As a business owner, you want to do everything you can possibly do to boost productivity, increase efficiency, and keep your operating costs as low as possible. Managing to do all of these things in tandem can help to increase profits and ensure your business remains profitable both now and in the future. One way to increase productivity and decrease operating costs is through business process outsourcing, also called BPO. BPO involves outsourcing many of the mundane yet necessary tasks in your office by streamlining them using a third party. The third-party typically uses software to ensure the workflow is smooth and concise yet efficient and effective. If you have never heard of business process outsourcing before, you may be curious as to what types of business processes you can outsource. Read on to learn more about three common business processes that can be outsourced and streamlined.
Accounts Payable
One of the most popular areas to outsource with business process outsourcing is accounts payable. Accounts payable is a necessary part of any business, but it can be a nightmare for whoever is trying to handle your books. Everything from billing vendors and clients to managing what products are sold and for how much falls under the umbrella of accounts payable. Not only is accounts payable important so you can see where money is being spent and how much your business is making, but having a dependable accounts payable solution is also vital for tax reasons.
One of the reasons why accounts payable is popular under business process outsourcing is that there are so many benefits associated with outsourcing your accounts payable. One of the most significant benefits is that you do not have to worry about your bookkeeping. Many small business owners spend a lot of time keeping their books and managing their accounts. Outsourcing frees up your time to focus on projects that add value or revenue to your business. Another reason your business should consider outsourcing accounts payable is that the third-party vendors that take on this task on your behalf use the latest and greatest software available on the market to manage your accounts. They learn the software for you, so you do not have to worry about constantly upgrading or transitioning to new accounting or bookkeeping programs. Finally, unless you have bookkeeping or accounting skills and experience, accounts payable may be a bit foreign to you. When you outsource, you are getting help from an expert who likely has more experience and knowledge in the field than you.
Document Processing
Document processing and document management services are gaining in popularity with business owners. Paper files are becoming dated. They take up a lot of space in offices, are cumbersome, are time-consuming and tedious to maintain, and limit who can work on a particular file and when. As such, more and more business are scanning their paper files into document processing and management programs, allowing them to go paperless in their offices. However, while this sounds great on the surface, the process of scanning existing files and then scanning all of your new incoming documents to maintain your new paperless office can be time-consuming. This is where outsourcing to a document processing company comes into play.
A document processing company can do everything from taking the time to set up a paperless document management system for you to scanning incoming documents so you can maintain your existing document processing and management system. An outsourced, third-party vendor can also show your employees how to use the software, so they can find the files and documents they need with just a few clicks of their mouse. All in all, this business process outsourcing option can save you the time and expense of hiring an employee simply to scan documents and maintain those documents for your company.
Mailroom Services
Mailroom services are a mundane, yet necessary part of a business. Typically, your mailroom services staff is responsible for taking incoming mail, opening it up, scanning it into a digital database if you have one, and then getting the mail to the right person in your office. The mailroom also handles all outgoing mail. One of the biggest challenges that companies face with their mailroom is high turnover. Mailroom employees tend to be entry-level employees who quickly work their way up or leave the company for better opportunities. The time it takes to train a new employee and get them up to speed ends up costing your company both time and money, which is where outsourcing your mailroom services with a business process outsourcing company can come into play.
A business process outsourcing company can take over your mailroom services, working to streamline your processes so that they are as efficient as possible. And since the outsourcing company is responsible for training their employees, the constant turnover that is common with entry-level positions falls on them. Outsourcing your mailroom services can help your business to save money while also streamlining a process that can be time-consuming. It also helps to reduce turnover within your company, which ultimately helps your business’s bottom line.
Accounts payable, document processing, and mailroom services are just three of the workflow processes that you can streamline by outsourcing them to a business process outsourcing company. This can help to make your business processes smoother and workflows more efficient, all while saving your company money. It can boost productivity and help ease the burden of simple and mundane tasks, allowing your employees to focus on the more specialized tasks that you may have hired them to complete within your office. It can also help to decrease the amount of work that you as a business owner try to take on on your own. If you’re interested in taking advantage of business process outsourcing to lighten your load and save money, get in touch with your KDI representative today or contact IMR Digital, a KDI company, to learn more.