting them.

    5. HR Issues

    It is imperative to take into account the HR issues that may arise in the vendors’ organization. The type of selection and hiring processes of the vendor can go a long way to ensure the quality of the assignment. Also retaining and training policies are important as these ensure that the quality of the resources improve with time rather than deteriorate. It is desirable that mature employees populate the vendor organization rather than immature ones.

    6. Ability to ramp up

    Most businesses are cyclic in nature and hence there will be slack seasons as well as peak seasons. Hence the vendor organization should have a flexible business model and be in a position to ramp up/reorganise its resources as well as ramp down its resources without any major problems – organizational, legal etc.

    7. Security

    The vendor organization should be able to instill a certain comfort level as far as maintenance of confidentiality regarding the business process, business standards, business data etc is concerned. Hence it is important that well-defined security policies are implementable in the vendor organization and there is a respect for intellectual property within the organization.

    It is most desirable that the vendor organization has a sound and resilient business plan in place. This will ensure that the vendor does not collapse with the loss of a single client or with changes in the business environment.
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  10. #10
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    That is a great guide and howto and I think that even the "vendors" (the oursourcing companies themselves) can learn from what you have written.

  11. #11
    Some firms provides outsourcing managed services have certified staff. My friends worked with MSP (sorry i forget company name), they have CCNP (Cisco certified network professionals). And they generate effective solutions. Price for services wasn't low, but quality was high and they decrease expenses for hardware. I believe high quality need money and my firm ready to pay for really knowing people about $30 - 40 per hour. I can't get qualitative support in US for this money.

  12. #12
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    Bucharest, Romania
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    For example in Romania you could a have a full-time CCNP certified for only $500. And for this money he will work hard.

    Why this sallary? In Bucharest you coul buy a Big Mac Menu for only $3. A taxi will cost you about $2 for a long trip across the city.

    What do you think about that?

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Posts
    43
    Make sure when you outsource your support, that they actually can communicate well with your customers. We all dread the computer support calls to reps we can not understand.
    Jonathan C.

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Aug 2004
    Location
    Bucharest, Romania
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    not the case with ours CSReps. <green>

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