The corporate industry has evolved tremendously throughout the years. Back then, all an accounting firm needed to get started was accountants just like an IT enterprise needed IT executives.
However, with the advent of the internet and advancing business strategies, the corporate culture is now more competitive than ever.
As of today, starting entrepreneurs need a group of experts with backgrounds in several niches at their disposal.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) occasionally need tasks done that fall out of the area of their employees’ expertise.
Furthermore, amid the surging inflation and on-the-spot client demands, it gets costly and taxing for companies and their managers to hire new employees and give them formal training.
Staff augmentation and project outsourcing provide companies with definitive solutions to these problems.
Most individuals consider these two the same directives, but they have several fundamental differences that should be considered before deciding which one to opt for.
Table of Contents
Staff Augmentation
During the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States, the Texas Emergency Medical Task Forces (TxEMTF) received an urgent request for assistance from a regional hospital.
Its purpose is to call to duty staff from healthcare organizations and deploy them where they are needed during a state-declared disaster.
The hospital was experiencing hospital saturation led by the inability to transfer patients to different facilities. There was a shortage of staff and medical equipment. (TxEMTF) deployed the staff in the affected hospitals.
The staff worked for another hospital while getting paid from its home institution.
This system works on an agreement that allows staff to work during a state emergency while getting paid from their home agencies.
Modern institutions have adopted this method when they are in need of a special skill set for a shorter period of time.
For example, a firm would hire marketing experts on a contractual basis to have them train their workforce.
The function of such a workforce is also to assist the existing staff when the company is unable to hire employees for additional workload.
The success or failure of a task entirely depends on the individual rather than their institutions i.e., similar to that of permanent staff.
Most companies have agreements with a number of firms for staff augmentation. It helps managers to filter out the individual who is best suited for the project.
Moreover, in staff augmentation projects there is usually an informal contract. Companies terminate it if the individuals do not meet their requirements or are not performing at par with their standards.
However, there are co-employment concerns that you should be aware of. If you go for independent contractors, remember to not treat them like your employees. They are there as contractors.
To avoid risks, partner with an established staff augmentation firm.
Expertise Accelerated’s staff augmentation solutions provide highly skilled and scalable professional resources to help companies gain a competitive edge.
The stand-out benefit of staff augmentation is that it gives the company flexibility to hire staff as per need and put an end to the contract when the work has been completed.
But this is only when companies opt for staff augmentation for a shorter period of time. For longer durations, staff augmentation has proven to be costlier than hiring permanent staff. A staff augmentation firm with offshore resources is an effective alternative.
Project Outsourcing
This is where outsourcing comes in where a company pays for the services rather than the individual.
Quality assured services are wholly the outsourcing firm’s responsibility. The company does not interview individuals but the outsourcing firms decide who and how many people are going to carry out the services.
If a company cannot afford to hire permanent employees or a contractor for long-term projects, outsourcing is the most viable option.
For example, starting out as an entrepreneur, most business owners cannot afford to hire accountants nor do they have the leisure to manage their accounting themselves.
EA outsourcing accounting services offers offshore professional resources that provide excellence in accounting and finance, ensuring 60% savings on payroll costs.
Furthermore, the absence of a specific skillset compels enterprises to rely on outsourcing staff. Provision of expert oversight and cost-effective solutions remains the priority for companies.
Managers have more headspace to stay focused on primary tasks. Companies also dodge hiring and training costs. And the risk of losing key staff is significantly reduced.
However, there is lower flexibility in outsourcing. As the contract is usually long-term and companies outsource for a specific skill set so there is little room for daily changes.
Conclusion
Staff augmentation and outsourcing both come with their respective advantages and drawbacks, the decisive factor lies in the company’s need of the hour.
If there is a priority project that requires a specific skill set for a shorter period of time or the existing staff needs to acquire a new skill, staff augmentation provides a cost-effective solution with minimal risk of the other party quitting.
If an enterprise is looking for assured long-term expertise for one of its departments and to save costs on hiring permanent staff, outsourcing provides cost-effective alternatives to help top management stay focused on business development.
If you are aspiring for accelerated growth and savings, a free consultation with our CEO Haroon Jafree – C-suite expert with the CPG industry in the USA, would help.