Functional outsourcing is a specific form of outsourcing that focuses on essential business tasks that do not form part of an organisation’s core business. The success of functional outsourcing comes down to accessing the right workforces, and combining them with the training, processes and technology that each function requires.
With over 30 years’ experience in staffing and outsourcing, our team has built sector-specific skills so that we can support our clients in highly specialised functional outsourcing needs. For example, we have productivity specialists within Manufacturing, Warehousing and Logistics, and we are a member of SAPICS, APSO and Capes.
The benefits of functional outsourcing
In its 2020 Global Outsourcing Survey, Deloitte found that the main reasons companies choose functional outsourcing is cost saving, followed by flexibility, speed to market, access to tools and processes and agility.
This is because competitive businesses today need to be all about faster, better, cheaper – without sacrificing quality. As companies race against each other to provide superior services, they need to be agile enough to adapt to the constantly changing needs and demands of today’s world. Functional outsourcing delivers on this promise.
When we work with our warehousing clients, it’s a given that their core business is logistics, but there are many additional functions that support logistics that are not necessarily warehousing-specific.
Here are a few key benefits that functional outsourcing delivers in the warehousing and logistics sector:
- Specialist knowledge, expertise and experience relating to each outsourced function.
- Expertise in South Africa’s labour dynamics.
- A responsibility for any licences or accreditation that the work requires. This is particularly critical when it comes to SHEQ (safety, health, environment and quality) regulations and risk mitigation.
- Staying abreast of industry changes and trends, learning new techniques and constantly developing employee skills.
- An investment into the required technology or systems that support the functions we take care of, which means our clients do not need to invest in those systems and technology themselves.
- In-house industrial engineers and process optimisation experts who unlock cost efficiency and optimisation, ultimately benefiting our clients and driving competitiveness.
- A premium service standard that is supported by competitive pricing. Clients only pay for what they use, so costs are managed.
- Outsourcing of non-core activities removes the responsibility of staff recruitment, maintenance and discipline (including management of labour issues and disputes). This offers the flexibility to reduce or discontinue certain services in an adverse economic environment, without the cost of retrenchments.
Consistency and stability
Outsourcing builds a level of consistency in your business. In an industry where time is literally money and how streamlined your logistics processes are means the difference between winning or losing a contract, employee turnover is painful. There is never a good time for someone to resign. Not only do you have to find a suitable replacement in a short amount of time, but all the time and money you spent on developing the staff member leaves too. Outsourcing creates consistency in the business, staff turnover becomes someone else’s concern, and your operations continue smoothly without interruption.
The FunxionO difference
FunxionO enables agile, focused and skilled workforces for the future. We’re able to deliver on this ambitious purpose because of the sheer scale and quality of skills we can access, delivering people who add value on day one.
As functional outsourcing experts, we are committed to providing unique process outsourcing solutions that are rooted in integration, partnership and risk-sharing, enabling our clients to accelerate productivity, ensure business continuity and reduce costs.
We follow an operational approach that’s not based on a labour-intensive model, but rather on a measurable-productivity model. Together with our clients, we create solutions to optimise productivity levels and efficiencies.
Visit FunxionO by Adcorp today to find out how we can assist your business!
