Picking up the Right ‘twang’ while avoiding Your Tongue - Challenges of Outsourcing a Remote Receptionist

Receptionist outsourcing can be a powerful tool in your business.  A large company may not have all the time to attend to every customer and so the role of a remote receptionist is considered necessary.  From answering hundreds of calls anytime of the day to creating an impressive customer service is definitely just a few of what a receptionist can do.  Creating an impeccable business image is their cup of tea and beyond doubt why they were hired in the first place.

Not all of the countries mentioned are native English speakers.  But they are technically able to handle multiple calls, administrative and financial tasks, and a whole lot more.  Aside from that their unidentifiable ‘twang’ and eminent American accent, their live remote receptionists are totally awesome.

A lot of remote receptionist services employ receptionists that are fluent in two or more languages.  The good side about this is:

1)    Non-English speaking customers can now consume products which were usually unavailable to them;

2)   A new opportunity to open up markets on places that used to be out of reach.

The Black of Outsourcing has identified these 25 best offshoring destinations.  Here are just some - Czech Republic, Poland, Canada, Singapore, Ireland, Ukraine, India, China, Mexico, and Chile respectively. 

Are you thinking of outsourcing your remote receptionist in these countries, here is your offshore outsourcing guide:

Pros

1. Lowest cost and wages in outsourcing
2. English with American accent; Well-read in Western culture or cultural compatibility.
3. Has resources to deliver full-bodies IT business infrastructure
4. Government’s continued support in foreign investment and global communications.
5. Low attrition rates.
6. Multiple language support.
7. Favorable time zone to support all clients and customer needs as well as maintenance.

Cons

1. Weak English capabilities and accent problems are unavoidable.  More often than not remote receptionists would use terminologies and phrases, or unconsciously add vernacular expressions during their conversations with clients.  This is largely contributed by their colloquial conversations with their friends or family, which are way too different from their telephone conversations with their clients.  What to do?  Provide appropriate language proficiency assessments that tests verbal communication, reading comprehension, writing skills to asses the competency of the receptionist, and offer suitable language training to offer a better understanding of the culture, company, and products. 
2. IT infrastructure may not be adequate where small-scale back-office functions can only take place.  In the same way, IT infrastructure weakness and IP loss may prove to weaken any attempt to set-up a back office although the country offers the lowest wage in the outsourcing world.
3. High turnover rates from the entry level to the middle management which can affect or even drop any project team instantly. 
4. Political instability which directly affects the economy weakens any IT infrastructure attempts. Wages and costs sudden uptick can be a result of this economic flux that can bother potential clients.  Piracy problems may exist.
5. Low IT service maturity which may pose a threat in having inexperienced in IT business, and short supply of project managers and senior directors.
6. Small labor pool which is contributed by the government’s low support on IT.
7. Too expensive for outsourcing especially if the market is mature in IT infrastructure and IT staff are highly educated. 

Outsourcing a Remote Receptionist whose tongue is basically not English can be more challenging.  Nevertheless, outsourcing has increased due to modern satellite innovations, advancement in internet technology, and less expensive labor that are all in all provided by other countries.  With this economic trend in outsourcing, most American companies are achieving competitive advantage over their competitors through transferring technology and farming out customer service, financial and administrative jobs to international markets.