Category Archives: Management

24 tech workers for each manager?

August 15, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management, Of Interest, Software Development | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Too many Indians and not enough chiefs!
I am always amazed by India. India has mastered the art of spreading valuable assets thinly. The meat is tiny pieces in Chinese fried rice in India. The portions of chicken are minute in biryani (to my dismay.) Managers are also spread thin at Indian software companies.

Managers are expensive in India
The reason why the ratio of managers to workers in India is so bad is because the pay rate for managers is very high since managers are in such short supply. In America, a manager might get paid 20-100% more than a worker. But, in India, a manager might get paid 2x to 8x the amount a worker gets in a high tech company for example. I don’t know the exact number, and the numbers change over time — but, this is the approximation of the reality.

You can’t watch your workers
The problem with having too many workers and not enough managers is that you can’t really watch your workers if you are so spread out. If you have self-managing workers, you don’t need to watch them much, and you don’t need to critique their work.

My way of looking at this problem is as follows.
If you have twenty-four workers who are all completely self-sustaining and know exactly what to do with hardly any intervention, then you might be able to have ten or more to a manager. I’m not sure if twenty-four works even under ideal circumstances. But, many workers play tricks, or don’t know how to get things done. If you have a team of twenty-four, it is likely that many will be trouble in some way, shape or form. New workers who have not been screened should ideally be placed in smaller teams so their work can be evaluated. If they do flawless work and can function without intervention, then perhaps they can be transferred to a larger team. New workers and problem workers need to be in smaller teams where you can keep more of an eye on them. In my opinion, the value of a worker is proportional to their productivity minus the amount of hell you go through trying to manage them. In many cases, many workers might have a sub-zero value (put on your sweater and winter hat.)

My personal story
I have too many things to do and several people to manage. I can’t manage them and do my own work at the same time. I have to put something on the back burner since I’m so busy. Unfortunately, it is common for me to get behind trying to manage my programmers. I just wonder how far behind a manager with twenty-four workers gets? Perhaps they just are not really managing those people at all…

Bathe and meditate before making business decisions

July 23, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Do you make business decisions at the office? Sure, most of us go to an office to work everyday, but offices are actually not the best place to work, or to make decisions. Hmm! Offices are good places to have meetings and to watch less experienced workers. If we all knew what we were doing and were trustworthy, we could all work at home, couldn’t we! So, when and where do we make our big decisions?

What are meetings good for?
Meetings are good for exchanging ideas, brainstorming, and meeting new people. The ideas bounce between different people and can develop as they go around the table. Some experts say that you shouldn’t have more than seven people at a meeting otherwise it undermines the efficiency of the meeting. Other experts say that meetings are usually an inefficient use of time and should be kept to a minimum. I can’t advise on that, but there are many blog articles on the topic! Meetings are good for what they are good for. After you have attained the benefit of the meeting, adjourn it and go back to work!

Sleep on it
But, for the actual decision, sometimes it is good to sleep on it. For complicated decisions, we need to be in a more spiritually pure frame of mind. Taking a bath and meditating before attempting to tackle a hard decision is a good idea. Late at night when it is hopefully quiet and there are few if any distractions might be the time to make that decision.

Thinking while walking & talking?
But, there’s more! I have made the best decisions of my life while talking on the phone during my daily walk. The best artists, musicians and philosophers often are reclusive people who take long walks — at least historically this is a true fact. I often talk to my psychic while I’m walking. He can sometimes give great answers to my questions. But, sometimes, I answer my own questions just by talking to him. Perhaps I’m subconsciously absorbing his thinking abilities, or perhaps, by talking about the issues even to my cat, the answer would come to me because I’m stimulating my own mind!

A final thought!
This might sound bizarre, and it is. I was in line for some pasta in my neighborhood. There is a place that has been in business since 1963 believe it or not. They are very inexpensive and often have a very long line for their pasta, vegetables, chicken, shrimp, and other specialties. I was upset that I was going to waste so much time in line. But, then I whipped out my i-phone and started writing notes in the notes section. I came up with thirteen really interesting blog ideas in only twenty minutes. Maybe I should have pasta more often!

Putting clients on hold at a call center is a big problem

June 3, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Call Center, Management | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Call centers operate for their own profitability. If you have agents sitting around with nothing to do, you’re losing money, right? Not exactly. If you have too few agents, then when a caller calls at a busy time, you will have to put them on hold. Customers really don’t like being put on hold. It tries their patience, and wastes their time. You might be paying a certain rate for call center workers, but the time of your client calling in might be worth $100 per hour. Each minute you keep them waiting is close to $2 in lost productivity. First of all, your client’s time is worth more than your agents’ time. Second, if your client fires you as their call center, you could stand to lose tens of thousands per month! I am amazed that when I personally call call centers, it is almost impossible to reach a competent manager. They just never seem to be at their desk. Where are they hiding? Do they want to avoid getting new clients?

I often joke that the difference between India and the USA, is that in India, service waits for you while in America, we wait for service. Of course, the quality of the service from coolies, rickshaw drivers, and other people in their category is very far from being polished or pleasant. But, at least they are usually there, and waiting. If you could combine quality and considerate service with the, “They wait for you instead of you waiting for them” principle, you might have a call center that is more popular than you think.

Sit down and think about it. Do you run your call center for your personal pleasure, or for the pleasure of those who call in needing help? I created a business proverb a year or two ago.

If in a conflict between a customer and a substandard worker, you side with the worker, you’ll end up with more bad workers and fewer customers.

If you operate your business for the benefit of your customers, you will end up with more customers, and fewer you’s, if that is possible. Think about it!

Only 1% of customers feel they get the service they deserve

June 2, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Only 1% of customers are completely satisfied
A CEI survey revealed that only 1% of customers feel that vendors are meeting their expectations. Of course, there are different industries, different countries and different individuals involved. But, I have a lot of personal experience working with many companies. It is really only my accountant who meets my expectations for service. She does a great job, and offers a few valuable tips without being asked. Additionally, she answers her phone even when she is busy and doesn’t miss deadlines. Everyone else I have ever dealt with has let me down one way or another. Some companies let me down every single time!

Most people will pay for better service
86% of customers according to the survey would be willing to pay more for better service. Would they pay enough to justify your costs? It is not clear. However, if customers are dissatisfied with 99% of the companies out there, if you are the 1% that doesn’t disappoint them, then imagine how fast your business will grow!

Resolve problems quickly
The best way to resolve problems is to avoid having problems in the first place. But, if you have a problem, try to solve it fast before the resentment grows in a customer. Sometimes the problem is that the client wants something that it is not your policy to deliver. Or they feel they are entitled to special treatment and then get upset if they don’t receive it! Putting unreasonable requests aside, try to resolve all problems as fast as humanly possible. Listen to the client, understand how they feel, and find solutions. Sometimes you can’t solve their problem, but you can find other ways to make their problem better. Or, you can give them something of value for free to show you care, even if you were not able to rectify whatever they were calling about. Being cared about will score you lots of points in the eyes of many clients, especially in this world where nobody else cares!

Customer service as an investment
Training your employees how to be the smoothest at customer service is important. Selecting those who will be naturally inclined to do a good job is also important. It pays to invest in good service. After all, how many clients will you keep if your service is nonexistent or horrible?

Is it immoral not to let your workers go to the bathroom?

May 31, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Some companies in certain countries don’t let their workers go to the bathroom, except during their breaks. Is this cruel and unusual treatment? Laws vary from country to country and I know very little about this situation. However, the psychological effects of being treated like a slave cannot be good. If you are working hard, particularly at a call center job, you need to relieve yourself, or the pressure can really mount up. Additionally, imagine how you will feel if someone else tells you when you may have permission to use the bathroom. You will resent such a person.

A place of escape
On a converse note, I will say that in my personal experience, the bathroom is a place of escape for uncommitted workers. This escape mechanism might be what is responsible for the oppressive rules. I once had a programmer who spent half her life in the bathroom. Every time I called, she was in the bathroom. Was she texting? What was she doing? Or was she just avoiding me? If you have a company to run, you can’t have workers go to the bathroom ten times a day and spend long hours in there. Women tend to spend a lot longer in the bathroom than men.

Employees who abuse their bathroom privilege
Having strict bathroom rules for all people is cruelty. But, for those individuals who abuse their bathroom privileges, there need to be rules. If you work eight hours a day and two are spent in the bathroom, that is horrible. For those that spend more than an average of twenty minutes a day in the bathroom, there needs to be some sort of rules. The first rule would be tracking. There should ideally be a way to track how many minutes a particular employee spends in the bathroom and at what times. If someone is abusing the privilege, then perhaps they should be fired.

I’m not sure how to handle the bathroom dilemma, but rules should only apply towards those who can’t function without rules! Gotta go. Never mind, someone else is in the bathroom. I’ll have to wait!

Google has its employees devote time to innovation, what about you?

May 20, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Innovation, Management | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

A book about Google
Many years ago I read a book about Google. They ask their employees to spend 20% of their time doing innovative projects that are not for profit. Sometimes the projects deliver amazing results, other times not. But, the benefit is that their employees’ minds are always expanding and become more adapted to doing effective creative work.

Most don’t try to mold their employees
Most other companies out there don’t try to mold their employees. What about your company? Do you just hire people who you think are good and fire them when you find out they are bad? Not very creative! Don’t you think that whomever works for you might do better if you molded them a bit? You could give them some type of coaching, or have them do interesting things in addition to whatever their main tasks are. That way, after a few months or years, they might turn into very much more evolved employees capable of handling much more difficult tasks!

Innovative tasks to give your staff
There are many innovative tasks you could give to your staff. You could have them devise creative new ways to schedule company business. They could change the seating arrangement. They could think of new marketing techniques, or technical ways to solve problems. The sky is the limit. Your company might be a little odd if the seating arrangement went haywire, but it would definitely liven things up a tad, don’t you think?

The point is that people will start thinking more if you ask them to think. If their thoughts will have consequences, they will think even harder, so they create positive new realities. Taking time out to innovate takes time and attention though. Your staff might need to take time away from daily tasks to innovate. So, if you really want a more interesting and intelligent company culture, you have to invest in it. But, the results could be something you can’t even dream of in your current state of mind!

I would write more on this topic, but I have to go — I have an innovation session now!

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You might also like:

How to create a culture like Google’s and have fun doing it!
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2015/03/14/how-to-create-a-company-culture-like-googles-have-fun-while-doing-it/

Steve Jobs watched his programmers carefully, so should you!
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2013/10/10/steve-jobs-watched-his-programmers-carefully-so-should-you/

Want to be good at innovating? Start questioning everything!
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/08/30/want-to-be-good-at-innovating-start-questioning-everything/

Steve Jobs Principle: The more you network with people outside of your field, the better you will be at innovating.
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/08/28/outsource-steve-jobs-principle-the-more-people-you-network-w-outside-your-field/

How to develop the Google culture within you
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2015/03/22/how-to-develop-the-google-culture-within-you/

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Half Company; Half School?

May 17, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management, Popular on Twitter | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

To my dismay, most employees out there just aren’t that great. It doesn’t matter what profession we are talking about (although doctors and attorneys are generally good,) but people just don’t measure up. If you only hire the best and forget the rest, then the other guy will get stuck with the 99% of people who are rejects. In the real world, to make the world a better place, education needs to continue.

Many call center operations have continuous monitoring and training. These are the call centers that do well. They get it. But, how about the rest of the world?

You can hire people based on how good a worker they would be. But, if your company devoted 5-10% of the employees hours to being trained, you might start hiring people based on how well they respond to training. If they are not receptive, you can’t use them. If you gained a reputation for being good at training, people might accept lower salaries since they know they will benefit in other ways.

But, imagine the quality of your employees if you give raises every six months, and keep training them. After several years, you might have the best people in the industry! You will get a reputation for having the best people. People at your company might be more enthusiastic too since you helped them so much!

I find that at many companies, the workers have bad communication skills. English language skills and general communication skills are often overlooked. When I go for spa treatments, only 10% of spas have staff that speak good English over the phone. How much business do you think they are losing due to their bad communication skills? Wouldn’t it be worth it to have two ninety minute sessions where people could be coached in their English skills? That way you will understand me when I say,

Me: “A little to the left… harder…”
Spa worker: “Harder? What that word mean?”
Me: “More strong!”
Spa worker: “Oh, more strong. I know that word, but I don’t know the H word because I dropped out of my English class because I had to work to support myself.”

How can someone survive in the Shiatsu profession when they don’t know what left, right and harder mean? Training is expensive, and time consuming. Perhaps it will even be frustrating for you and your employees. But, most other companies have incompetent workers. If you have smart, well trained people working for you, you will be able to gravitate more clients and charge more!

Don’t be a company
Be half company, half school

You might also like:

Why your sitar & tabla lessons are the most important training for business
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2015/12/27/why-your-sitar-tabla-lessons-are-the-most-important-training-for-business-2/

Should your company have a pre-hiring training program?
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/07/22/should-your-company-have-a-pre-hiring-training-program/

Should India’s government be involved in employee training?
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2016/02/18/should-indias-government-be-involved-in-employee-training/

Companies that just don’t give a damn

May 14, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

In the competitive world of business, it seems that many companies deliver unfriendly and mediocre service and don’t even care. Employees stay a much shorter time at jobs than ever before in recorded history. It is only in Japan that a cultural type of loyalty exists between employee and the mother company. They have to be loyal for life — or lose a finger. Maybe I’m confusing corporate culture with the Yakuza — I get confused sometimes when I don’t get enough sleep.

In any case, putting bad jokes aside, I just can’t figure out why most service providers just don’t put much effort into customer retention. One trend I noticed is that small companies want to attract big clients and don’t care at all about little ones. This makes no sense because a few little clients add up to a big one, and if you lose a little one you are still in business. But, if your business only has two big clients, lose one, and you are done! But, putting big and small aside, why would a company want to lose any client? Clients bring in revenue, why wouldn’t you want all the revenue you can get?

Why do so many companies have people who just won’t call you back. People who just won’t get work done on time. People who tell you not to be so demanding? Do I have unreasonably high standards or am I just asking for the combination of respect and functionality?

If you want your company to grow, or keep its meager existence, start giving a damn.

On a brighter note, there is a huge company in India that gives a dam. Tata. They have built at least one large dam in India!

Why hire a freelancer instead of a company?

April 28, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

As I get more experienced in business, I realize that BPO companies are not all they are cracked up to be. If you hire a small BPO company to outsource your tasks to, you get stuck with whomever they hire to do the work and whomever they hire to manage your work. My experience tells me that management at small companies is always dismal. I have never seen good management at a small company in my life and I have dealt with many dozen of them over the years. Keeping deadlines and doing quality work never seems to be a priority unless you are a huge client which I am not. I feel that quality should be for all clients and not just large ones. Additionally, there seems to be no desire to do what is necessary to keep clients. Companies do what they want to and how they want to, and if you don’t like it, that is your problem — they are not concerned.

Skill levels can vary
At any of the BPO companies that I have hired, there is always a vast range of skill levels. If I am paying top dollar, or need a complicated task done, I need someone who is capable and responsible. I seem to rarely get this combination, or either of its components when hiring companies. Additionally, you never know what the skill level of a new person will be at those BPO companies. Let’s say that your programmer is busy and they want to pair you with their other programmer. You have no idea how good or bad that other person will be. Your entire business could be compromised.

Personality pairing
I found that people who don’t like me don’t do good work — ever… If I hire an outside company to do tasks for me, I have to make sure that the boss likes me and that the worker(s) like me. If there is a disconnect on any level, the work will suffer greatly.

Hiring a freelancer is easier.
You are only dealing with one person. That person has one skill level and one personality. They can manage them self, or you can manage them. You are never stuck with a middleman who insists on being the go-between. Those go-betweens always fail on delivering finished work in my experience. Another point to consider is that the most talented people I have ever worked with were freelancers. I did find that around 20% of people working for small companies were excellent! But, the freelancers I hired were a few notches better than even the best people who work at companies!

The next question is how to outsource freelancing work overseas?
Odesk is a solution, but what if you don’t like the people advertising there, or what if you don’t like Odesk’s rigid terms? Is there a way to find freelanced call center clerks or programmers overseas? Hmm! Maybe we should advertise for them! Maybe that will be our next niche!

You might also like:

Good sign bad sign: What to look for in newly hired workers
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/01/13/outsource-blog-good-sign-bad-sign-what-to-look-for-in-newly-hired-workers/

What does Warren Buffet look for when he hires people?
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/02/12/what-does-warren-buffet-look-for-when-he-hires-people/

The bidding war — a way to test companies out!

April 25, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

It is customary for people to compare bids when hiring a contractor. But, for longer term relationships, it is more complicated. I have learned that a company might bid a reasonable amount on a particular job, but then bid a crazy amount on job #2. If you want to hire someone who can handle anything that you throw at them for the next 10 years, you need to think about how much they can handle.

I gave a bid for a moderately easy project to about 50 companies to see who was in range. I had to give it to many, so that I would be able to choose from the ones who bid within range. What I learned was that only 20% of companies bid within range. A few underbid through desperation or stupidity, while most overbid — through stupidity, or hour padding — or both. But, the lesson that I learned was that when I gave companies who bid reasonably on the first bid — a second more complicated bid, many of them fell on their face.

There are bids on easy projects, medium, and more difficult projects. The range in bids is more extreme and unpredictable on complicated projects. If you are testing someone out to see if they can handle complicated work, you might start them off with the harder bid first, and then give them an easier bid.

I’m testing dozens of companies out. I give them a test project to weed them out. Most companies are too irresponsible to complete a simple assignment on their own initiative. The problem is that after I weed companies out with bidding and small test projects, there don’t seem to be more than 2% who make it through my easy hurdles. Depressing, but at least I am learning good methodology for testing companies out.

If you need a long term service provider, a test is no good unless you test them on the hardest project that you will ever assign to them!

Tweets:
(1) If you’re testing companies out, do you give the hard test 1st or an easy one?
(2) When we requested a 2nd more complicated bid, most companies fell on their face!

You might also like:

The second test project & the second bid
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/01/22/the-second-test-project-the-second-bid/

You are a helpless victim if you hire the wrong company
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2013/07/04/you-are-a-helpless-victem-if-you-hire-the-wrong-company/

The right sized company to outsource to

April 22, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management, Popular on Twitter, Semi-Popular | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

In my quest to find the right programming companies, I have learned a lot. There are different cultures, different skill levels, and different sizes of companies. Some companies have workers who work remotely, while others have everyone in an office. I learned that I didn’t generally do too well with one-man shows unless they were above average in skills and always answered their phones. I found a writer who fit that description. But, programmers have the “Don’t answer your phone” gene that prevents them from matching my criteria.

I was thinking that bigger = better. But, the bigger companies were often too snobby to work for me, or too uncoordinated to even know what their schedule was like. They also lacked the intimacy of smaller companies.

After a lot of looking around, I found that companies that had 6-12 people total were ideal. Unfortunately, in America there are very few that match this criteria. I hired a company in India with 20 people who was good. But, they grew to 45 members and now it is too crazy to deal with them. They lost their star employees and replaced them with chaos and more chaos. In my case, the closer a company gets to having 9 employees, the better they are. But, if they have less than 6, it never works out. I’m not sure why this math determines a result, but the numbers don’t like.

A company of the right size is important. You can get to know the boss well. If that company grows out of control, the boss will be too busy to talk to you or manage things well. So, I need a lot of backup companies. What if I find someone perfect, and then they grow too much? They might stop being perfect — what a scary thought. Additionally, I might add that in India the companies with 6-20 people generally make it easier to talk to someone really smart. At larger companies in India, you start off talking to someone who is so dumb, they can’t even answer the question, “What city are you located in?” They always need to transfer me the minute I ask them a trick question like that. I can’t figure it out!

Tweets:
(1) In my quest to find the right companies to hire, I have learned a lot.
(2) Companies with 6-20 people generally make it easier to talk to someone really smart.
(3) Large companies are often too snobby to accept smaller clients.

You might also like:

Is bigger always better in business?
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/02/11/is-bigger-always-better-in-business/

Good sign bad sign: what to look for in newly hired companies or workers
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/01/13/outsource-blog-good-sign-bad-sign-what-to-look-for-in-newly-hired-workers/

Is it better to hire your own top-notch employee or outsource your task?

April 13, 2014 by 123outsource
Categories: Management, Semi-Popular | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Is it better to hire your own top-notch employee or outsource your task?

The answer is not so simple.
If you have repetitive tasks that require exactly 40 hours per week to do, then hire an employee. But, what if you only need a few hours a day of specialized service? You might outsource the task to a company, or a highly skilled freelancer! In the end, it is really about finding someone who can get the job done they way you want it done.

Being in control of your new helper
Sure, you can hire your own employee. If you hire someone, it is easier to watch them if they are sitting next to you than if they are hundreds or thousands of miles away working for someone else. It is also easier to control an employee. You can say, “Do it my way or your’re fired!” Try saying that to someone at an outsourced company. They have to do what THEIR boss says, not what you say. You will be more in control (generally) if you hire your own person.

The outsourced company might be better at hiring
Anyone can hire someone to help them out. But, someone who specializes in hiring within a particular specialty might be better at hiring those types of people. On the other hand, the company might have mediocre taste in those that they hire, while you might be more discriminating. Additionally, it is easier to work with someone who you have a good personality match with. Someone who you hire is more likely to be compatible with you than an outsourced worker. Bad personal relationships almost always lead to substandard work with outsourced workers!

Having enough work?
If you run a small company, you sometimes don’t have enough work for a full-time employee. The other problem is that your full-time employee might not be able to do all of the tasks that you assign them, or might not be that good at half of the tasks. If you outsource a task, they do as many hours as you assign them. Freelancers are in the same boat. If you don’t mind having an employee sitting around twiddling their thumbs, or being paid overtime, you might be able to handle the work fluctuations. Or, if you have more than 40 hours of work per week to give to someone new, hire an employee and give the remainder to an outsourced company!

Letting it pile up?
If you have 25 hours a week of work for someone to do, and you let it pile up for a while, it might become 40 hours a week of work if you include playing catch up ball. On the other hand, if your new employee quits or gets fired quickly, you might quickly find yourself very painfully behind. The pile up strategy is very interesting, but has its pitfalls!

What should you do?
If you need to outsource a task, consider all of the options. Interview lots of outsourced companies, freelancers, and prospective employees. Try your best options after some analysis, and then commit to the best option and see what happens!

Tweets:
(1) If you have repetetive tasks that require exactly 40 hours per week to do, then hire an employee
(2) If you need specialized service, hire an outsourced company or a highly skilled freelancer!
(3) It’s easier to watch your help if if they are right next to you & NOT 5000 miles away in India!
(4) If you hire your own employee rather than outsourcing, you’re more likely to get personality compatibility!
(5) If you run a small company, you sometimes don’t have enough work for a full-time employee. Time to outsource!
(6) Bad personal relationships in the workplace almost always lead to substandard work!
(7) If you have 25 hrs/week of work to do and let it pile up for a few months, it becomes 40 hours playing catchup ball.

You might also like:

Good sign bad sign: what to look for in newly hired workers
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2014/01/13/outsource-blog-good-sign-bad-sign-what-to-look-for-in-newly-hired-workers/

A 20 minute office visit reveals the character of a company!
http://bpo.123outsource.net/2013/12/12/a-20-minute-office-visit-reveals-the-character-of-a-company/