When it comes to expanding your call center operation, you have several alternatives, from growing your current operation or opening a new center to utilizing a BPO, or outsourcing call center services.
To determine what is best for your business it is important to identify what aspects you should evaluate in each alternative according to your goals, needs, and resources.
This article will help you make an informed decision by providing five things to consider when evaluating if nearshore outsourcing or an in-house expansion is the way to go. We review the implications in cost, management control, recruitment, confidentiality, and expertise. If these aspects are important to you, keep reading!
5 Key Factors to Consider to Choose Between In-House or Nearshore Outsourcing
Cost
One of the principal reasons companies decide to hire outsourced call center services is the cost. Nearshore call center solutions offer significant cost-saving opportunities compared to an in-house expansion. Salaries, employee benefits, equipment and resources, facilities, and licenses have higher costs in the U.S. compared with most of the Nearshore locations in Latin America. This cost opportunity allows nearshore companies to offer the same quality of infrastructure and workforce at a lower price.
With this in mind, the cost of an in-house team is more expensive. You need to pay competitive salaries, benefits, bonuses, etc. You need to consider the cost of recruiting, training, and retaining the team. And, if you require a significant expansion, you might need to pay for the buildup of the space and equipment, which is a bigger investment of time and money.
Another key factor that sometimes is ignored is the cost of opportunity that, in simple words, is the potential benefit you lose from choosing one investment over the other. When analyzing the cost of your expansion decision, consider additional investment opportunities within your business that might bring a better profit.
Management Control
In-house is the winner when it comes to management control. Nothing can compare to having your personnel who respond directly to your lead and instructions. You can make changes to processes and procedures as needed and act on the go if any issue arises.
With outsourcing, you still have control of your team, but it’s not as quick and easy as with in-house. You may need to go through stipulated processes by your nearshore partner company to implement new protocols, training, etc.
Additionally, if you don't have the proper tools and communication with your outsourcing team, you might even lose track of how your call center agents are performing.
For this reason, if you are willing to outsource your contact center, you must find a company aligned with your corporate values that can have excellent and fluent communication, allow you to see the performance in real-time, and have management control over the operation.
Fortunately, one of the main nearshore advantages compared to offshore call centers is that you can have faster and more effective communication and control thanks to the proximity between operations and the time zone alignment.
Recruitment Capability
When hiring an in-house call center agent team, even though you have more control because your company is directly selecting the people for the positions that, based on your experience, are the best for your team, the reality is that it is also costly and time-consuming.
The increasing competition for a qualified call center workforce makes it harder to reach the expected number of applicants to fill the job openings. This can delay the project or keep your call center understaffed for a period.
In this case, Nearshore outsourcing companies can be the right solution. Established outsourcing call center providers have recruitment and selection teams dedicated to attracting and hiring candidates specifically for contact centers. They have the expertise, use more recruitment channels and larger advertising budgets to provide the required agent capacity for their clients.
Confidentiality & Information Security
It makes sense to prefer having an in-house team if your call center manages sensible information about your company or customers. Credit card information, key contacts, passwords, or medical records are things you want to keep within a secure environment with the personnel you can trust.
For this, if you are willing to establish a nearshore call center that will manage confidential information, like a debt collection center that will get payments, for example, you must be able to trust the company.
How do you identify it is a trustful partner? Check if the company has security certifications and is compliant with industry standards, like SOC or ISO certifications and HIPAA & PCI Compliance.
Ask your nearshore call center provider candidates what practices and certifications they have to maintain security information for the clients. You can include questions related to this topic in an RFP, and you can even request to talk with some of their current clients to know if they have had any issues with the company regarding these matters.
Expertise
Transmitting your culture and tone of voice in every customer interaction is vital for an outstanding customer experience, and nobody understands your company better than you do, including the specifics of your processes and the knowledge gathered through your years of experience.
But, on the other hand, a nearshore outsourcing company might have more experience in call center processes and customer satisfaction best practices thanks to their experience working with companies like yours, which can add value and insights to your operation. Also, they can offer you an experienced workforce that can improve your overall performance.
If you hire a nearshore call center services company, you need to get involved in the implementation and training, have constant communication with the team, and even do regular visits to let them understand your company in depth.
We hope this information help you better understand all the implications and benefits of each alternative. Either option is better than the other; it will depend on your goals and priorities. It is essential to analyze each aspect involved in this decision carefully.
For example, if cost and recruitment are not an issue for you but information security and management control are, maybe expanding your contact center in-house is a better option. On the other hand, if you are struggling to meet the required agent capacity to achieve your performance and servicing levels and you could benefit from cost savings, consider Nearshore!
At Call Center Services International, our core business is to help you establish a high-performance yet cost-effective nearshore Contact Center in Mexico. Our agents are fully bilingual, bi-cultural, well-educated, and have expertise in a wide array of business functions. Contact us to see if this is the right solution for your business.