INTRODUCTION

Competitive Edge has developed strategic alliances in Coimbatore, India, with a view to outsourcing ITC and e-Commerce projects that demand specialist resources beyond our current capabilities and staff resources.

We have been working for approximately six months on a number of projects which have involved creating project teams with different programming skills, and with expertise in working with overseas companies to produce leading edge business solutions.

THE VIRTUAL OFFSHORE SOLUTION

Our strategic allies have excellent project management experience, and they report regularly and formally on project progress to Rajiv Ramachandran on progress with the briefs created by him and managed by him through Competitive Edge.

The concept of a VOM is excellent because all the costs are variable and project related, and there are no ongoing overheads.

In addition, changes can be made to the project team depending on the needs of the brief and the project as these evolve.  Timeframes can also be “shortened” or “crashed” by adding extra staff to complete projects within timeframes.

India is five hours behind Australia, so every day Competitive Edge has the advantage of five extra hours of work time on projects, which enables them to deliver expedient and just-in-time project solutions.

Mutual service and online communication means that all parties are in contact in real time and communicate regularly.

CLIENT PROJECTS

Clients have utilised the Virtual Offshore Management (VOM) system for projects where:

  1. They want continuous tracking and monitoring of their websites with associated updates and improvements.
  2. Their project requires programming skills that are readily available through this source.  The project has unique ICT requirements that can only be satisfied by specialist personnel.
  3. The timeframes for clients are short, and we need the extra resources and skills of the VOM.
  4. Budget considerations would not allow Competitive Edge to fully complete the project to meet client expectations through traditional project completion in Australia.
  5. Clients require a minimum of 10 hours a week to assist them with managing their website and communication platforms, including social media.
  6. Clients wish to take advantage of lower cost SEO and other standard services offered by Comedge and Competitive Edge.

KEY BENEFIT ANALYSIS

We have found the VOM to be excellent for projects completed, and customers are highly satisfied given that we create the brief and project manage the system and payments for service completion.

Cash flow equates to project progress, and projects can be completed at a lower budget rate than comparable projects completed in Australia.

Ongoing management support for online activities is based on a variable cost basis, and can be terminated with a week’s notice.  There is also the provision to vary timeframes and select service timeframes throughout the year to suit time and budget requirements.

Rajiv Ramachandran travels to India at regular intervals to maintain relationships, ensure quality standards are met, and liaise with our strategic partners.  This ensures they are committed and aligned with our product and service value proposition.