Communication in ICT Outsourcing

Communication in
ICT Outsourcing

Meeting the challenges of
staff and stakeholder buy-in.

By Toby Ruckert, Advanced Millennium Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

"The art of communication is
the language of leadership."
— James Humes

© 2011 by Toby Ruckert – Follow via @manibodhi on Twitter – Connect via www.linkedin.com/in/tobyruckert

Toby Ruckert, my Outsourcing
Experiences from 2001-2011

 As a Client  As a Supplier
 Wellness-Shop.com  Advanced Millennium
 Private Ltd. (India)
Viva-Lite.com
 Apaks International, Co.
 unifiedinbox.com
LTD (China)
 PuzzleCommerce.com
 IFOS - International
 Nutricare.co.nz, ... Fulfillment & Outsourcing
(as Consultant) Services (Germany)


"The search for someone
to blame is always successful."
— Robert Half

"The superior man blames himself.
The inferior man blames others."

— Don Shula


Communication in Outsourcing
– it's a two-way Challenge:

"Outsourcing" involves transferring or sharing
management control and/or decision-making of a
business function to an outside supplier, which
involves a degree of two-way information
exchange, coordination and trust between the
outsourcer and its client.
Source: Wikipedia.


"Take your life in your own
hands and what happens?

A terrible thing:
no one is to blame."
— Erica Jong


Distance & Culture increases
Communication Challenges
 In-house (1 local office)
 In-house (distributed team, multiple locations)
 Outsource (1 local location)
 Outsource (local, distributed, multiple locations)
 Offshore Outsourcing (1 country, 1 location)
 Offshore Outsourcing (1 country, 1+ locations)
 Offshore Outsourcing (multiple countries/locations)


How to find the right
Outsourcing Partner?
→ Check References and Track Records
→ Understand Business Objectives (Expectations)
Skillsets and Domain Expertise
→ Sign a NDA and / or MOU
→ Communicate: Call, talk, check writing(!)
→ Ask for Samples: Helps to get a local team on
board (show technical and process competence)
→ Ensure Post Development Support (Bugs...)

"Outsourcing is a tool,
not the problem or the solution. "
— Martin Zwilling


Outsourcing
DOs:
→ Build the relationship first
→ Do your “due diligence”, ask many questions
→ Make sure expectations and experiences match
→ Do what you say you'll do
→ Create mutual trust
→ Pay on time


Outsourcing
DON'Ts:
→ Never outsource your core competency
→ Be careful with IP rights / content
→ Avoid outsourcing of creative / design works
→ Don't underestimate costs (travel, communication)
→ Don't be afraid – be positive


"The basic building block of good
communication is the feeling
that every human being is
unique and of value."
— Unknown


Guaranteed Trouble Makers
You: Them:
 poor specifications,  inadequate staff and
 no acceptance training,
criteria,  high turnover,
 scope creep,  poor or inadequate
 not enough staff or processes,
stakeholder support  lack of vendor project
management


The Agile Manifesto
→ Individuals and interactions
over processes and tools.
→ Working software
over comprehensive documentation.
→ Customer collaboration
over contract negotiation.
→ Responding to change
over following a plan.
Agile Manifesto (2001) by Martin Fowler and Jim Highsmith


The Project Management Triangle

Traditional „Iron Triangle“ - graphic by Wikipedia


The Agile Triangle

Agile Triangle (Jim Highsmith*) adding Software Debt


Agile Triange (Jim Highsmith*)
with impediment management


Impediment Management comes
down to Communication
→ How do impediments occur?
→ If they are beyond team’s ability to resolve,
how does management support their resolution?
→ Is there a need to provide visibility to more than
1 or 2 levels higher in the organization?
→ How do these enterprise impediments get
handled at strategic levels in the organization?

= What is your impediment management strategy?

"Don't walk in front of me;
I may not follow.
Don't walk behind me;
I may not lead.
Just walk beside me
and be my friend."
— Albert Camus


Different Team
Maturity Stages
FORMING: STORMING:
→ Ensure everyone is → Team is in „Chaos“
„on board“, positivity → Lead into „Order“

NORMING: PERFORMING:
→ Team is learning → Team is self organized
→ Leader is guiding → Observe, fine-tune
→ Communicate its value


"Any one can hold the helm
when the sea is calm."
— Publilius Syrus


When Chaos rules
Do: Don't:
 spend more time  act in incorrect role,
with the team,  look the other way / let
 organize and the team lead itself,
structure,  teach too much when
 find bottlenecks & the basics lack,
recurring issues,  blame,
 start process  expect too much
optimization

Adopt Agile Methodology,
e.g. „Scrum“
→ What have you worked on since we last met?
→ What will you be working on until we meet again?
→ What impediments are blocking our progress?


"People go a lot further when
they feel they're led, not pushed."
— Unknown


When the Team takes Shape
Do: Don't:
 teach how to avoid  fix problems for the
the impediments, team,
 create a clear policy  fear confrontation,
for communicating,  underestimate
 detect commitment impediments and
and integrity issues, communication blocks
 keep pushing the
boundaries

Use Communication and Integrity
for Team Clarity and Transparency
→ „I will do this by that.“ = clear commitment!
→ Say it – mean it – do it. = define team integrity!
→ Impediments? = mention early and communicate!

Be prepared to deal with „communication blocks“.


"When the best leader's work
is done, the people say:
'We did it ourselves.'“
— Lao-Tzu


When your Team is matured
Do: Don't:
 continue to lead  decide too much for
daily meetings, the team, especially if
 give „freedom“ with it's within their
set constraints, domain,
 value what you  tell people what to do
have, communicate
that value


"The best executive is the one
who has sense enough to pick
good men to do what he wants
done and self-restraint enough
to keep from meddling with
them while they do it.“
— Theodore Roosevelt


Thank you for your attention!

Contact Toby:

via @manibodhi on Twitter
via www.linkedin.com/in/tobyruckert


Communication in ICT Outsourcing

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