Exclusive Interview with Bohdan Semenov - CEO, Powercode

In this exclusive interview, He shared his experiences in IT and several more things. Let’s check his success story and thoughts.

1. What are the different types of outsourcing?

Onshoring, nearshoring, and offshoring, depending on the distance between the client and the outsourcing company.

2. Why do you think companies outsource? What benefits does outsourcing provide them?

Time, costs, expertise, and the quality of the final product are the main benefits and reasons why companies outsource. Companies don’t need to recruit skilled experts in development, design, marketing, or other fields and provide them with things like hardware, software, working place, and more.

3. What would you say are the top risks of outsourcing?

The biggest risk is hiring individuals who are not skilled enough for the job. So the company can receive a not properly-functioning product as a result. However, we live in the era of feedback and reviews, so you just need to do a little research on the team you want to hire.

4. What challenges do companies face when outsourcing their call center functions and how should they minimize risk to their core business?

Outsource call centers are being actively replaced with automated solutions like AI-driven chatbots. The only risk you can face in this case is software malfunctioning, but with the properly selected ready-made or custom chatbot solution, there won’t be any difficulties.

5. What are the top 3 questions a company should ask a potential outsourcer?

- What are your main requirements

-  How soon do you need your product to be developed and delivered

- What is your budget

6. What industry sector outsources the most?

When it comes to the IT field, many industries choose to outsource - Foodtech, eCommerce, Healthcare, Education, Entertainment, Real estate & hospitality, etc. These are actual industries that come to us for a solution most often.

7. What are the top 5 reasons organizations outsource?

Cost efficiency, quality of services, talent pool, product development, and delivery speed, and the variety of expertise in a wide range of technologies.

8. What effects do legislation (e.g. DMA/FTC, etc.) have on the outsourcing industry and what are your views on this?

My personal view on the legislation is mixed. I hope it will bring some balance between safety and freedom on the Internet. In terms of the outsourcing industry, it won’t impact the majority of companies. In most cases, IT companies are contractors and create products by the client’s requirements, and the responsibility for matching the state laws is on the client. There were some legislation changes recently like GDPR, HIPAA, etc. We are flexible, so there are no problems for us to implement any changes if needed.

9. What challenges do offshore outsourcers face that domestic ones do not?

I can say that there are no specific challenges because all-important conditions can be discussed at the very beginning of the collaboration. Language and time differences are no longer the challenges for both an outsourcer and outsourcing companies.

10. What are the key drivers for companies to outsource offshore?

Offshore outsourcing is highly beneficial for companies in the US, Canada, Western Europe, Australia, etc., because outsourcers can pay less money for products and services and get an equal or even better quality than from local or nearshore teams.

11. How have the campaigns and projects companies outsource changed over the last 5 years?

Today, many companies come for complex solutions for business that require deep expertise in various technologies and understanding the client’s industry and current market conditions and rules.

12. What would you say are the top 5 questions a company should ask a prospective outsourcer?

-   What are your business goals and needs? -   What results do you expect from your future product? -   Have you provided market research for your future product? -   What is your budget? -   How fast do you expect your product to be developed?

13. Do you feel that a client of an outsourcer should have unrestricted access to agents/reps working on their behalf and why do you believe this?

Definitely yes! We are building a partnership with our clients, and it’s impossible without direct and free communication. It builds relations on a different level when we are not just a faceless vendor but an important part of the team and the project. Transparency is a business trend for a reason.

14. What industry sectors tend to outsource more than others (e.g. financial services, utilities, etc.)

After what happened to the world in 2020, all industries understand the importance of a good-quality digital product. Even the largest corporations in Foodtech, Healthcare, eCommerce, and other industries often choose to outsource their digital product development or upgrade.

15. What management and motivation challenges do outsourcing companies face with their staff?

These challenges are always individual. While some specialists enjoy big and complex projects, others enjoy working on short-term ones. At Powercode, we ensure that our staff has the most comfortable work conditions, and there’s no room for misunderstandings and negativity.

16. How can outsourcers and clients ensure a fair partnership agreement?

Agreements, both verbal and legally documented, are the key to a fair partnership.

17. What are the main advantages of using brokers when considering outsourcing some, or all, of your contact center functions?

We prefer building direct partnerships and networks. The work through brokers model is not sustainable in the long term.

18. What would you say are the top 5 questions a company should ask a prospective outsourcer?

-  What are your business goals and needs? -  What results do you expect from your future product? -  Have you provided market research for your future product? -  What is your budget? -  How fast do you expect your product to be developed?

19. What is the role of service standards when outsourcing?

Service standards are the key to a great and fruitful collaboration between an outsourcer and an outsourcing company. Also, they guarantee that the customer is fully satisfied with your company and becomes a returning client.

20. What role do associations play in helping companies select and use outsourcing services?

From our perspective, associations play on the other field. It is more of a tool to collaborate with the government. I haven’t heard of the cases when a company chooses a partner because it participates in an association. Sometimes companies cooperate within an association to handle a big project.

21. Have you seen any trends in your area on the type of outsourcing companies that have established themselves in your area and what would you attribute this to?

Yes, we can divide the IT field in Ukraine into clusters. The majority of companies are service providers with a focus on out staffing for Western companies. The IT community in our country is still young, and outsourcing is the easiest way to operate. For the last five years, more and more product companies and startups have appeared on the market, often on the basis of outsourcing providers. Because there are engineers on the bench, companies try to build their own products to engage developers while looking for the next commercial project for them.