You’re interested in managed integration services, yet you don’t know if you want to rely entirely upon the service provider’s talent. You believe there’s room for your in-house staffers. What’s the right mix?
In this article, we’ll explore what you should keep in mind when you’re figuring out the right mix of managed integration services talent and your own team.
What Do We Mean by “Managed Integration Services”?
Many organizations define managed services as outsourcing. At Remedi, we see things differently; we treat managed integration services as co-sourcing.
Under our model, your business owns or rents its B2B integration solution. Remedi operates it for you by providing managed integration or managed EDI services. You decide how much Remedi manages and how much you want to delegate. Moreover, you save money by not hiring specialists to maintain your B2B integration infrastructure.
What’s the Right Mix of Managed Integration Services Talent and Your In-House Team?
The answer to the question above is, “It depends.” There’s no right answer – it will depend upon your unique circumstances. What we’ve seen from our experience is that a liaison from the customer side will work with the managed integration services staffers to ensure that information flows freely and that the B2B integration infrastructure runs at peak efficiency.
Here are some things to consider:
- Your internal resources
- Your internal skillset and knowledge
- Your corporate culture
Your Internal Resources
Think about your IT staff. How many do you have? How heavy is their workload, and do they have the bandwidth to take on this project?
Remember that unless you hired them specifically to manage your B2B integration infrastructure, that’s not their core competency. Managed integration services talent, on the other hand, faces no such challenges.
Your Internal Skillset and Knowledge
Another roadblock facing many IT departments is that they don’t have the knowledge or skills to manage B2B integration infrastructure. Training them is an expense for which you are most likely unprepared, and as mentioned earlier, hiring specialists is a costly, lengthy process.
Managed integration services talent do possess the right skills and knowledge to keep your B2B integration solution running smoothly, so it delivers value to your organization.
Your Corporate Culture
In a blog post that talks about B2B integration, a topic like corporate culture might sound out of place. Yet, it’s not – your corporate culture plays an important role in your staffing mix.
Ask yourself these questions:
- Does our organization encourage the existence of data silos?
- Do employees care about reducing errors and achieving high levels of performance?
- Do employees want to stick with the status quo (even though it’s no longer efficient or effective) rather than change?
You want to create a corporate culture that values efficiency and innovation. Giving managed integration services providers greater control over your B2B integration environment can help further that goal.
If you’re worried about getting the mix of managed integration services staff and in-house team members right, don’t be – your managed integration provider can offer valuable advice. Compare Integration Models. Make an informed choice.
