Posts Tagged ‘Business’

Firms set to turn to outsourcing as analysts speculate over double dip recession

February 2nd, 2012

The looming possibility of a double dip recession is likely to see more UK businesses striving to cut costs in 2012.

Figures released by the Office for National Statistics last week suggested the UK could be heading for its first double dip recession since 1975. The British economy shrank by 0.2 per cent during the three months to December and the Bank of England has warned that the private sector is planning job cuts. A country is deemed to be in recession when its output has shrunk for two quarters in a row.

Research published in early January by accountancy firm Deloitte claimed that half of all chief financial officers in the UK see cutting costs as a priority over the next 12 months. The growing prospect of a double dip recession is set to cement this view, with more businesses taking a proactive approach by turning to freelancers and switching to outsourcing now in a bid to reduce overheads.

Chairman of the National Outsourcing Association, Martyn Hart, said recently that as well as the upfront cost savings, outsourcing jobs such as accounting tasks, copywriting and IT projects to specialists allows firms to concentrate on their core business.

He said: “[It is] better to focus on things like customer satisfaction, outmanoeuvring the competition and securing new business. Outsourcing frees up resources to be the best you can be, in the business you are truly in.”

Source:http://www.outsourcemyproject.com/Newsdetail/1/Firms-set-to-turn-to-outsourcing-as-analysts-speculate-over-double-dip-recession/5056/default.html

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Increased business confidence to drive Africa ICT sector

February 2nd, 2012

Increased business confidence, recovering economies, infrastructure investment and enhanced product development will drive Africa IT markets, analysts say.

Analysts from IDC and Africa Analysis are projecting growth in cloud services as bandwidth becomes cheaper and companies seek ways to reduce capital and operational expenditure.

IDC expects IT spending in Middle East, Africa, and Turkey to 10 percent growth in 2012 and virtualization to attain must-have status, as a cornerstone and foundation for future expansion.

“Several medium-sized and large organizations, having proof tested virtualization in 2011 during data center consolidation efforts, will move to more extensive adoption with greater confidence in 2012; desktop, storage, and application virtualization initiatives will gain momentum, particularly within large organizations,” said Jyoti Lalchandani, vice president and managing director of IDC Middle East, Africa, and Turkey. “The emerging African countries of Kenya and Nigeria will also see higher levels of adoption in 2012 as awareness spreads and users begin to realize the benefits.”

In 2010, spending on IT services had slowed down in Africa but the budgets of international companies have once again started rising in outsourcing destinations like South Africa. An IDC study on IT services in South Africa released this month shows the country recorded moderate growth.

“After the freeze in IT budgets that came about as a result of the global economic crisis, 2010 saw a rebound in IT services spending,” said Suzanne Nolan, research analyst for IT Services for IDC South Africa. “The growth in IT services spending was driven by a recovering economy, increased business confidence, expanding bandwidth availability, and various infrastructure investments made in the country in 2010.”

IDC forecasts the total South African IT services market to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 8.7 percent to exceed $17 billion in 2015, with continued spending focus among end-user organizations and solutions that help reduce operating expenses.

Africa’s Business Process Outsourcing sector has stagnated with countries like Kenya unable to crack the global outsourcing market but South Africa has managed to sustain growth through innovative managed services.

“South African growth was mainly driven by managed services rather than by traditional information system outsourcing contracts,” added Nolan. “The healthy growth in outsourcing services signifies a level of sophistication and maturity within the IT services segment.”

In the telecom sector, the decline in tariffs has stopped as operators seek to streamline expenses as opposed to winning more subscribers. Bharti Airtel’s acquisition of Zain network in sub-Saharan Africa heralded the tariff wars two years ago but by late last year, call costs had started rising.

“The era of tariff war is over; operators have begun to streamline operational expenses and the strategy of winning more subscribers through tariff reduction will be terminated in 2012,” said Dobek Pater, senior telecoms analyst at Africa Analysis. “The economies of various countries in Africa are becoming more expensive to run businesses therefore the only way to have profitable revenue is proper product pricing.”

Pater expects enhanced product development, increasing product variety, and “last mile” telecom technology becoming more affordable outside urban areas.

“There will be a lot of focus on delivering quality service to subscribers rather than winning more subscribers especially with the large operators who have coverage in a lot of countries; subscriber retention strategies and loyalty will be the strategy employed for this,” added Pater.

With more operators rolling out their own infrastructure and improving on quality of service, competition is expected to be high in coastal countries that have fiber optic coverage, while connectivity costs in land-locked countries decline further.

Source:http://news.idg.no/cw/art.cfm?id=0B53F93D-E513-0666-EAECC3BEECC9AF33

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Entrepreneurial Tightrope: Outsourcing, interns can be handy

February 1st, 2012

This has been a challenge for small business owners for a long time. Outsourcing and hiring interns can be helpful.

Businesses both large and small have been outsourcing for years. Accounting, bookkeeping, proposal writing, web developing, even letter writing can be outsourced. And don’t overlook Internet help such as virtual assistants. I have found that many can meet most of your clerical needs.

Although outsourcing can save you a lot of time and money you will need plenty of references before contracting with a company. Also, make certain whomever you choose has the capability to do exactly what you want done.

A few years ago I was contracted by the marketing department of a corporation to record two-minute messages aimed at entrepreneurs to air on radio. The corporation hired a small production company to help me pull the program together. I wrote a couple dozen messages and sent copies to this third-party production team for their review before our studio recording date.

Several weeks passed and neither the corporation nor I had heard from the production company. We were beginning to wonder what the holdup was. It turned out that although the company called itself a media production outfit it had never worked with the kind of production that we needed.

So, before you turn your work over to an outside source that you are unfamiliar with, contact people you know to see who they use. This is particularly important for things like accounting, tax preparation, public relations and marketing. These are areas that can incur large expenses, so you better be absolutely certain of the abilities of the people you hire.

Working with interns? That’s less of a challenge. Hiring interns is beneficial to both you and them. They come with fresh ideas and methods that can benefit your company; they are anxious to enter the working world; and usually they are not yet overburdened with the issues of life. You get all of this, and it is cost effective, too.

As for the interns, they get an opportunity to work and perhaps get school credits. And the ultimate benefit for both of you is that both sides get a chance to experience the other. An especially compatible fit could lead to a mutually satisfying, long-term working relationship.

Interns are available in all areas of specialization. The majority of the people I have hired over the years have been interns.

They can come from trade schools as well as colleges and universities. Contact the schools in your area to get in touch with an intern program.

As far as keeping employees is concerned, there is no easy answer. It doesn’t matter if your company is large or small; you will find most people will move on to what they consider an improvement in their lives. Instead of feeling let down by these departures, feel good about having given them a start. This of course is especially true when you are hiring interns.

Source:http://www.usatoday.com/money/smallbusiness/columnist/edmunds/story/2012-01-31/small-business-hiring-help-gladys-edmunds/52908146/1

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Consultant sees more opportunities in outsourcing businesses

January 31st, 2012

The marketing communication business in Nigeria has come a long way over the years in providing services to clients across various segments within the country. The industry has experienced remarkable growth in terms of delivery of quality product and service offerings, owing to the fact that there has been significant improvement in the country’s IT infrastructure.

This infrastructural development has aided the growth of the segment, currently estimated at N1 billion annually. In terms of losses, the marketing communication business has not incurred much loss rather; they have gained immensely from increased pricing on their products and services.

Their most prominent customer segments include the telecommunications companies who spend on average, over N30 billion annually on marketing. Marketing communication did experience some decline in its use by the financial services industry due to the need for banks to manage costs after the CBN led industry reforms.

Effect of removal of fuel subsidy on consulting industry
Concerns have been raised by various members of the larger society that the removal of fuel subsidy will have a negative effect on businesses across the country in the near term, but it is expected to ease up in the medium and long term. Although, businesses will be forced to better prioritise their expenses, a number of consulting firms that are well positioned for this economic period will do very well.

Based on the projections that the economy will be tight, we envision that a number of consulting firms will make reasonable gains in outsourcing businesses. For example, some clients would prefer to outsource certain technical functions such as HR and accounting to professional services firms as long as it makes financial sense.

However, consulting firms that do not have strong value propositions will struggle. Given that clients will be extremely cost conscious and in search for ‘real value for money,’ consulting firms that have typically thrived without differentiated and high impact solutions would not be approached for their services.

How consulting firms coped in 2011
The consulting companies that coped last year did so based on strong client relationship management: Some consulting firms have been able to build strong client base and relationships over the years, and have been able to leverage retainerships with these firms.

Secondly, a good understanding of the Nigerian market: The ability to navigate inherent bureaucracies within the market is also an advantage that made it easy for these companies to cope, and thirdly, staff strength and expertise: The quality of output of consulting firms has helped them gain the trust of their clients.

Addressing of delayed payment

Non-payment of fees by clients is one of the biggest challenges faced by business owners within the services sector. This problem is alarming as the consulting industry incurred losses of over N600 million last year.Some of the typical practices for ensuring that clients pay include signing of legal agreements and memoranda of understanding before the project commences. Now, firms are more creative in how payment terms are structured, for instance, some consulting firms collect a substantial part of their fee at the point of commissioning the projects and ensure that the client makes the final payment before the end product is delivered. Everybody wants to be a consultant.

In Nigeria today, there is room for individuals to work in whatever field of endeavour they choose. That said, the consulting space is not for people who do not have strong problem-solving and analytical skills. The consulting industry typically demands a high level of professionalism that cannot be mimicked. As the saying goes – “water will always find its level.”
Incompetent consultants often find themselves out of the industry in a matter of months, because the poor quality of their work is not tolerated by clients and supervisors in the firm.

Threat consulting poses to internal workforce
I think that this is a myth – that when a consulting firm is hired to do a job, that some employees of the client will be fired. To be frank, I do not know where this idea originated from, but we do notice it when we do work for different clients. Most times, we allay employees’ fears by informing them about the scope of work and our approach.

In projects that require that we look at improving employee productivity, we often use methodologies that promote right-sizing rather than downsizing i.e. moving employees to job functions that are appropriate and match their personalities and skill sets.

Economic outlook for 2012
It is expected that the economy will continue to grow at its current rate of 7 percent, with agriculture retaining its position as the dominant contributor to GDP. The agricultural sub-sector currently contributes about 46 percent of the GDP and is likely to increase its contribution this year through President Jonathan’s transformation agenda.

Based on some of the policies and developmental initiatives that will be undertaken this year under the President’s transformation agenda, it is expected that remarkable growth will be experienced in other sectors of the economy, especially the manufacturing sub-sector.

In the recently enacted Subsidy Reinvestment programme, plans are being made to increase the level of the nation’s productivity with huge investments in infrastructural development that will aid industrialisation.

Source:http://www.businessdayonline.com/NG/index.php/advertising/32406-consultant-sees-more-opportunities-in-outsourcing-businesses

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A ‘quiet revolution’ has taken place in business IT

January 31st, 2012

Businesses across the UK are benefiting from a “quiet revolution” that has taken place in the management of their IT infrastructure over recent years through the introduction of more open source coding.

Dr Mark Thompson of the Cambridge Judge Business School noted in his latest podcast that this has resulted in firms being able to package business IT functions into independent commodities that can then be easily outsourced to professional contractors.

He commented: “The reason it is revolutionary is that if I can chop up an HR function, a finance function, rather than outsourcing the whole lot what I can do is distinguish between the utility and the commodity elements of that function, the more regular process parts of it, from the riskier parts of it.”

Mr Thompson added that process-heavy systems can be split into smaller parts to be managed by separate organisations, giving firms a greater freedom to innovate as they are less involved with managing their own IT requirements.

Furthermore, open source solutions mean organisations have a greater ability to innovate, as they are more easily able to implement changes to coding to produce more streamlined systems, thereby reducing costs and the necessity to employ large in-house teams of IT professionals.

His comments follow those of Phil Wainewright, vice president at EuroCloud, who recently claimed the uptake of cloud computing in business circles has been extremely beneficial in manner cases, as this has enabled companies to embrace the applications route of data management, as it offers connectivity and reliability for all members of staff no matter where they are.

“The customer can get straight on and concentrate on achieving business results with the technology, rather than having to go through all the palaver of implementation and getting everything ready,” he argued.

Source:http://www.taylorvinters.com/news/quiet-revolution-has-taken-place-business-it/4695

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Business IT is ‘going through a revolution’

January 28th, 2012

Business IT is ‘going through a revolution’Business IT is going through a quiet revolution, with integrated business logic moving towards open source.

This is according to Dr Mark Thompson of the Cambridge Judge Business School, who predicted a future of government IT and any “process-heavy” businesses to be much more integrated, where IT managers can “chop up” pieces of business logic.

“If I can chop up an HR function, a finance function, rather than outsourcing the whole lot what I can do is distinguish between the utility and the commodity elements of that function, the more regular process parts of it, from the riskier parts of it,” he explained.

“That has enormous commercial implication.”

Mr Thompson, a former senior adviser on the adoption of open standards in government IT to UK Shadow Cabinet under George Osborne, is now advising the Cabinet on developing an educational programme for senior policymakers in IT.

This week a Public Administration Select Committee reported that the government is making progress with its IT strategy, but it criticised a lack of competition between suppliers over IT contracts.
womenintechnology has a dedicated careers advice service for women, graduates and experienced professional looking for technology and IT jobs.

Source:http://www.womenintechnology.co.uk/news/business-it-is-going-through-a-revolution–news-801276526

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Xerox India to focus on services business

January 24th, 2012

The managed print services (MPS) market is increasingly growing. As per Photizo Group, the leading research and transformation firm for the MPS market, with a 27 percent year-on-year growth in 2010 revenue, the MPS market indicates a 20 percent CAGR (2010-15) and is forecast to top USD 78 billion in 2015. The research also listed India as the fastest growing country for MPS. This report shows that there is a huge opportunity for MPS vendors in India such as Xerox India.

Xerox India is not only focusing on MPS but on its entire services portfolio, which includes Communications and Marketing Services (CMS) and Document Transaction Processing Services (DTPS). Sectors like BFSI, telecom, retail, consumer goods and IT/ITES look very promising to Xerox India to accelerate its services business.

Xerox India claims to be the only player in the market that has the capability of streamlining the entire value chain for its customers. The company feels that it is well-positioned to participate and gain the leading share of the services growth market in India. Vishal Awal, Executive Director – Services, Xerox South Asia says, “There is an immediate need of MPS in the Indian market and the next logical step is print-related jobs that are outsourced. We have in-house end-to-end capabilities to transform and optimize business process and document management value chain. This is a key differentiator that Xerox brings to large enterprises in India. While several players offer compartmentalized solutions in these domains, the capability of streamlining the entire value chain is something that is unique to Xerox.”

Xerox India is looking at ways to expand their services business. The company has formed an alliance with Cisco, to provide its customers cloud-based services and solutions combining network intelligence and print. The two companies hope to use this partnership to improve efficiency for the workforce with solutions such as mobile printing.

To further increase its capabilities and asset base for offering differentiated services in the services space, the company is not just looking at partnerships but also acquisitions. For instance, in 2010 the company acquired Affiliated Computer Services (ACS). Through ACS, Xerox integrates MPS into the IT infrastructure to help businesses convert paper into digital, simplifying and speeding up workflows in ways that save time and money.

“For more than half a century, Xerox has been providing document technology and services. Through our acquisition of ACS, we are now in business process and IT outsourcing, offering global services from claims reimbursement, electronic health records, and automated toll transaction to customer care centers and HR benefits management. The acquisition also added BPO and IT outsourcing capabilities to our expertise,” elaborates Awal.

As a part of its market strategy for 2012, Xerox India has a two-pronged approach. It will continue to strengthen and accelerate its services business with focus on the fast growing verticals like BFSI and telecom. The company will also focus on the simplification of print infrastructure, robust security features and productivity enhancement technologies like mobile and cloud printing.

Source:http://informationweek.in/Services/12-01-23/Xerox_India_to_focus_on_services_business.aspx

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