So you\u2019ve outsourced HRIS, or payroll, or H&W benefits administration, or applicant tracking, or any one of numerous HR functions and now your job is finished, right?\u00a0 Well most of you know the answer to that is no.<\/p>\n
You still have plenty to do as work through data scrubbing, conversion, or ongoing vendor relationship management.\u00a0 The one function you probably have not given much thought to, unfortunately, is project management.\u00a0 Reasonably, you figure that is in the hands of the experts now.\u00a0 Your outsource provider that promised best practices certainly has project management down to a science as they have performed this function hundreds if not thousands of times before.<\/p>\n
Well, you are in for a surprise.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Based on my experience, the dirty little secret in the world of outsourcing is that effective project management is in short supply.\u00a0 Providers don\u2019t seem to have standard project management approaches to implementation, ongoing administration or special projects.\u00a0 Despite what you have assumed based on the SAS70 you so carefully studied, you are, to put it simply, lucky or unlucky based upon who has been assigned to your account.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just last week a client asked me: \u201cwho is responsible for managing all these special projects we have waiting to be completed?\u00a0 Because it seems we just don\u2019t make the progress I think we should!\u201d<\/p>\n
There isn\u2019t an easy answer to this.\u00a0 If I asked you who in a marriage is responsible for paying the bills, you might say traditionally the man.\u00a0 And yet in many households the woman pays the bills (after all, anyone who has worked with 401(k) plans will tell you women are much more responsible savers).\u00a0<\/p>\n
Traditionally, the outsource provider is expected to provide the project management in an administrative relationship.\u00a0 You would think the client is paying for it.\u00a0 But I will tell you that the client has the most to lose if administration goes bad.\u00a0 If projects don\u2019t get completed, the employees suffer.\u00a0 To my thinking, the answer to the question of who is: \u201cwhoever is best suited.\u201d<\/p>\n
Every relationship, whether personal or buyer\/supplier, comes to an equilibrium based on the specifics of the situation.\u00a0 Clearly, clients cannot abrogate responsibility simply because they have outsourced a function. \u00a0At a minimum, closely monitored project management is called for.\u00a0 Joint management is reasonable, and if necessary, take over the project management yourself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
You\u2019d be surprised how fast a provider finds the right people to manage your account once you have determined that you need to take project management into your own hands.<\/p>\n
Regardless of where there equilibrium ends up in your relationship, make sure you budget for project managment as you build your business case for outsourcing.\u00a0 No one likes big cost surprises after the decision has been made.<\/p>\n
Oh, and by the way, if you are lucky enough to have a gem of a project manager on your vendor team, please tell your outsource provider loudly and often.\u00a0 They need to know!<\/p>\n