US firms satisfied by initiatives: Study

It also discovered that outsourcing delivered significant benefits to pioneers as well as newcomers last year and the companies were able to improve their quality while cutting costs.

‘‘Despite protectionist backlash in the US and Europe, the offshoring wave has turned into a tsunami — an inevitable outcome of globalization and economic integration,’’ said Suresh Gupta, managing partner, the Paaras Group. ‘‘In fact, the leaders in offshoring are no longer focussed solely on offshore opportunities. They have graduated to a broader model of ‘global’ or ‘smart’ sourcing, which combines multi-location, multi-vendor and both in-house as well as outsourced solutions for it and business processing,’’ Gupta said.

As many as 89 per cent of companies moving it, business processes and contact centre work offshore reported that they are satisfied with their initiatives. They identified knowledge transfer (76 per cent) and internal commitment (76 per cent) as the major challenges in launching offshore initiatives. These issues, they said, need to be addressed early on to ensure success.

About 94 per cent companies cited cost savings as their main goal in moving operations offshore. As many 63 per cent identified accessing skilled resources and 51 per cent improving quality among their reasons.

Most of the companies surveyed (85 per cent) believe that the establishment of a programme management office (PMO) provides the foundation for outsourcing success, with two-thirds (67 per cent) stressing the importance of proactive communications programmes. ‘‘Our findings confirm the North American business community’s growing commitment to offshoring, with most of the companies we interviewed planning to step up their level of activity,’’ Lilach Nachum, associate professor of international business at Baruch College, said. As this trend continues companies will be in a much stronger position to focus on and invest in new growth opportunities, he said, adding ‘‘We expect to see more jobs created that call for a higher level of skills and innovative capabilities as a result.’’ (PTI)