Getting to grips with outsourcing

Robert Gerrish

Not every small business wants, or indeed needs, to employ staff. For an increasing number of businesses, outsourcing to contractors is the way to go.

If you’re not sure if it’s for you, these little challenges may help:

1. Get out of the ‘nobody-does-it-like-me’ mindset

We've all been there and we've been right now and again. But things have to change if our business is going to grow.
 

Think of it as an automatic garden sprinkler. Do you want to walk round with a hose all day or sit down and enjoy the garden? 
 

2. Remind yourself why you started

Somewhere buried under all that paperwork hides a dream, a compelling reason to start your business. Remember what it was?
 

Chances are it was a great idea, maybe you didn't foresee the reality of running a business. Outsourcing won't make everything magically perfect, but by clearing some space you'll get added clarity.
 

3. Carry out a time and motion study

On a sheet of paper, keep a log of where you spend your time, what you're doing, how long it takes.
 

Draw up a timesheet that breaks hours into quarters and fill it in every day for a week. The reason we break it into quarters is that it's easy to forget the odd distraction and it's often these that gobble up time.
 

At the end of a week, break the actions down under headings that capture all areas of your business.
For example:

• Basic phone answering
• Preparing and dispatching quotations
• Responding to emails
• Chasing up suppliers
• Invoicing

Now go back though your timesheet and group tasks together.
 

The next step is to look at what you've discovered and imagine spending most of your time doing what you do best and what your business most needs.
 

Let's say your main skill is selling. What benefit would you create for your business if you had more time to sell? What value would you put on this extra time? This will help you budget when you come to outsource.
 

4.  Think laterally, think virtually, be creative

It can be useful to look at large corporations for inspiration when outsourcing. Call centres increasingly use operators from countries with lower labour rates; staff often work remotely from rural areas.
What about a bookkeeper that lives somewhere with lower overheads, or an admin support who can prepare documents and email them overnight?
Open your mind to new opportunities; don't be afraid to trial ideas.

5. Don't delegate that which you don't understand

Let's be honest, we'd love to rid ourselves of stuff we don't understand. That's not delegating, it's abdicating responsibility.
You don't have to know everything, just enough to judge whether what's being done for you is being done well.

6. Compile 'roles and responsibilities'

As you build a picture of tasks that have the potential to be outsourced, open a file and jot down every action related to that task. In time you'll develop a list that will become the 'roles and responsibilities' of the person assigned to that task.
 

This will assist you in compiling a job ad, recognising the characteristics of the person you require and will serve as a performance measure.
 

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More advice

• Read more practical advice on hiring, firing & managing.

 

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  As this advice has been prepared without considering your objectives, financial situation or needs, you should, before acting on the advice, consider its appropriateness to your circumstances. All products mentioned on this web page are issued by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia; view our Financial Services Guide (PDF 59kb).