A Pendulum Swing in Outsourced Service Desks

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A Dedicated Near-Shore Service Desk…
The Optimal Solution
Over the past two decades, the approach to managed Service Desks has fluctuated significantly. Initially, many organizations utilized U.S.-based Service Desks, which were close to home and delivered a quality customer experience. However, as demand for IT services grew, so did the costs. U.S.-based Service Desks became increasingly expensive to operate, leading organizations to move towards fully managed, offshore and shared Service Desk models. These solutions promised both efficiency and low operating costs but often led to disappointing outcomes in terms of performance and end-user experience.
Today, the pendulum seems to have found a middle ground, with many organizations turning to a dedicated near-shore solution. A dedicated near-shore Service Desk team is increasingly viewed as the optimal balance between cost and quality, offering a blend of affordability, performance, and customer satisfaction.
The Offshoring Trend in the early 2000s there was a surge in offshoring, with Service Desks relocated to regions like India, the Philippines, or Eastern Europe. The appeal of offshoring was significant cost savings, with labor costs far lower than in the U.S. and many organizations adopting a shared Service Desk model, where they paid per ticket, rather than funding a dedicated team.
While these offshored, shared service models cut costs dramatically, the trade-offs soon became evident. End users often faced language barriers, less personalized support and delays in resolving all but the most common issues. What seemed efficient on paper often led to frustrated users, decreased productivity, and ultimately higher operational costs due to unresolved or repeat issues.
Why a Dedicated Near-Shore Team Makes Sense
Organizations are now realizing that while near-shore Service Desk teams may come with a slightly higher price tag than offshored or shared models, they deliver far superior experience for end-users. Here are some of the reasons why a dedicated near-shore Service Desk team is resonating with many IT firms and helping to delivery dramatically improved outcomes.
- Same Time Zone Support: Near-shore teams operate in similar time zones, which allows them to provide real-time support that closely aligns with the workday of their client’s end users. Additionally, they can hire and retain top talent to work a normal shift. Many offshore providers are forced to rotate out higher skilled resources who simply get tired of working the graveyard shift in their time zone to support end users on the other side of the world.
- Dedicated Team: Unlike the shared Service Desk model where agents are juggling multiple clients simultaneously, a dedicated near-shore team works exclusively for one organization. This focus enables them to become deeply familiar with the client’s systems, processes, and specific needs. Over time, they develop an expertise that improves issue resolution rates and reduces downtime for end users.
- Effective & Cost Efficient: Near-shoring remains more affordable than U.S.-based Service Desks, but without the performance pitfalls of traditional offshoring. The cost may be higher than an offshore or shared service model, but the gains in efficiency and effectiveness greatly outweigh the difference. Organizations are beginning to understand that an effective Service Desk is not just about answering tickets—it’s about enabling the IT department to focus on strategic initiatives rather than being bogged down in daily minutiae.
- Bilingual Support: Near-shore Service Desks agents are often bilingual speaking both Spanish and English, with some speaking multiple languages including French and Portuguese. This can be a major benefit to U.S. based organizations and avoid the friction of translation services or virtual agents.
- Investment in Talent: With significant growth in Latin America over the last decade many organizations are heavily investing in the region with large providers like Microsoft and ServiceNow investing in universities and training programs for their technology across the region. This means skilled talent is easier to find and able to scale to meet demand.
The dedicated near-shore team model offers the best of both worlds, delivering the efficiency and affordability of offshoring without sacrificing performance or end-user experience. The pendulum may have swung, but with near-shoring, it seems to have finally settled in the right place.