Large organizations often like to make site visits before committing to an outsourcing project. On occasion, those visits can affect the ultimate outcome of during vendor selection. But are these site visits just dog-and-pony shows?

In some ways, yes. An unsophisticated client can be wowed by fancy buildings, triple-redundant security, and a fresh-faced enthusiastic workforce. But sophisticated clients know to dig deeper - into the facility's technology, its infrastructure and its operational staff.

Generally, back end operational staff do not suffer from the same turnover that normally effects customer-facing staff. Thus, these personnel are far more indicative of the organization, and their depth of knowledge and "sharpness" more clearly represents a vendor's in-country management.

When preparing for a site visit by a potential (or current) customer, it is important to bring your "A" team - not just of your customer-facing operations, but also of your back-office operations. Make sure that these folks are ready to present themselves in the best manner possible. That way, you won't loose the deal because of your back office - and you may even leapfrog a vendor who was less careful about their back office presentation.