Successful outsourcing requires expertise and attitude

Normet Oy, a Finnish manufacturer of mining and tunneling equipment based in Iisalmi, has found outsourcing an effective way to increase flexibility and sharpen the focus on the company’s core business. The most recent outsourcing operation was carried out in December 2015 when six documentation and product management employees transferred from Normet to Etteplan.

“We knew from previous experience that outsourcing does not always lead to the desired outcome. Thanks to the ready-made outsourcing model created by our long-standing co-operation partner Etteplan, the process has been very smooth,” says Normet Oy’s Managing Director Timo Rask.

In his view, one of the key criteria of successful outsourcing is the opportunity that opens up for the transferring employees to develop their expertise and professional skills. The fact that the employees have been able to rely on the professional development opportunities offered by Etteplan has been a huge factor.

According to Rask, the increase in outsourcing activity in a number of industries is connected to the choices that companies are forced to make in order to thrive in a market environment that demands increasing agility. Holding everything in one’s own hands makes no sense. Thanks to outsourcing, expertise can be strengthened and developed flexibly and appropriately.

“Our starting point is to always keep in our own hands those operations that are close to the customer interface or related to customers’ processes. It is important for us to be able to focus on serving our customers even better and developing products and services that optimally meet current and future customer needs.”

From the outsourcing partner, Rask expects cost competitiveness and a flexible attitude, but first and foremost the ability and the willingness to continuously develop special expertise. With Normet no longer being able to develop certain operations, the company needs to be able to trust that its partner is committed to taking responsibility for long-term development.