Within 3.5 months specialists of BDO Outsourcing Division in Russia using in-depth interview and questionnaires conducted a public opinion survey among financial managers of Russian and foreign companies. The selection included more than 3500 companies among which 200 companies of large business, 1700 enterprises of small and medium-size business, 500 companies of banking and insurance sector and around 1000 representative offices of foreign companies in Russia.
The main tasks of the project were to define attitude of representatives of business community to transfer of internal processes for outsourcing; to study which factors are the most important when making a decision on outsourcing of business processes; to find out who make the decision to transfer internal functions for outsourcing and to explore current popularity of outsourcing in Russia.
Ranking of quantity indicators of rating (including popularity of outsourcing types, priority of factors in making of a decision on transfer of functions for outsourcing, etc.) was realized using 10 points scale (1 – is the lowest indicator, 10 is the highest indicator). Ranking of quality indicators was realized on the basis of quantity of positive and negative answers received during the survey.
Mr. Tiunov Sergey, BDO Outsourcing Division in Russia:
- As the results of the joint survey showed outsourcing of business processes gradually becomes more popular in Russia. The majority of respondents noticed that outsourcing as a strategy of business management so far did not get sufficient development, nevertheless managers of companies more often think about such factors as reduction of number of personnel and minimization of “human factor” (average grade 7.31 in 10 points scale), reduction of expenses for realization of internal functions (6,87), reduction of risks such as fiscal and labor disputes, errors in management accounting and so on (6,42). Of course, everything mentioned is reachable with transfer for outsourcing. Outsourcing always was a\n attractive tool for reduction of expenses for enterprises that made transparency of business their basic principle. Results of the first joint survey of BDO Outsourcing Division in Russia and RBC.Rating without doubt would be interesting both for organizations that took part in the survey and to o companies operating in the market of outsourcing of business processes. In the nearest future we are planning to continue work on studying of public opinion. We are planning to carry out rating of popularity of types of outsourcing of accounting functions among foreign companies represented in Russia.
Mr. Prytin Dmitriy, Chief Editor of RBC.Rating:
- Outsourcing of business processes still is not so popular as, for example, in western countries, where this type of business services approved itself quite long ago. Russian companies themselves share this opinion. Vast majority of them pointed out positive meaning of outsourcing as one of key types of services. It’s another matter that not all of them hurry up to use these services. In my opinion, the right time will come, at least results of the conducted survey show only positive tendency.
Interest in the survey showed by potential clients of companies operating in the market of outsourcing of business processes give grounds to think about continuation of work in this direction, which, as I underlined above, has all chances to become one of the most demanded type of business services.
Mr.Khodykin Dmitriy ,General Director of a Broker company “Lenstroymaterialy”, Board member of Financial group “Chastniy poverenniy”:
- Outsourcing of business processes may be interesting for business first of all from economic point of view as a method of reduction of expenses. However it is early to speak about popularity of outsourcing. For a manger it is always more comfortable to have his own accountant, who will be personally involved in operations of organization and will thoroughly hold the ground of his employer. Small business may be an exclusion in start up stage, when volume of accounting reports is not so big, functions include only compiling and submitting of reports, that’s why keeping of a full-time employee is connected to extra expenses. Transfer of records related to personnel for outsourcing also causes same concerns: external agency may follow too formal approach because for an outsourcer personnel it is just work force but not a team, part of which he is himself. As a whole in my opinion it is unfair to speak about a business process and a possibility of its transfer for outsourcing without considering specific characters of business: its size, sphere and dynamics of development.
Mrs. Irina Kharisova, Vice-president, Financial Director of “ABS Holdings”:
- Turning to services of outsourcers absolute majority of companies are in the money. Management of an enterprise gets an opportunity to release itself from part of controlling functions and focus completely on strategic tasks, entrusting any type of activities to professionals. Relationship with outsourcers is strictly governed by a contract, which provides for definite limits, comfortable conditions for a customer and responsibility for noncompliance. Our company has positive experience of outsourcing in different areas: administrative, legal and related to personnel.
Work of a holding company has its own specific characters, that is why addressing to external services we were seeking straight solution of several key problems. First of all it is establishing of a transparent system for control of secondary functional of the whole range of the holding’s companies, reduction of expenses and correction of number of staff in enterprises of the company.
Mr. Pyltsov Andrey, Vice-president, Director of Administrative Department of VTB-24:
- Practice of outsourcing helps us to solve problems of functioning and development in market economy through reduction of expenses, acceleration of improvement of service quality and reduction of risks. As opposed to subcontracting outsourcing it is a strategy of company management but not a simple way of interaction of partners. The strategy allows us, first, to focus on development of new services, that is important for having competitive advantage under conditions of quickly changing technologies and demand: second, it allows to improve flexibility of processes.
Of course a lot of on-costs that are not arising in the ordinary way of operation are connected with outsourcing. It includes expenses of representation (business trips and travels), interest of intermediary if a contract is made tough a third person, payment for telephone calls and payment for services of lawyers if necessary. But nevertheless the above-mentioned expenses are rewarding with usury making the process of project development more professional and distributing resources including time in more rational way.
First of all a reliable partner is characterized by presence of modern technical and informational basis, figured model of interaction with customers and ability to correct work fitting to demand of a client. Long-term relations, especially with well-known companies normally evidence reliability of an outsourcer and are the best recommendation for a potential client.
