全球外包行业正处于并置状态
有利的方面是，新兴技术的数字化、全球化以及普及率使企业的跨界运营愈发简单。此外，针对许多多变的外包服务的买方——管理的、咨询的、机器人的以及任何即服务——已经有标志显示他们很有可能在2018年及之后在其外包战略中去提升投资，并且带有针对自动化及其他以信息技术为基础的领域作为投资的重中之重。
不利的方面是，就是这两个正在创造如此机遇的驱动也同样正在给行业施加惊人的压力，最终以瓦解而告终。这些带有冲击力的技术的规模和步伐，再加上要求越来越高的客户和终端消费者，以及主要买家和交付目的地的地缘政治的波动，正在证明许多服务提供商就像他们正在提供服务的客户一样困惑。
英国脱欧和特朗普主意引发的经济不确定性，伴随着在某处正在被谨慎实施的其他版本的贸易保护主义，也在加剧混乱、忧虑及惊恐。
一些外包交付目的地仍在在很大层面受困于更为传统的外包收益流，由于收益流的减少正在很大程度上进行斗争。
此外，对于很多人来说‘数字化’的定义已经变得日益模糊，并且有的兼具买方及供应方角色的机构都在努力定义‘数字化’对其的意义所在。
最终，这导致了当买家尝试去想出其下一步外包战略应当牵涉的内容时合约被分发的减速。
在像印度的国家中，行业的增长在2016-2017年已经从两位数垂直下落至仅超过7个百分点，该问题由于信息技术相关毕业后生按照常规进入行业的绝对数量而进一步加重（估计将会是每年150万-200万左右），因此你能够轻易领会到如此巨大经济冲击的规模。
回归到英国，买方对其服务提供商的满意率在过去四年出现下降，同时，根据全球外包协会最新的满意度晴雨表，当前达到最低纪录。此外，70%的受访者表示他们很可能要在未来的18个月对其现有的服务供应商组合做出改变。
然而，外包能够留存下来的内容仍然是必要的。
外包作为一项降低成本的手段仍然是首席执行官首选的指令，但外包也被他们引用作为帮助企业在前-中-后台实现校准、流线化运营从而提供更好的客户体验的重要导管。
买方也承认外包为那些被大量客户数据海洋包围、却不知道如何驾驭从而针对产品开发及市场战略制定更为知情、更为快速的决策提供解决方案。
同时，当然，他们都需要进入够帮助其在接下来的十年点亮明灯的未来技能组合。这种技能，主要是在信息技术领域，已经出现不足并已被广泛认同该差距在接下来的五年将相当严重。
那么，这对外包产业的未来将意味着什么？
2017年外包国家报告由毕马威和HfS研究于2017年年初联合发布，当他们表示将会有重要的向‘数字化一站式办公室’（起源于HfS研究的短语）运营模式的转变，便以激光点般的准确度清楚地进行了阐释，如从前端至后台办公室的界限消失从而加速无缝的客户体验。
这也反过来将引起买方丢弃原有模式——以及阻碍他们的基础设施架构（一些大的组织，特别是在银行、金融服务、保险和零售行业，已经并行运行了这两种模式），因此正在开放与不同的、新的、更敏捷的以及创新的服务商协作的机会。为了与此战斗，大的、更成熟的服务提供商将不得不创新、合并、收购或与此类公司合作从而保持密切相关性，否则将失去市场份额。
尽管如此，你仍将看到在2018年及之后在服务提供商之间的实质转变，那是因为买方寻求最优、灵活的合约；反映真实合作途径的合约是基于产出、公担的风险和报酬以及采用如自动化技术能够提供实时数据分析的事物。
你将看到商业是在同一空间的先前的竞争者集合起来去提供联合的或是互补的价值主张，或是通过不断缩小利润及提高研发成本濒临灭亡。
如设计思维方法论将成为正常的商业实践，就像机构追求以24*7、多渠道、超连接消费者主导的的市场的方式将客户摆在第一位。
一般情况下，在通往工作本质的方法上会有重要的转变；从工作风格、地点以及环境，再到组织环境和雇佣合同及其相关的福利组合。
在那些已经成为真实的激昂的生态系统中最有可能盛行的是那些能够擅长管理变革、文化意义上的企业家、以客户为中心、行动迅捷、以及能够拥抱合作伙伴真实精神并与之伴随的所有内容。
警钟已经敲响，并伴随那么多的新的以及新兴的服务提供商以及交付目的地等待突袭，拭目以待下一步要发生什么将会是非常有趣的。
关于汤姆·奎格利
汤姆·奎格利是Emerging Europe的外包总监以及QUIGLEYMEDIA的所有者及首席营销官。他具备超过29年涵盖运营、沟通及营销的企业经验。在过去九年，他已在营销及沟通领域担任多样的管理角色，包括营销和会展负责人，以及设计和媒体、营销和沟通负责人，服务于Capita的生命与养老金、商业保险服务以及雇员福利服务部。他在2016年3月加入英国国家外包协会（NOA）并担任营销总监，而后担任全球外包协会（GSA）的首席营销官一职。
The global sourcing industry is at a juxtaposition.
On the plus-side digitalisation, globalisation and the adoption rate of emerging technologies are all making it increasingly easier for enterprises to operate across borders. What’s more, buyers of the many variable outsourced services — administrative, consultative, robotic and anything-else-as-a-service — have signposted that they are very likely to increase investment in their sourcing strategies in 2018 and beyond, with ‘significant’ investment earmarked across automation and other IT-based areas.
On the down-side, these very same drivers that are creating such opportunities are also putting incredible pressure on the industry, resulting in substantial disruption. The scale and pace of these impacting technologies, coupled with ever-demanding clients and end customers and the volatility of the geo-political landscape in major buyer and delivery destinations, is proving bewildering for just as many service providers as it is for the clients they serve.
The economic uncertainties caused by Brexit and Trumpism, together with other versions of protectionism being discreetly implemented elsewhere, are fuelling confusion, concern and consternation.
Some sourcing delivery destinations that are still largely locked into the more traditional outsourcing revenue steams are struggling big time as these revenue streams dwindle.
Whats more, the concept of ‘digital’ has become increasingly ambiguous for many and there are organisations on both the buy-side and supply-side struggling to define what it really means to them.
Ultimately, this has resulted in a slow-down of contracts being handed out whilst buyers try to figure out what their next sourcing strategy should entail.
In countries like India, where industry growth has plummeted from double digits to just over 7 per cent in 2016-107, the problem is further exacerbated by the sheer volume of IT-related graduates routinely entering the industry (estimated to be around 1.5-2 million per year), so you can easily appreciate the scale of such macro-economic impacts.
Closer to home in the UK, buyer satisfaction ratings with their service providers have been declining over the last four years and, according to the Global Sourcing Association’s most recent Satisfaction Barometer, currently stands at an all-time low. Further, 70 per cent of respondents stated they are very likely to make changes to their existing service provider portfolio over the next 18 months.
Yet the imperative for sourcing remains.
Outsourcing as a means of reducing costs is still the number one directive for CEO’s, but it’s also being cited by them as a significant conduit in helping enterprises achieve alignment between front-middle-back office, streamlining operations so as to provide a better customer experience.
Buyers also recognise that sourcing offers a solution for those businesses who are surrounded by vast oceans of customer data but don’t know how to harness it in order to make better informed — and faster — decisions on product development and market strategy.
And, of course, they all need access to the future skillsets that will help keep the lights on over the next 10 years. Such skills, predominantly in IT, are already scarce and it has been widely acknowledged that the gap will worsen considerably over the next five years.
So, what might this mean for the future of the sourcing industry?
The State of Outsourcing 2017 paper published jointly by KPMG and HfS Research earlier in 2017 spelled it out with laser-point accuracy when they opined that there will be a significant shift towards a ‘Digital OneOffice’ (a phrase originated by HfS Research) operating model as front-to-back office demarcations disappear in order to facilitate a seamless customer experience.
This in turn will cause buyers to ditch their legacy models — and the IT infrastructures that encumber them (some larger organisations, particularly in the banking, financial services, insurance and retail industries, have already been running both models in parallel), so opening up the opportunities to collaborate with different, newer, more agile and innovative providers. To combat this, the larger, more established service providers will have to innovate, merge, acquire or partner with such companies in order to stay relevant, or lose market share.
Despite this, you will still see substantial switches between service providers in 2018 and beyond as buyers look for the most optimum, flexible contracts; contracts that reflect true partnership approaches based on outcomes, shared risk and reward and access to things like automated technology that provides real-time data analytics.
You will see businesses that were formerly competitors in the same space come together to offer joined-up or complementary value propositions, or face extinction through ever-shrinking margins and rising R&D costs.
Methodologies like design thinking will become normal business practice as organisations seek to put the customer first in a 24-7, multi-channel, hyper-connected consumer-led market place.
There will be a significant shift in the approach to the very nature of work in general; from working styles, locations and environments to organisational culture and employment contracts-and-related-benefits packages.
About Tom Quigley
Tom Quigley is director of outsourcing at Emerging Europe and the owner and chief marketing officer at QUIGLEYMEDIA. He has 29 years corporate enterprise experience across Operations, Communications and Marketing. He has held various management roles in marketing and communications for the last nine years, including Head of Marketing & Events and Head of Design and Media, Marketing & Communications serving Capita’s Life & Pensions, Commercial Insurance Services and Employee Benefits Services divisions. He joined the National Outsourcing Association (NOA) in March 2016 as Marketing Director and then assumed the role of Chief Marketing Officer for the Global Sourcing Association (GSA).