Encodex’s Outsourcing
Model
Encodex has developed a dynamic
outsourcing model that helps small companies solve their two
biggest IT problems: cost containment and access to skilled
personnel.
Better yet, the model is based on continuous knowledge transfer
from Encodex to the client’s in-house staff so that
advanced technology can quickly become a core competency.
Encodex focuses on Microsoft .NET enterprise
servers, Internet-based wide area networking, virtual office
technology, BackOffice, and service-driven help desks. These
are all fields that are evolving too fast even for big companies
to keep up. Encodex’s president Arun Joshi compares
the firm's outsourcing model to the technique of drafting
in team racing where the leader breaks down air resistance
for a teammate. "We've geared up to provide access to
people who operate at the cutting edge," says Arun. "Our
engineers can absorb new technology quickly and use it to
deliver solutions. By continually transferring knowledge and
best practices to our clients, we enable them to keep up with
the accelerating pace of information technology without exhausting
their resources."
Of course, for this to work requires that Encodex
and its clients stay closely in sync. This means breaking
through the fundamental tension between client and Encodex
staff.
"Everybody has seen bad consulting relationships,"
observes Arun. "The client's in-house staff naturally
tries to protect their turf, and the consultant tries to create
dependencies by being stingy with information. It's the old
story of Not Invented Here vs. Job Security. When you've got
two organizations pulling in different directions, you rarely
end up where you're supposed to be headed."
The key to Encodex’s outsourcing model
is that it keeps Encodex’s business goals in sync with
the goals and needs of clients. "We invest heavily in
our intellectual assets and information infrastructure,"
says Arun. "We recruit highly skilled and motivated people,
provide them with what's probably the world's most sophisticated
virtual office infrastructure, organize advanced and often
custom tailored training from the major vendors, and offer
lots of mechanisms that allow our entire staff to share information
and experiences." The purpose of all this investment
is to help Encodex deliver its basic products: best IT practices,
high value services, and knowledge transfer. This in turn
allows Encodex to satisfy its clients' primary motives for
outsourcing: save time and money, access expertise, and enhance
core in-house IT skills.
Anatomy of an Outsourcing Customer:
Clients who use Encodex for ongoing outsourcing typically
have these traits in common:
- Small to medium size company or department
(30 to 2000 users)
- Growing fast with limited IT resources
- Progressive view of information management
- Consider information technology as a strategic
competitive resource
Among Encodex’s existing clients, the
primary motives for outsourcing in general and using Encodex
in particular boil down to three issues:
- Save time and money
- Have access to IT expertise
- Transferring core technology to in-house
IT staff
Encodex has built an organization structured
to respond to these requirements. A good way to understand
the advantage of Encodex’s approach is to listen to
past customers of the consulting firm, founded by Encodex’s
president Arun Joshi, which played a major role in forming
Encodex’s outsourcing model.
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