Independent Outsourcing Advisors can certainly help avoid failures. However, be sure the advisor has significant experience that can be brought to bear. They will have seen different situations first hand and can help the client avoid the same pitfalls. Lack of planning, lack of follow up in execution, miscommunication, not understanding cultural differences, poor process, et cetera, are just a few of the areas that an outside advisor can help with.

If a client has not established an offshore outsourcing relationship, having an independent advisor can help formulate clearly articulated objectives and bring their expertise to the table with regard to process, selection, contract negotiations, and getting the transition going in an accelerated fashion. Frankly, this applies to offshore outsourcing and to creating a captive center in popular offshore locations.

Another benefit of an outside advisor is to help the client understand if they are getting a good deal (compared with the industry and other clients doing similar work with a similar type of outsourcer). This removes one potential area of mistrust in a relationship (from the perspective of a Western client).

Also, advisors that have people with a good understanding of the outsourcer’s national culture can explain cultural differences. Clients would be more inclined to ask cultural questions that they may otherwise not want to ask for fear stepping over a cultural line that they aren't aware of. I can’t tell you how many off-the-wall questions I got about India and Indian culture when I lived there. My experiences in Indian caused me to modify my approach when working in any other countries. First, I now seek to understand the cultural nuances that can have an impact. I open the door to cultural discussion to enable a free exchange of ideas in a non-threatening environment. Any offshoring advisor that didn’t help in this area would be remiss as so many problems start out as cultural misunderstandings that lead to mistrust and failed deals.

Personally, I have lived in India and the Philippines running outsourcing businesses and have assisted in setting up centers in China, Japan, and other areas. There is no real substitute for direct experience. I have heard so many stories where small issues or misunderstandings became big issues that created significant problems in outsourcing/offshoring relationships.

If the folks telling those stories had spoken to someone like myself or another offshore outsourcing provider who could recognize and diffuse the issues while they were small, many outsourcing relationships could have been saved. Once things spin out of control, it is much more difficult to reestablish the trust needed to sustain the relationship long term.

There are steps one can take to avoid those problems. Independent Advisors can most certainly help in establishing, repairing, maintaining, and improving client/provider relationships.

Even an outsourcing relationship that seems to be going well could use a periodic health check. Independent Advisors can help with this as well.