Deliver more for less by focusing on your core competencies

We all depend on a dedicated workforce to deliver quality results. In both the public and the private sector, we are being asked to meet increasing demands against a backdrop of declining funding, compounded by the challenge of a shrinking workforce.

How do we deliver more for less, with fewer people to do the work?

Focus on your core competencies.  Whether the organization is a multinational with roots in wood products selling off a manufacturing plant, or a county records office outsourcing its technical support, you will see the best outcomes when you focus on what you do best.

We see many public sector entities facing shrinking budgets and a declining workforce, while still having to address a greater demand for services.  Many of these agencies have chosen to focus on their core competencies or primary functions, and outsource ancillary services.

Focusing on your core competencies can generate extraordinary outcomes.

One of our clients decided to move their transaction processing to a public-private partnership.  During the first year of the partnership, existing staff were given the option to become a private sector employee, find employment elsewhere in the public sector, or to take a retirement package.  While the staffing was being sorted out, the cost per transaction (using current volumes) was determined to establish the baseline funding and to serve as a basis for measuring future cost savings.

Over the next five years, productivity improved (31%) to a point that the cost per transaction was negotiated downward for a total overall saving to the client. In the ensuing five years, volume increased (35%) with no increase in the total overall cost to the client.  Over the course of the first two contract terms, (10 years) headcount was also reduced (42%) with the average compensation per employee increasing.

All in all, the volume went up, the cost came down, and individual employees took home a bigger paycheck. If your agency is facing similar budget or staffing constraints, consider focusing on what you do best and outsourcing anything else. It will prove beneficial in the long run.