What Is Co-Sourcing And Do You Need It?

If your company needs to access skilled specialists quickly and for short durations, co-sourcing in the Philippines might be a viable solution. This is one of the services provided by Outsourced, but we also provide a range of other similar services to companies in the Philippines. These include staff or employee leasing, managed operations and offshore outsourcing. Since these are all very similar, a few definitions are in order.

What is co-sourcing in the Philippines?

Co-sourcing in the Philippines is a type of outsourcing where the employees are under the direct control of your company. They operate within your boundaries and standards, work as a team with your in-house staff, and gain a unique understanding of your business. This knowledge base is brought to each short term project and can be leveraged by your in-house staff. Co-sourcing fosters employee engagement and ownership, and co-sourced employees often become a valuable extension of your in-house expertise.

Teamwork between outsourced and in-house staff help businesses lower their overall costs, whilst still maintaining control of their client relationships. It’s based more on the essence of a partnership than a contractual relationship, as the outsourced experts assume a shared responsibility for the deliverables. Co-sourcing in the Philippines works well for companies that take advantage of cloud based technology,  but do not have the financial resources to set up a specialised in-house team.

What are managed operations?

Managed operations is another way to describe employees who are outsourced, but it also has a specific meaning. When you invest in managed operations in the Philippines, essentially you outsource the creation and management of an overseas or remotely located division to an outsourced employee. This employee is an expert in establishing and managing remote divisions in different time zones. They effectively handle all IT recruitment and HR services, while the client headquarters handles overall quality and productivity.

It’s a viable way to extend your operations and explore opportunities overseas whilst not investing a significant amount of money in infrastructure, employee recruitment, onboarding and all the associated costs of operating in a foreign country. Managed operations are useful for companies that want to expand their operations, but don’t want to set up a foreign based division run by in-house employees in another country.

What is staff or employee leasing?

Employee leasing is subtly different to co-sourcing in that the staff leasing company, such as Outsourced, actually employs the outsourced staff, paying their wages and taxes, and providing all the infrastructure needed to complete their work. Employees can address any concerns to both the provider and the client company (with co-sourcing they address the client company and with outsourcing they address the provider company), however you retain control over their work. Employee leasing is ideal for startups that don’t have a large financial base, but still need to hire admin staff or experts to grow and expand their business.

What is offshore outsourcing?

Offshore outsourcing is where the client company hires employees through a staff leasing company, such as Outsourced, to perform work in another country. It’s mainly used to relocate specific processes overseas to lower their labour costs (rather than open a new division in a foreign country), but it can also be used to access skilled workers in other countries.

To find out how Outsourced can help streamline your business using co-sourcing in the Philippines or any of the other models outlined above, call Outsourced on +61 2 8484 0400 or send us an enquiry today.