Business Process Outsourcing (BPO)

BPO is the act of transferring some of an organization's repeated non-core and core business processes to an outside provider to achieve cost reductions while improving service quality. Because the processes are repeated and a long-term contract is used, outsourcing goes far beyond the use of consultants. If done well, BPO results in increasing shareholder value. The main difference between BPO and more traditional IT outsourcing is that BPO offers companies a way of achieving transformational outcomes much more quickly.

Effective BPO encompasses much more than just changing who is responsible for performing the process. In BPO, the outside provider not only takes on the responsibility to manage the function or business process, but also re-engineers the way the process has been traditionally done. The next generation of Business Process Outsourcing has emerged as a priority for businesses looking to better options in managing their application portfolios.

Outsourcing has moved from a niche technology management tool to a mainstream strategic weapon. Business Process Outsourcing leverages process driven efficiencies in terms of organizational excellence, responsiveness & branding, financial efficiency and customer relationship. BPO is emerging as a powerful and flexible approach that business leaders can use to achieve a wide range of tactical and strategic aims.

The most common business process that gets outsourced is call centers. Call centers and Help Desks of many multi national and fortune 500 companies are being outsourced to low waged, English speaking countries such as Philippines and India. Countries like India with vast IT human resources are also attracting outsourcing from American IT/Technology companies to outsource their IT Help Desks.