By: International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP)
Recently, IAOP has seen a significant increase in understanding, and exploiting, the innovation aspects of outsourcing. We have seen an increased number of white papers (available through Firmbuilder.com®), as well as presentations at The Outsourcing World Summit, stating that the innovation and service providers’ ability to renew and refresh process output are important to their business decisions. We have also seen contracts indicating the buyer’s preference for trading certain savings against a commitment to innovate and reengineer processes. Discussions at Chapter meetings have confirmed that offshoring decisions are greatly impacted by the ability to provide future innovation. Cost savings remains a driver but innovation may be of equal importance.
We also believe that as world competition increases, there will be a greater emphasis placed on creating a buyer-provider relationship that improves not only short term benefits but also creates new opportunities for both through innovation. Research and development projects, experimental process improvements, and insertion of new technology will become commonplace, and will drive changes in the outsourcing framework.
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