Click here to get this post in PDF
Running a business effectively requires keeping track of a lot of moving parts. But because most people can’t do this on their own, or even with the full-time employees that they can afford to hire, it often makes sense to hire outside service providers to take care of specialized things for your business. However, managing these providers can also come with its own sets of challenges.
To help those currently dealing with issues in this manner, here are three tips for being the point of contact for outside service providers for your business.
Know What Services You’re Paying For
In many businesses, especially larger corporations, the people who do the hiring and negotiating for outside service providers usually aren’t the same ones interacting with them daily. So if this is how things are set up at your organization, many details might get lost in translation along the way, including what’s been negotiated for.
To rectify this situation, you, as the point of contact for an outside service provider, need to know exactly what services you’re paying for and how those services are to be given to your organization. Without this knowledge, you may get the short end of the stick with some of your providers. And when they’re helping you with things like server maintenance support or other aspects vital to your business, you want to know exactly what your expectations are.
Set Benchmarks That You Both Can Measure Against
Once you have everything in place for an outside service provider to work for your business, one way that you can ensure that things proceed along as you need them to is to set benchmarks that you can measure the provider against.
With these benchmarks in place, you’ll be able to keep your outsider service provider honest about the kind of value they’re adding to your business. Along with this, you’ll also be able to know if the service you’re being provided is getting the results you had imagined.
Outline Standards Of Communication
When you’re the point of contact for outside service providers, you’re in charge of communicating with them on behalf of your business. But for many people, this is the hardest part of working with vendors.
To help you with this aspect of your relationship, you should outline standards of communication that you expect from your outside service providers. Find ways that you can effectively communicate with one another so that nothing slips through the cracks and very little is allowed to get lost in translation between you and this all-important service provider.
If you’re tasked with being the point of contact for a service provider assisting your corporation, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you fulfill this role effectively.
You may also like: Small Business Tasks to Outsource: Save Money and Time
Image source: Depositphotos.com
