Business process outsourcing is an industry that has been thriving even before it was officially recognized as a component for growing businesses. Prior to its current fame, BPO services company were not yet as in-demand as they are today.
Outsourcing was eyed by many entrepreneurs as an instrument for recovering and leveraging their business following the onset of the Industrial Revolution. Their desire to increase global competency led them to assess specific areas in their operations, production, and marketing strategies where they were lacking.
After identifying these shortcomings, it was then that they discovered the opportunity to reassign these inadequacies to workers based in other countries. By doing so, they successfully expanded their business to an international audience while successfully obtaining the perfect balance between efficient management and a stable workforce. More importantly, partnering with an outsourcing vendor enabled business owners to limit costs.
Now, BPO services continue to adjust to the changing needs of their clients and partners. Are you curious to know about the latest BPO industry trends 2021? Read on to find out!
Top Business Process Outsourcing Trends to Dominate in 2021
Despite the destructive aftermath of the recent pandemic, most companies still have high hopes and expectations from the outsourcing sector. It is understandable since delegating operations to an external team is one way that business owners can save more money and regulate their gains and losses.
- Remote working is normalized
If there is one positive outcome brought by COVID-19, it would have to be the more open mindset of businesses towards a remote work setup. Before 2020, remote work was often looked down upon by most companies for fear of inefficiency and reduced work performance. They failed to realize that home based work opportunities would benefit several job seekers who possess a broad range of skills and competency.
As companies worldwide were forced to adapt to the pandemic’s strong push towards work-from-home settings, they were also introduced to the pros that came with it. Some of these perks include reduced utility costs in their offices, flexible work hours, and a hassle-free way to set up meetings, particularly for their offshore staff.
- Diversified skills will be available
Call center services and manufacturing were the most typically outsourced skills. However, as more and more BPO companies were established, it also helped unlock more job opportunities. With the increasing need for more jobs came the exploration of the most in-demand skills and proficiency of the global market. Businesses looking to outsource should expect a broader selection for higher-tiered professional experience, such as digital marketing, web design and app development, programming, and equity research.
Consequently, companies can outsource additional personnel on a per project basis, thereby allowing them to leverage expenses and only employ more technical skills as needed.
- BPO market trends raise the stakes for BPO Companies
The more companies and corporations seek more advanced skills, the more BPO companies will strive to meet their operational needs. Particularly, outsourcing services based in Asian countries like the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and India will readjust their focus on making their services more diverse. The Philippines is known for its high literacy rate, but competing countries like Malaysia and India may outnumber the former in terms of access to innovative technology and training courses as well as a higher population of people to fill in the job.
Also, other countries may open their doors to establishing an outsourcing company of their own.
- Digital marketing expertise
Aside from opening doors to remote work setup, another notable BPO trends 2021 that redefined the importance of outsourcing is digital marketing. Businesses were also made to realize its weight as a safety net for diminished visits to their physical stores. With digital marketing gurus they can depend on to work remotely and flexibly, they found ways to stay relevant and show their target customer that they are still open for business. This has been especially true after the recent pandemic limited the number of operating hours for businesses along with the number of people who could visit their shop on a daily basis. Skills and background in marketing businesses online, whether through social media, search engine optimization, PPC, or copywriting are predicted to increase in demand for the year 2021.
- Trust and transparency
While not exactly considered as a concrete example of the emerging trends in BPO industry, the growing demand for transparency and trustworthy service is inevitable in outsourcing. After all, business owners want to make the most of their investments. They want assurance that they are employing the finest team available to augment their existing workforce. There is also the issue of scammers lurking online, making it hard for those new to the industry to give it their full confidence and confidence.
Meanwhile, outsourcing service providers should also work on building their credibility and explaining to target clients why they would be a viable choice as a useful and additional resource. This can be done through creating blogs that showcase their level of expertise and experience in the field, providing consistent outputs for each project, meeting client deadlines and expectations, and working towards maintaining a spotless reputation online. They can also have previous clients provide reviews or testimonials about their experience working with the company.
- AI solutions may outbalance job security
Indeed, enterprises and companies are also becoming smarter and more practical with where they allocate their operational funds and resources. For instance, they would deem it an expense to employ a remote team for Tier 1 tasks such as data entry, data and calendar management, and booking travel destinations. Looking at it more closely, it does help business owners save more money if they incorporate automation to handle all of these routine responsibilities. If the dependence for bots increases, it can threaten the stability of several BPO companies. To counter this, there must be a balance between human-powered and AI-run capabilities. It would also help if outsourcing providers delegate their time and energy in developing their own remote work software while also offering clients and partners the capacity to complete more advanced roles and skills.
- Political influences and limitations
The Trump administration left a whirlwind of changes in the entire outsourcing market as a whole. Following his policies that were more focused on prioritizing American or US-based services and goods, BPO companies in almost every Asian country had to resort to finding bigger partners and potential clients elsewhere.
In the same manner, drastic decisions of political leaders in countries where outsourcing firms are generating the most revenue could affect diplomatic relations between several business owners from both sides of the coin. If a potential business partner deems it too risky (investment and security-wise) to strike a deal with an outsourcing brand, the chances are they will seek an alternative company to work with where the risks can be minimized.
Conclusion
For startups and SMEs unsure of which company to outsource to, the key is to find one with commendable years of experience in the field. New Media Services is an excellent example that fits this description. They first started their operations in 2008 and from there, they continued to grow, expand, and amend their services to provide the best possible assistance for simple to complex business demands. Some of their services include Customer Support for call, email, and live chat, content moderation, and TIRO (an AI-powered conversational solution).
The BPO outsourcing trends enumerated in this article is a symbol of how resilience is a prevailing factor in most countries and industries. Surely, the COVID-19 health crisis has crippled the global economy, but that did not stop people from finding other means to pull themselves out of the rubble and start anew. Furthermore, these trends will also serve as the benchmark for how upcoming new brands will gear themselves to outsmart established competitors and prepare for unforeseen worldwide disasters that may come in the future.
