As the competition in the education sector continues to grow, it is essential for institutions to seek a source of an advantage. Outsourcing reduces the costs of services and products and tends to increase the capability of an organization when it is appropriately integrated into a framework (Mazdeh & Hamedani, 2012). Outsourcing methodology is a set of clearly defined processes that aim to optimize the operations of a company or an institution by transferring tasks to a third party (Mazdeh & Hamedani, 2012).
Outsourcing continues to expand every aspect of market-based social relations due to the globalization process, making it one of the most examined practices (Sperka, 2020). Moreover, outsourcing in education can boost competition, which stimulates innovation and increases the quality of teaching (Jones, 2018). This essay analyzes the role and importance of outsourcing methodology in education, its benefits and disadvantages, and efficient implementation techniques.
The importance of examination of outsourcing methodologies rises annually. With the increased privatization of educational facilities, outsourcing became more recurring and vital for this sector (Jones, 2018). To choose a suitable strategy, an educational facility must outline the reasons behind its decision to outsource any portion of its services. Wekullo (2017) states that “institutions outsource to increase efficiency, cut operating costs, reduce risk and liability, to strengthen core competencies, improve cash flow, access new ideas and reduce budgetary constraints” (p. 457). A sufficient methodology must define how outsourcing will cover any of these aspects of the operation of educational facilities.
When the search for a solution to an issue does not reveal any internal results, outsourcing is an ideal way out of this situation. For an institution, this might mean the necessity of a contract that will transfer a portion of its activities to another facility. For example, the lack of experts within an institution and the limit of resources, both technological and financial, can be efficiently negated by outsourcing (Wekullo, 2017). On a global scale, the attempt to resolve issues by promoting privatization will imply a set of policies that will encourage companies that operate in the private sector. It requires the creation of a complex structure that will guide facilities towards the shared goal of improvement (Sperka, 2020). Forming a connection between private and municipal institutions can be a crucial part of a successful outsourcing methodology (Sperka, 2020). A proper outsourcing methodology serves as a set of guidelines for organizations that define the nature of their relationships and the expected results from both private and public entities.
Outsourcing methodology must be carefully assessed prior to its implementation. When educational facilities intend to transfer a part of their operations to a private sector, they must consider how these changes will affect teachers’ work, access to professional growth, and perception of these changes of all affected parties (Holmqvist et al., 2020). All opportunities created by outsourcing must be measured by the instabilities they add, especially if a contract with a third party implies a high level of reliance (Jones, 2018). To apply outsourcing methodology, an institution must prepare its employees for this transfer, design a way to manage the efficiency of outsourced service, maintain relationships with a contractor, assess its quality and provide timely feedback (Mazdeh & Hamedani, 2012). This multi-level connection must be assessed continuously on all stages, as there are potential issues that will lead to an unsatisfactory result.
The implementation of outsourcing can pose a significant issue for educational facilities. Holmqvist et al. (2020) state that “in public debates and contemporary educational research, high levels of outsourcing of education to private providers have been considered a major societal problem” (p. 113). Private providers need to be moderated by a governmental structure that will ensure that the quality of the curriculum does not drop below municipal standards (Holmqvist et al., 2020). Bates et al. (2019) state that “for some time now, private sector organisations have themselves struggled with a loss of focus on quality as a key source of professionalism” (p. 273). This control can be achieved via government grants, regulation policies, and monitoring facilities, whose processes must remain transparent (Bates et al., 2019). These complications lead to a set of difficulties for establishing a standard of outsourcing methodologies.
In conclusion, by applying a well-designed outsourcing methodology, educational facilities can achieve a more cost-efficient and less complex teaching process. However, outsourcing can also lead to a decreased quality of services if there are issues with third-party contractors, such as the lack of control over common practices across institutional organizations across the country. Outsourcing methodology must aim to boost the professionalism of teachers and increase the diversity of teaching techniques without harming the educational process. This set of methods requires a case-to-case assessment as the relationship between private and public entities requires additional control and guidance. Although competition that stems from outsourcing does lead to an overall improvement of practices, the focus on cost-efficient methods can play a detrimental role. Governments and organizations that intend to utilize outsourcing must develop a methodology that will outline how this process will benefit all involved sides.
References
Bates, A., Choi, T., & Kim, Y. (2019). Outsourcing education services in South Korea, England and Hong Kong: A discursive institutionalist analysis.Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 51(2), 259-277. Web.
Holmqvist, D., Fejes, A., & Nylander, E. (2020). Auctioning out education: On exogenous privatisation through public procurement.European Educational Research Journal, 20(1), 102-117. Web.
Jones, C. (2018). What are the effects of outsourcing roles in a higher education setting? LinkedIn. Web.
Mazdeh, M. M., & Hamedani, M. R. (2012). A new outsourcing framework: A case study of educational institution activities.Management Science Letters, 2(3), 1005-1010. Web.
Sperka, L. (2020). (Re)defining outsourcing in education.Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 41(2), 268-280. Web.
Wekullo, C. S. (2017). Outsourcing in higher education: The known and unknown about the practice.Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 39(4), 453-468. Web.