Outsourcing trends from 2019 that are here to stay

With the end of the year in sight, it’s a good time to consider which emerging outsourcing practices had, and will most likely continue to have, the most impact for both suppliers and customers. Here are our top-5 picks for trends to look out for:

New Relationship Dynamics 

Given the growing demand for fine-tuned skill sets, out staffing companies that focus on specialized skills and are quality-service driven find themselves well-positioned to take on partnership roles. No longer limited to simple vendor roles, suppliers can seek to develop new relationship dynamics, positioning themselves as trustworthy providers with a deeper involvement beyond none-core activities.

Given that these are developing dynamics, one can expect new forms of business complexities, yet it also points towards a growing acceptance of outsourcing practices and the ability for these to build a more collaborative, albeit competitive, business model.

Cybersecurity: An Essential Component 

In the past years, the issue of data security has risen to the forefront of all business concerns. As public awareness on the subject is magnified, solid cybersecurity measures are becoming a basic user expectation.

Data sets require full-encryption, and cybersecurity providers need to meet the quality demands of compliance standards and to combat the risk of cybercriminals.

The most innovative IT companies are implementing multi-level security tactics, which have seen a rise in the outsourcing of security work this past year and will no doubt continue to grow.

Looking beyond security suppliers, all tech-based providers should consider including employee security awareness training, since this is found to be the most effective measure to combat cybersecurity incidents.

Seeking Cloud Solutions

The importance of air-tight security measures is even more significant as we consider the growing demand for cloud computing to manage ever-growing traffic flows. Security measures will be an essential component for companies that provide cloud platform services.

The Role of AI

The development of Robotic Process Automation technologies is bringing us ever closer to the artificial intelligence take-over of menial tasks. While this does jeopardize several human-manned jobs, there is a general agreement that AI abilities do not extend to cognitive-based tasks. While AI is ideal for high-volume tasks such as data entry, human intervention will still be required for more complex analysis. Tech-based workers will therefore need to adapt to this new relationship with automation. BPO companies can either shift their focus to creative jobs that AI can’t handle, or they can seek ways to assume a symbiotic role alongside automation.

Quality over Cost

In a move that seems to follow an obvious progression but at the same time is transformative in that it defies the primary cost-cutting motivation behind outsourcing, trend-spotters have noted a growing demand for specification over generalization. The quest for the magic combination of high quality and low cost will no doubt lead companies to seek new suppliers in unlikely places. OSI is in El Salvador, Central America where we have found talented and highly qualified people that have allowed us to provide outsourcing services through our nine years of operation.