It can seem daunting to choose the business partner you will trust with your customers and your business. Making the wrong choice can be catastrophic for your business and your brand. At M&G Solutions, we have helped countless organizations pick the right outsourcing partner. Here are some topics that you should be considering when selecting the right partner for you:
DATA PROTECTION
Data protection continues to be a big area of focus in the industry. We shared a whitepaper co-authored by our Partner, Colene McNinch, CRCP, CCCP, on Data Custody, Security and Privacy in the ARM industry that breaks down some of the information you should understand about Data Security. You need to be aware of these challenges and understand how your partner is prepared to resolve them. It would be best to ask what steps they will be taking to protect your data and your customer’s privacy. You must ask these questions to determine if your potential partner is a safe space for you and your customers.
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Your customers are critical to your business and handing the reins to another company can be scary. You should know how your prospective outsourcing partner manages customer satisfaction to ensure that your customers are treated with the care and precision you provide. Ask your prospective vendor about Customer Satisfaction Surveys (CSAT) and their current scores for similar clients. It would help if you also learned about their complaint management system, how quickly they are resolved, and whether you will be made aware of complaints that arise. Also, their resolution rates – does your customer need to contact them five times before an issue is resolved? Knowing how the prospective supplier will help your customers will help to ensure that they are culturally aligned with your business.
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
Not all outsourcers are built the same; you want to make sure that the partner you choose has worked in your industry or similar industries. A company that has worked in a comparable or same sector will be able to share best practices and industry trends.
Another area of expertise you should consider is what experience they have in solving your particular pain points. If you are a start-up, does this outsourcer have experience building new outsourcing infrastructure for their clients? If you have issues with your customer satisfaction, do they have experience with CSAT and improving this metric? You want to make sure that you are working with the partner who will help you reach your goals, so they must have experience meeting the same goals.
BUSINESS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT
Once you are sure that your chosen partner has experience in your industry or resolving your particular pain points, you must find out how they will implement best practices or any other learnings to help your business succeed. Do you plan on letting them make changes to your program without needing approval? Or will they be meeting with you consistently to identify opportunities and discuss/implement changes? You must know how the information will flow between them, subject matter experts, and you, the expert on your business.
At M&G Solutions, we not only have experience from the outsourcing or vendor side of the business. We have also been where you are, in the uncertain world of trying to choose from the hundreds of outsourcing companies available. We can help you plan your outsourcing strategy and help you to build a procurement process that will ask the right questions and get you the right partner. Reach out to us today and see how we can help you make the right choices for your business.