Outsourcing - Best Practice Tips from the Ottawa Manufacturers' Network: 4 Steps for a Successful Relationship

Best Practice Tips

Best Practice Tips from the Ottawa Manufacturers' Network

4 Steps for a Successful Relationship

By Damian Hanel, principal at Sunstrum Hanel & Associates, Roy Sunstrum, principal at Sunstrum Hanel & Associates

Many companies quickly conclude that an outsourcing strategy, be it manufacturing, product development, customer support, even the sales channel, makes sense for them. Even if the strategy is sound, there are risks: selecting the wrong partner can lead to higher costs, reduced quality, and other significant business detriments including intellectual property leakage.

A disciplined approach to selecting and establishing a relationship with the right partner mitigates these risks. Four steps make up this process:

Develop the relationship specification ... your selection criteria

Evaluate candidate providers against the criteria and select the best one

Design the relationship structure (including clear definitions of scope, service level metrics tied to business objectives, and effective agreement)

Manage the relationship on an on-going basis through formal and informal business reviews and information exchange

Lack of attention to any step in this process increases risk and often leads to inferior results.

The writers are principals at Sunstrum Hanel & Associates, a consulting firm in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada that helps companies develop and deliver better products by improving their business processes in the areas of manufacturing outsourcing, supply chain de-risking, and quality and reliability management. www.sunstrumhanel.com.

Publish Date: March 2004

Table of Contents Order-to-Cash Outsourcing Helps Manufacturers Reduce Costs and Capital Two-Pronged Strategy for IT Infrastructure: How Compuware's Outsourcing Services Enable Lear's Business Outsourcing Picks Up Speed in the Consumer Package Industry Why Outsourcing is Hot in the Manufacturing Sector Ask the Experts: Manufacturing Best Practice Tips from the Ottawa Manufacturers' Network Offshoring is Only the First Wave of a Major Change in Business as Usual Reduce Costs and Improve Performance -- Simultaneously The Impending Information Technology Refresh: Navigating through Change and Mnaximizing ROI How to Make Full-Service HRO Work for You Managing Your Customer Relationships with Business Process Outsourcing	Best Practice Tips Best Practice Tips from the Ottawa Manufacturers' Network 4 Steps for a Successful Relationship By Damian Hanel, principal at Sunstrum Hanel & Associates, Roy Sunstrum, principal at Sunstrum Hanel & Associates Many companies quickly conclude that an outsourcing strategy, be it manufacturing, product development, customer support, even the sales channel, makes sense for them. Even if the strategy is sound, there are risks: selecting the wrong partner can lead to higher costs, reduced quality, and other significant business detriments including intellectual property leakage. A disciplined approach to selecting and establishing a relationship with the right partner mitigates these risks. Four steps make up this process: Develop the relationship specification ... your selection criteria Evaluate candidate providers against the criteria and select the best one Design the relationship structure (including clear definitions of scope, service level metrics tied to business objectives, and effective agreement) Manage the relationship on an on-going basis through formal and informal business reviews and information exchange Lack of attention to any step in this process increases risk and often leads to inferior results. The writers are principals at Sunstrum Hanel & Associates, a consulting firm in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada that helps companies develop and deliver better products by improving their business processes in the areas of manufacturing outsourcing, supply chain de-risking, and quality and reliability management. www.sunstrumhanel.com. Publish Date: March 2004 For more information... Printer friendly... Related Articles How To Evaluate Which Business Functions to Outsource How to Select a BPO Supplier How to Select an Alliance Partner: The Choice Depends on the Desired Outcomes What to Do When You Can't Find The Right Supplier Copyright © 2004 - Everest Partners, L.P. [Previous Story] [Next Story]	Enter your email to receive Outsourcing Journal and other Outsourcing Center information. SPONSORS ADS
Home \| About Us \| Consulting \| Research Institute \| Journal \| Europe \| Papers \| Suppliers \| Focus Areas \| Events \| News \| Contact Us Copyright © 2007 - Everest Partners, L.P. Two Galleria Tower, 13455 Noel Road, Suite 2100, Dallas, TX 75240 PH: 214-451-3000 FAX: 214-451-3001 Comments about our web site? Contact Us