Open Book Outsourcing with Derek Gallimore

Hi and welcome to another episode of the Outsource Accelerator podcast. My name is Derek Gallimore. And today this is a podcast with me just me, yes, me. So today I want to discuss with you, our new approach to open book outsourcing. Okay, we are opening our processes, we are opening our org chart and we’re going to reveal to you everything about how we progress Outsource Accelerator as a company and because everything is gonna be open. I want this to be a case study for outsourcing and because of that I’m going to need to pull up my socks a little bit and I’m going to need to live by what I preach. That means outsourcing as much as possible and that means delegating as much as possible.

So, a lot of other little aspects here which I’m really going to enjoy as a personal adventure. So, I really enjoy this. And this podcast is effectively about me outlining what we are going to go forward and hopefully this can bring you a lot of value as you join all along on this journey. And if you want any of the show notes there’s also an article on this I’ve written. Then please go to outsourceaccelerator.com/podcast/episode40.

Derek: Okay, so welcome to another episode of Outsource Accelerator podcast. And as mentioned earlier I am going to spend this podcast exploring our new approach to our open book outsourcing. Okay, so Outsource Accelerator is an outsourcing advisory. We offer 95 percent free content and information to people trying to encourage them to get into outsourcing.

Our target market is the small to medium size enterprise and business owners maybe or COOs that have between two and two hundred staff. Now, I think outsourcing is the best thing that those businesses could do. Okay. I think it is an absolute game changer and that is what Outsource Accelerator is all about. So, we monetize Outsource Accelerator by offering basically one consulting package. Now that package has been adapted depending on who you are as the user. So, there’s a few variations of it but effectively we offer one fast-track consulting package to get that target market up to speed on outsourcing. So, they fully know all of their options and they can fast-track results for themselves in their business. Okay sounds pretty good, huh? So, in building Outsourcing Accelerator we want this to be the foremost authority in the outsourcing space. And it occurred to me if we’re going to do this we really need to do what we preach. Okay. And it occurred to me that we should open our books and let everyone know how we built this company. So, I am predominantly based in Manila in the Philippines and there’s obviously an abundance of staffing options here and there’s an abundance of outsourcing options here.

So, when I mean open book company and full transparency what I want to do is I’m going to release a monthly report for Outsource Accelerator and we are going to show you our cost structures. We are going to show you our expense reports. We are going to show you the org chart and roll chart for our company as it evolves. Now Outsource Accelerator is, maybe I should say predominantly an information and content generation hub. Okay. So, there is a huge amount of information needs and high-value information that needs to be produced and then we also need to drive a lot of traffic. So, I want to share all of that with you. These are common things that many businesses face and if we’re able to do it in the Philippines and we’re able to get fantastic prices and we’re able to build structures that work and then ultimately able to build a fantastic product with a very happy customer base then you know that’s a pretty amazing outcome and one that is all done effectively by outsourcing. Okay. And so, what better than leading by example. Not that we don’t already but basically by opening the company doors so that you can see how it’s all done throughout this process we can obviously provide any contacts. And so, you can share and repeat and use the resources that we also choose to use. So just to clarify I’m not gonna open all of the books there are fully transparent companies out there. But I do think some aspects are important to leave opaque just so that there is some commercial advantage because I really think that Outsource Accelerator is gonna rock the world of outsourcing. So, you know I’m keen to harness the first mover advantage as much as possible. So, for that reason, there is a little bit of opacity.

So, in this podcast I just want to discuss some of the factors I think we will come across over the next 6 to 12 to 18 months. The primary one is that outsourcing is no magic bullet. Okay, and I’m here preaching a lot that outsourcing is fantastic it’s incredible. It will transform your business and that is absolutely the case, it is, but like anything like any aspect of business, it’s not easy. There’s no magic bullet otherwise everyone would be in business and everyone would be raking in the cash. Okay, so business fundamentally is complex and so outsourcing as a way of executing business is naturally not going to be just turnkey simplicity and turnkey success. Okay, so it will be interesting and I will show you my issues as they come up. I will be transparent about these things and my frustrations. Okay. So that would be really interesting to explore as time goes on.

Now, one of the key things, why outsourcing isn’t so easy, is that you’re effectively still dealing with people. And one of the people that you’re dealing with is yourself. Okay, so often I find when people start outsourcing it’s, there’s an aspect where you need to train the trainer a little bit. Okay. And that means for the business owner for the COO, there’s an aspect where you need to learn the differences of the culture in the Philippines. The process is to get operations down pat and maybe generate more of a structured approach to things. Okay, so there’s that aspect which I will work through as well. The aspect that I personally struggle with is delegation. Okay. And this is a very common business issue and one that I also face. I tend to have a personal approach of ‘I can do this’, ‘I’ve got this’ and maybe I’m guilty also of thinking that I can build this stuff out better. So why not just control it all myself. And you know I read all the management books I know this stuff and I know that is not the way for optimum growth. Okay. So, I find that so this is the approach that I’m taking. And so, I’m taking a stance now not to hold things myself and to properly delegate which means I’m going to create a proper org chart and it actually means that I’m going to conscientiously do less work and I’m gonna conscientiously hold back from getting involved in every activity and I’m going to work on just identifying key roles for me and concentrating on executing those well. So, that will be my own personal challenge throughout this period.

And then one thing that I’m really interested in exploring here is the inversion of the pyramid. Maybe. Okay, so traditionally a lot of companies come to the Philippines to outsource their backend. Okay. So, the backend operations are typically like accounts and customer service and things like that. I really believe in the model where the backend becomes the center. Okay, becomes the fulcrum, where in theory you can build your entire company in a cheaper cost center then that has to give you a huge advantage over your competitor who is mostly acting within a high cost, cost center. Does that make sense? So, I don’t believe that the Philippines should be limited to just basically doing your accounting and your virtual assistant work. I believe there’s far more opportunity and as the world becomes flatter as technology breaks down borders I think this will be happening more and more. So, I’m really excited to explore tipping the pyramid upside down and seeing how far we can get from that. And by that, I mean all of the business decisions are made in the Philippines and all of the management structure is built in the Philippines. I, of course, will be heading the company. I, of course, will offer myself as the in-house expert. So, obviously, you have to be careful which aspects you delegate. But look I’m trying to get the management structure as much as possible, built in the Philippines and run by the highly effective people in the Philippines because after all, I have been in business 20 years. I’ve been in outsourcing now for six years. But there’s a lot of Filipinos that have been and outsourcing far longer than me and it’s almost within the corporate blood of the Philippines to know about outsourcing. So, there’s a huge amount of expertise I can tap into and of course, all of you can too.

So, moving right along. And as I write about in some of my blogs and guidance. What are we going to be using for that company? We are going to be using a mixture as I suggest that every business owner does and probably you do in real life anyway. So, I’m going to be looking at co-working spaces to house the staffing. There’s also BPO or outsourcing desk leasing options. I’m going to be using local recruiters here in Manila Philippines to find the best key staff. And one of the approaches I’m going to be taking is to use a pioneer to come in and run most things from the early days. Okay. Now talk about a pioneer a little bit later. And I’m also going to be getting a VA which is a virtual assistant and is a very common first base entry into outsourcing for most people. And I’ll also be using ad hoc contract work as such as Upwork and then also content providers and agencies. Okay. So, there’s a huge range a huge blend of specialisms that are not specialisms but sectors that I will be drawing on to fulfill the employment or human resource needs of my company. Okay, so we can deep dive into all of that with real life examples as they happen.

One thing I want to note is that I can afford to spend more on the convenience factors when we’re sourcing stuff in the Philippines. Okay, so if you are running your business from the west, from the high-cost west and you’re spending a lot of money on your staffing, then you’re probably up to the limit of your budget. Whereas since staffing is relatively cheaper here it means that I can dip more into the convenience factors. Those factors include things like serviced offices and BPO services where they handle entire processes and contract work, advisory work. And you know general contracting So for example going to a website agency to get the website built out. You know these are things that you can actually tap into more because the base cost of human resource is lower. So, I hope to illustrate that throughout the process and just to give you an update on where we are.

I, Outsource Accelerator is open for business. We have a fantastic consulting package available now and we have over 1000 pages of content that is up there. And of huge value to you so if you haven’t had a snoop around the website I strongly suggest you go there. So, but that’s all done. But there’s still a huge amount of work to do just like any business can. We want to drive as much traffic to the website as possible and we want to reach as many business owners as possible and get them interested. So, a huge amount of things that we’re doing video content, ongoing content on our website, social media and digital marketing and distribution of media to other outlets that might include the Medium, the LinkedIn. You know and a lot of the other sites like Quora. And you know a lot of the new sites, so maybe we get on Huffington maybe get on Ink and things like that. So, there’s gonna be a lot of production of media across all the different types and then it’s the distribution of the media. It’s also driving traffic. It’s also the sales funnels and things like that.

So, one thing that I’m faced with is the sales cycle for Outsource Accelerator. I expect this and want this to be a gentle sales cycle. Okay. I, Outsource Accelerator is reaching out to people that are successfully running their businesses. And it’s really just not on their radar to think about outsourcing and they’re probably very successful without it. And why should they change you know have is not broken then don’t fix it. So it takes a long sales cycle for people to come around to my way of thinking and you know they probably will take a little bit of convincing before they even consider outsourcing. Okay. And one of the main hooks we have this is how we get people interested is you know, I can proudly say that people can save 70 percent on staff cost whilst driving innovation and growth. Okay, so that’s one of the main hooks and I hope with that and the associated educational videos that that will get people interested enough just to want to know a little bit more. And then once they’re engaged then we can give them more value and more insight into how this works. So that’s the beginning of the sales cycle. It is a very slow, very gentle sales cycle. As I said 95 percent of our content and information of value is free. So, it’s you know it’s something gentle and that is why I don’t wanna rush this. And I just basically wanna build a very valuable site that the community values okay.

So, in order to do that, I’m hiring a team. And as I said delegation is key. And as I said I’m also going to focus first on a pioneer. Now, a pioneer is a reference term here in the Philippines. They are the people that commence a project for a company. Okay, so it’s typically the first hire, they are typically medium to senior level management, have good experience in the specific area you want and you bring them on and you bring them up to speed with your company and your goals. Once you have them on board then they have the key people to hire the rest of the team. And you know they’re probably in a better position to do it better than yourself because you’re likely gonna be remote. So, the pioneer hopefully will bring with them a lot of industry experience. They would bring with them potentially a lot of contacts and you know, it basically makes a turnkey operation out of one good hire. And so that’s what I’m looking for. Initially, this person is likely going to be a content and digital marketing manager. That kind of zone. And also, someone that isn’t averse to being within a startup environment. Okay. So that’s my strategy as I mentioned before we will be looking for a blend of provisions so we will use co-working spaces, BPOs. We will be using Upwork contractors, agencies. But this pioneer will spearhead all of that and we will devise a strategy together in terms of general programs.

So then finally I just want to touch on the aspect of startups. Now, we aren’t a startup. We have been going some time now and we are getting good traction and we have good traffic. But you know in my mind we’re still very young and we still have huge ambitions in growth. Now, we are small and proud of that. But you know there is an aspect in the Philippines where it’s only very, very recently where startups have been a thing of pride and excitement. Okay, it has been happening in the West for a little bit longer. Previously, people have wanted to be in bigger corporations here. So, they have better structure. So, they have better career ladders and more support. Slowly that is turning around now so I’m super excited about getting a lot of candidates who are really excited about working this exciting startup sector that I’m forging here.

So that’s just a little bit of insight into what I’m doing with Outsource Accelerator. And I want you to if you are interested in outsourcing then do follow me. And you know, these are hurdles that I will talk openly about. And I will share any experiences and any ups and any downs.

So, I look forward to the coming month. The first report will be out soon and please join me in a month or so for the next update.

Okay. Hope you enjoyed that, got some value out of that. Do go to the show notes for more resources on this. That is at outsourceaccelerator.com/podcast/episode40. And as always if you have any questions for me or outsourcing at all please just email us at [email protected].