Outsourcing of work has been one of the key back bone of IT industry for almost many decades now and there is a gain in momentum for this even in manufacturing sector as well. Similarly in eLearning as well the outsourcing has been one of the most popular concept since early 2000’s and have gained a huge momentum in last one decade. There are many organisations like us who have established themselves as an outsourcing partner with outside clients.
I have been seen tremendous YOY growth in elearning outsourcing and I am sure there is no stoppage to it. In my last blog "5 Factors to consider while selecting an eLearning vendor" I wrote about how to go about choosing the right suitable eLearning vendor. However post selecting the right vendor only half of the job is done. Once you start working with that vendor the actual test begins. Below are some of the checkpoints which one must keep eye on while working with any eLearning vendor
1. Working collaborative as an eLearning partner and not a vendor
This is just the terminology, however it creates a huge impact on the engagement. If vendor is pursuing association with its clients as a partnership, it will always be a fruitful partnership. However if it is being looked only as vendor and client relationship then there are likely chances that issues may crop up over a period of time. Equally it is partnering organisations responsibility that they treat the vendor as a partner and value their suggestions whenever required. It's a mutual marriage of thoughts and actions between partner and client.
2. Innovative in thinking and suggestions
Many a times in a traditional model of outsourcing the vendor work only as per the guidelines of clients. However in today's era of knowledge and information the outsourcing vendor plays a pivotal role in guiding client towards the right solution. That is where the value add as an extended team/partner comes in. Your eLearning outsourcing partner/vendor must be innovative enough to suggest you what is the latest in the market and should be able to visualise the future technologies. Also, many a times an outsourcing vendor can help in reducing the Total Cost of outsourcing just by recommending some better tools or technologies.
3. Supportive and accommodative
In any eLearning outsourcing engagement initially the hiccups are bound to happen. In such situations the the outsourcing vendor has to be supportive enough to accommodate certain requests from the client. Many a times requests are mere the gaps of communications and it is really difficult to point out whose mistake it was. Hence it is important that your eLearning vendor supports you willingly to sort any differences that may occur due to this and accommodate some additional changes if any keeping in mind the long-term relationship.
If you vendor has these 3 basic ingredients, it makes a perfect choice for you. Because as a client there are certain expectations that one may have and as a service provider the eLearning vendor one must ensure that support is given in all stages of engagement to make it a successful engagement.
We would like to hear from you about your other expectations from your eLearning vendor and I am sure at Knowzies we help to address those.