The
recent buyer survey of market research agencies from various international markets
released by ValueNotes finds close to two-thirds of the research agencies are
already offshoring to companies in India, Eastern Europe and Latin America. While
the large multi-national research agencies have always been outsourcing, the smaller
firms with revenues typically less than USD 10m are fast adopting offshoring.
The survey reveals that with greater competition, research agencies, especially
the smaller ones are increasingly using offshoring to gain competitive advantage.
The MRO buyer survey is a continuation of the research published by the
ValueNotes Outsourcing Practice in January 2008 on the Indian MRO vendor landscape.
The report estimates that MRO revenues are slated to grow from $148 million for
FY07 to reach $800 million by FY12 at CAGR of 47%. Corroborating the earlier research,
this “Buyer” survey reveals that, currently, offshoring is largely limited
to activities lower down the value chain like data collection, data processing
and panel services. According to Monali Singhvi, Analyst, ValueNotes “While
there is greater adoption of offshoring by market research agencies, overall penetration
is very low with a majority of the agencies offshoring less than 10% of their
total work.”
While cost arbitrage has been a primary driver for offshoring,
the survey brings to light that research agencies rate other factors like faster
turnaround time, better quality of work etc. as equally important. Quality of
work and client confidentiality issues have emerged as key concerns towards offshoring.
While the offshoring drivers and concerns remain similar across key markets like
US and Europe, these markets differ significantly in the choice of offshoring
destination. “A majority of research agencies offshoring to India are primarily
form the US, while those offshoring to Eastern Europe are from EU”, says
Pranav Dixit, Analyst at ValueNotes Outsourcing Practice. The
MRO vendor landscape ranges from the captives of large research agencies to Pure-play
MRO vendors, full service research firms, KPOs and large and medium BPO service
providers. The survey shows a clear inclination by research agencies towards using
multiple options in offshoring. The larger research agencies have greater inclination
to set up captives or employ specialized MRO service providers. Mid sized agencies
prefer to work with Full service research agencies while smaller firms are most
comfortable with service providers of comparable size. According
to Arun Jethmalani, CEO, ValueNotes, “With a majority of research agencies
planning an increase in offshoring volumes, significant growth opportunities exist
in both high volume low value activities as well as select high value services
like report writing data analysis and analytics.” The
ValueNotes report: “Market Research Outsourcing: Buyer Survey” provides
by in-depth in-sights and analysis of the offshoring awareness, and concerns and
challenges faced by market research agencies in various markets. The survey brings
out the current perceptions towards risks and rewards of offshoring in the market
research industry. About valueNotes ValueNotes
Database is a leading provider of business intelligence and research, with expertise
across selected domains and types of customer needs. Working with clients across
the globe, we have significant understanding of international markets. The
ValueNotes Outsourcing Practice is one of the largest information providers on
the outsourcing industry. The Practice uses a comprehensive, analytical framework
providing fresh insights into the fast emerging and yet, complex outsourcing space.
We extensively track the space through regular analysis of news and events, continuous
primary research and contact with the industry. Additional information is available
at www.SourcingNotes.com ValueNotes
Database Private Limited
1, Bhubaneshwar Society, Abhimanshree Road,
Pashan, Pune 411 008
Contact: Disha Bheda or Neeta Joshi
Tel: +91 20 2588
1164 / 65
Email: bporesearch@valuenotes.biz |
