South Africa is changing the game in business process outsourcing with a wider range of roles being outsourced than ever before.
Business process outsourcing (BPO) has traditionally been associated with customer service and support operations. Any mention of the word outsourcing instantly conjures up images of large-scale call centre operations in India or the Philippines staffed by people answering calls from customers in Europe for just a few dollars per hour. Customers have come to dread the sound of a heavy accent with stilted English skills on the end of the line.
However, South Africa’s burgeoning reputation in the BPO sector is not only solving some of the long-standing problems of the outsourcing sector, but it’s also opening up other, more senior roles that were not previously associated with outsourcing.
For businesses in the UK and Europe, this is an opportunity to cut costs while also opening themselves up to new and exciting reserves of talent that can drive their businesses forward.
Top jobs to outsource in South Africa
South Africa’s growing economy and multi-talented workforce are opening up job opportunities across the board, including:
• Customer service: The main business process being outsourced remains customer service operations. South Africa offers a clear advantage over competitors in India or the Philippines in that call centre agents routinely speak English fluently and with a clear, easy-to-understand accent. This leads to a free flow of information and makes it much more likely that customers will get their queries answered the first time.
• IT support: South Africa’s workforce boasts high levels of technical skills. A good time zone match means staff can be on hand to offer expert IT support to customers across Europe and the Middle East. South Africa has only a couple of hours’ difference with European customers, which means they can be on hand to help with business and consumer requests.
• Financial and legal services: Cities such as Cape Town and Johannesburg have earned themselves reputations as leading global financial hubs. They can offer services at all levels, from simple accounting and financial management to more advanced financial advice and guidance on regulatory compliance.
• Marketing: Outsourcing marketing teams can be a good way to access people with skills across creative media, including PR, content marketing, advertising, SEO, and many others. Teams can communicate easily in real time over video conferencing and instant messaging, making for quick real-time collaboration. They can work either as a supplementary addition to your existing marketing team or as a standalone marketing function. When expanding into a new market such as South Africa, outsourcing marketing functions can give you access to locally based experts with a
full understanding of existing market conditions.
Software development: Digital transformation is a critical operation for businesses of all sizes. However, accessing the skills to do it can be difficult, which often leaves SMEs at a critical disadvantage compared to their larger competitors. Top talent is in short supply, can they can charge a premium for their services. Hiring software developers in South Africa is a chance to access people with that talent for a fraction of the price you’d pay at home.
Web design: Accessing web design talent can also be expensive. Faster real-time communications technologies also make it easier to source and collaborate with professional designers to work across a range of digital projects.
Technological developments
Outsourcing these roles is made possible thanks to rapid advances in technology and working culture. Ultra high speed internet, video conferencing facilities, cloud computing, and instant messaging make it possible to collaborate in real time with people based all over the world. Distance is no barrier. You can talk face to face over programs such as Zoom and have multiple people collaborate on a single document.
After COVID-19, businesses have become used to working remotely and collaborating with multi-disciplinary teams. Once you get your head around the idea of working with someone in a different city, it’s a small step to working with people in different countries.
BPO companies have harnessed technology to deepen their offering, providing more personalised services shaped around the specific requirements of each company. Outsourcing goes beyond customer service, enabling you to work with multi-disciplinary teams across many different business functions. It helps you access talent that might not previously have been available and optimise your recruitment costs, making you more streamlined, efficient, and affordable.
Conclusion
South Africa’s economy offers a perfect combination of qualities for hiring businesses. The government has invested heavily in the sector over the last few years and has earned a reputation for quality and efficiency.
Education levels have improved hand over fist. South Africa has more graduates than ever before, offering skills across all industries, including media, software design, IT, legal, and financial services.
However, the economy is still developing and suffers from high levels of unemployment. Giving its increasingly diverse and talented workforce the jobs they demand in the country has been a constant challenge for the government, which is why it’s focused on developing the BPO sector.
As it grows in both size and the quality of jobs on offer, it’s relocating high-paying jobs from the West to South Africa. It’s stemming the brain drain, which sees the country’s brightest and best deserting South Africa in search of better-paying roles elsewhere.
As such, it’s key to economic development within South Africa, and also gives businesses access to the high levels of skills they need. In a competitive, digitally driven marketing place, finding specialist professionals with skills in sectors such as software design can be difficult for small and medium-sized businesses. They constantly find themselves outbid by larger, better-funded companies.
Seeking out skilled individuals at a lower cost helps to level the playing field, giving them access to top-level skills at a fraction of the price. Whether looking for freelance or full-time professionals, outsourcing to South Africa can be an option for just about any business process within your company.
