Evaluating and Choosing a Service Provider  

Small- to middle-sized companies are often dependent on third-party service providers to complete tasks related to documentation production. Formally evaluating service providers is one way for documentation managers to ensure that their company and documentation team are getting maximum service, top quality, and competitive prices. Evaluations must be carefully planned and implemented in order to produce reliable results. The planning phase lets the documentation managers “set the stage” for an evaluation by defining and communicating the main objectives. The subsequent implementation phase lets participants gather the key information required to select the best service provider.

Weirich, Margaret. STC Proceedings (2003). Articles>Documentation>Outsourcing>Assessment

Offshore Documentation Development in India: Lessons from Experience  

Increasingly, many U.S. companies are locating documentation projects offshore, in countries such as India. Setting up and managing offshore documentation teams creates a special set of challenges, in areas such as hiring, training, planning, coping with time zone and cultural differences, and coordinating work done offshore and onsite. This presentation provides an overview of the offshoring trend and its implications for technical writers and managers. It also describes the challenges of managing offshore documentation projects and provides some guidelines and best practices for resolving them.

Abedrabbo, Francisco and Pavi Sandhu. STC Proceedings (2005). Articles>Documentation>Outsourcing>Offshoring

Outsourcing Documentation Development: Assessing the Offshoring Option  

This paper discusses some of the aspects that should be considered when evaluating the required resources and total cost of offshoring documentation development. The actual metrics for assessing offshoring costs are not included in this paper. Rather, it is suggested that you take each of the topic areas and measure the costs as they relate to your specific situation. It is only after factoring in the dollars related to these activities that you and your company’s executive team can make a complete assessment of offshoring’s potential financial benefit.

Clifton, Deborah. STC Proceedings (2005). Articles>Documentation>Outsourcing>Offshoring

Resources

Requesting a quote for outsourced documentation services can be confusing and frustrating. Often it means that managers in IT, engineering or HR must negotiate with professionals whose skills they cannot effectively assess. This can easily lead to inappropriate expectations and disappointment.

Dawson, Colin. Info Action (2000). Articles>Documentation>Outsourcing>Assessment

When Help Is Half a World Away

I've heard from a multitude of readers annoyed by language difficulties when their calls go to offshore service reps. They say that offshore techs often seem to be reading from a script instead of listening to details, or that they seem ill-informed about products or company policies. And many complain that calls to far-flung tech support centers often get disconnected.

Kandra, Anne. PC World (2004). Articles>Documentation>Outsourcing>Offshoring