Negotiating a Successful Outsourcing Arrangement

Cutting costs, streamlining services and improvements to supply chain management are just a few of the major benefits that outsourcing can bring to your firm.

But as companies such as Boeing, Sainsbury’s and Lloyds TSB can testify, without a clear strategy in place that ensures key risks are successfully identified and managed, your project can swiftly unravel and lead to a massive drain on resources.

Ark Group’s report on Negotiating and Managing a Successful Outsourcing Arrangement provides a best-practice framework to ensure you secure the best possible engagement with an outsourcing partner.

Key questions and risk issues you should be aware of at each vital stage of your agreement are highlighted, from selecting an appropriate vendor to the preparation of a sound service level agreement and the negotiation and management of the final contract.

You will also find invaluable tips and advice on how manage the associated risks, develop solid and reliable supplier/client relationships and secure maximum return on your outsourcing investment.

Key topics covered include:

• Recent and future outsourcing trends;
• Why expectations are the key to outsourcing success;
• How the outsourcing process unfolds (based on a five-phase model);
• The economics behind outsourcing;
• The key risks associated with outsourcing, and how these can be managed;
• How to craft, and negotiate, an effective service level agreement (SLA);
• Legal/contracting issues to watch out for;
• The challenges of new forms of outsourcing – including offshore outsourcing;
• Risk/reward contracts, and outsourcing to the cloud; and
• How to successfully manage the ongoing outsourcing arrangement.