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The Brown-Wilson Group, an outsourcing industry consulting firm, says in its report
“Black Book of Outsourcing: 2007” that corporations are shifting their environmental
concerns to service providers—Brown Wilson Group, 2007.
The report is based on a study of 120,000 outsourcing users. In 2007, 43 percent of
companies that were first-time outsourcers included green factors in their decision-making
process. Of the entire field of respondents, 88 percent said that environmental issues would
influence their decision-making process.
But the decision to push green initiatives isn’t wholly a principled one. Brown-Wilson
says there is a lot of pressure from investors and consumers for companies to be more
environmentally responsible.
At the same time, private companies aren’t considering outsourcing at the same rate as
publicly traded companies. The study also found that 94 percent of executives in publicly
traded companies intend to add green clauses when they renegotiate their agreements.
Conversely, only 36 percent of privately owned companies are considering such a move.
The study seems to show that investors are partly responsible for the green move. Is it
because they’re concerned about the environment? It very well could be. But it could also
affect their bottom line. By investing in green companies, investors believe the companies
will flourish, thus making their stock go up. But also, socially responsible companies can
gain an edge against their competition because of cost reductions, quality improvements,
increased profits, and access to new markets. Environmentally responsible companies also
face less risk of environmental liability.

How to Outsource
Outsourcing is becoming more and more popular as a way to cut costs. But it isn’t just an
issue of cutting operational costs that makes it an ecologically friendly way to do business.
When you need to add computer and staff capacity for a project, or as part of a growing
business, you face the issues of buying equipment, paying for its cost of operation, and so
forth. Outsourcing takes that burden off your shoulders and gives it to a company that
already has the staff and equipment in place.
In order to outsource a project, you have to understand the issues surrounding the process.

Planning
When you outsource, you become the client. In order for an outsourcing project to be
successful, you need to thoroughly explain what you want the outsourcing service provider
to accomplish. Before looking for an outsourcing service, you need to understand the
following:
• The scope of the work
• The level of effort expected
• The schedule
• The performance goals (used to mark the project’s progress)
Establishing project milestones is a good way to develop the project, because they
establish deliverables along with deadlines for each deliverable. This will take more work,
however, because a feasibility and scoping study must be finished that establishes the full
scope of the work, the milestones, and the budget.