What If There Was A “Good Outsourcing Index”

Over the past few months, HfS has brought various aspects of design thinking to the fore. But we were recently inspired by the release of a “Good Country Index” to put the benefits of design thinking itself into context for the sourcing industry.

The Good Country Index ranks 125 nations based on how much they do for others globally in seven areas: science and technology, culture, international peace and security, world order, planet and climate, prosperity and equality, and health and well being. In a nutshell, a “good country” is one that contributes to the greater good of the “flat” world in which we live. 

What if the service providers in the outsourcing world were similarly ranked as being “good” for how much they do for others? 

Service providers are already being judged across the various service offerings they deliver including, through our own HfS Blueprints. But what if there was another scale by which they could be evaluated that was similar to the Good Country Index. We should consider the possibilities of a “Good Service Provider Index” or “Good Outsourcing Index.” Such an index would rank service providers by their contribution to the greater good of the outsourcing world. Let’s look at some potential parameters that would contribute to a provider’s ranking:

• Finding problems by employing design thinking: design thinking requires a different approach. Successful solutions will come from embracing the problem and gaining deep understanding of consumers’ hearts and minds and the who and the why behind a product or service.
• Considering the ecosystem: Instead of looking at the problems at the microscopic level, service providers should consider these problems as part of the industry as a whole. As such, providers should look at things with a broader view. No piecemeal solution will bring about innovation, but an industrywide ecosystem can provide radical thinking and collaboration to solve the common problems—and, yes, use design thinking to do so.
• Optimizing the workforce: It’s about moving from FTE based services to the real value-based services. We have become accustomed to carrying on with things as they started. This has provided abundant redundancies. Now, automation is fast replacing the redundancies, so it is important not to ignore the changing workforce that is looking far beyond accomplishing daily tasks toward enhanced career options.
• Contributing to growth rather than focusing on cost cutting: Offshore outsourcing has the history of shore-to-shore movement that is associated with pink slips and layoffs. However, today the industry has the potential to evolve far beyond labor arbitrage. If service provider solution designers look at helping business cut their cost by deploying innovative solutions rather than merely taking the jobs out at the lower cost, that will do good for society at large and the business simultaneously.

Design thinking is becoming hot favorite among the revolutionary thinkers of the businesses world who are committed to building something bold and newsworthy. To compete for higher rank in the Good Service Provider Index, we believe that the service providers can take advantage of design thinking to create an empathy-driven culture and services. Such an approach will differentiate providers competitively and will have an impact on the greater good.