Harnessing the Power of the Follow the Sun Model

In today’s age of globalization, the sun never really sets on the business world, and it is more true for the IT and Network infra world of 24/7/365, the sun never sets.

What is follow the sun model?

The Follow The Sun model enables round-the-clock continuity and productivity without requiring overnight work shifts. It leverages time zone differences to maximize operational coverage across an extended timeline. Organizations like ISPs, Data Centres, Enterprise networks of huge conglomerates that provide mission-critical services, rely on ongoing workflows, rotating shifts and handovers. They regularly handle high volumes of time-sensitive data may benefit most from a Follow the Sun approach. The “Follow the Sun Support” model refers to a one or more Network or IT Operations team that works in continuous flows and passes on tasks and operations between sites located in different time zones. As one site reaches the end of its business day, it transfers ongoing work and processes to an affiliated location where the local workday is just beginning.

The origin and evolution

The origins of the “follow the sun” model can be traced back to the software industry in the 1990s. As technology companies began expanding internationally and software development became increasingly collaborative and complex, there was a need for continual progress without off-hour interruptions.

The concept was that programmers and testers in a timezone that was ending its workday could hand off unfinished tasks to an affiliated team in a different timezone just starting their day. This allowed coding, troubleshooting and updates to progress uninterrupted 24/7. It was a globally distributed relay of ongoing work. Over the years, the principles were adopted beyond software as more business services went online and customer expectations for responsiveness rose. We saw follow the sun practices emerge in fields like Internet Service Provision, Telecom, Data Centres, Finance, and healthcare as organizations sought to maximize uptime and availability.

The model also evolved gradually – companies optimized shift coordination, improved knowledge transfer between locations, invested in collaboration technologies and standardized workflows to reduce friction. Automation further enabled smoother global handoffs. In essence, early software teams discovered the potential for inter-time zone collaboration out of a need for always-on agility. This then inspired innovative ways to apply follow the sun across industries to meet customer demands in our hyperconnected world.

So in enabling nonstop value delivery, it became both a service delivery best practice and a competitive advantage!

Key Components

1. Staffing/Resourcing – Having adequate, well-trained staff at each site to handle expected workloads is vital. Resource allocation is planned centrally.
2. Shift Rotation – Having proper shift timings, rotations and shift overlaps for handover-takeover ensures smooth passage of information and data across shifts and the global teams.
3. Process Standardization – Standard operating procedures for tasks, workflows and processes allow work to transition seamlessly across sites.
4. Collaboration Infrastructure – Unified communication/collaboration platforms tie distributed teams together. May include shared workflow software, videoconferencing, instant messaging and more.
5. Documentation – Thorough documentation on procedures, pending tasks, project statuses and milestones, client histories and instructions enables anyone to pick up where another left off.
6. Shared values and goals – Shared organizational values, norms and goals across sites prevents fragmentation and ensures strategic alignment to set protocols.
7. Site Selection – This was earlier the case as locations were chosen based on time zone spread to maximize coverage. However with many outsourcing partners covering 8,12 or full 24 hours of shift rotation, this is no longer a key criteria
8. Governance Model – Consistent coordination, oversight and accountability across locations by centralized leadership. Helps balance workloads and guide best practices.

Challenges and Solutions

Implementing a seamless follow the sun model has definite challenges that must be addressed through thoughtful solutions:

1. Challenge: Communication Gaps
   Solution: Create detailed documentation protocols for handover-Takeover. Invest in shared communications platforms and have huddles. Harness technology enablers like Email, Chat, Video and Voice communication. CRM can be a great thing for case/customer communication
2. Challenge: Coordination Overheads
   Solution: Standardize governance with consistent workflows, designated coordinators per site, and centralized oversight teams.
3. Challenge: Data Security, Privacy and Compliance to Regulations
   Solution: Assess regulatory landscape. Anonymize data as feasible. Implement controls like localized data storage. Giving employees the training about regulatory compliance and best practices
4. Challenge: Team Cohesion Issues, Cultural clashes
   Solution: Foster rapport and relationships between sites through team building exercises and visits. Reinforce shared culture and allow to respect individual cultures, celebrate festivals of both cultures
5. Challenge: Knowledge Transfer Inefficiencies
   Solution: Codify organizational knowledge via wikis, how-to guides and training material. Again, the Handover could be a good way out here across shifts and timezones
6. Challenge: Operational Disruptions due to manpower
   Solution: Distribute mission-critical capabilities across sites. Have enough manpower to replace employee leaving the business
   
   Meeting follow the sun’s full potential requires aligning distributed teams into a cohesive virtual network through open dialogue, documented best practices, empathy building and resilience planning. The challenges can be overcome through patient consultative solutions tailored to the organization and partners involved.

Common Myths and Misconceptions

There are definitely a few common misconceptions about the follow the sun model that are important to debunk:

Myth: It is only for large global companies
Reality: Follow the sun can work equally well for organizations of all sizes if structured appropriately for scale.

Myth: Added costs will exceed the benefits
Reality: Increased productivity, better resource use, and enhanced responsiveness lead to a strong ROI if managed effectively.

Myth: It leads to overstaffing and duplication
Reality: Staffing estimates must account for coverage demands, but process standardization ensures efficient use of personnel across locations.

Myth: Handovers are cumbersome and hamper quality
Reality: With the right collaboration tools and governance, work transitions easily. Additional cycles boost quality.

Myth: Challenging to build united culture and team cohesion
Reality: Consistent top-down norms and facilitation of employee exchanges between sites prevents fragmentation.

False perceptions that the model requires size/scale or threatens continuity/efficacy can be corrected by speaking to real-word clients benefiting today across sectors. When leadership defines a shared purpose and proper coordination protocols, follow the sun succeeds at all business tiers!

Advantages of adopting this model

Adopting a follow the sun model offers several notable advantages:

1. 24/7 Productivity – With work flowing across global sites, project momentum continues uninterrupted, significantly compressing delivery timeframes. Support trouble-tickets are handled in a flow, leading to faster resolution of tickets
2. Enhanced Responsiveness – Customers/stakeholders experience quicker turnarounds given expanded coverage. Time zone overlaps build more interaction opportunities.
3. Greater Scalability – Global resourcing allows effortless scaling to manage growing business demands and peak periods. Built-in bench strength.
4. Higher Quality – Extra review cycles across time zones surfaces more defects and validation issues for improvement before releases.
5. Risk Mitigation – Distributed model limits exposure from single point failures. Regional issues less likely to disrupt global initiatives.
6. Talent Access – Reach expert talent across continents that best matches immediate needs without relocation constraints.
7. Cost Optimization – Balance labor costs by leveraging a global mix of resources from lower cost geographies as appropriate.

How to Implement the follow the sun model in your business?

It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach. You’ll need to consider your business’s specific needs, the nature of the work, and the readiness of your existing team to embrace a new way of working. Below is a high-level overview of how to implement a follow the sun model in your business:

• Define business goals and required service levels for round-the-clock operation. Conduct cost-benefit analysis.
• Select international office locations strategically based on time zone spread, infrastructure, talent availability and cultural compatibility. We at Quadrang Systems offer 24/7 support via rotational shift coverage for many IT and Network roles, as well as help setup a 2nd site for Software development in India.
• Standardize and document key workflows, processes, guidelines across delivery centers to facilitate handovers.
• Evaluate staffing requirements per location factoring in demand fluctuations and redundancy needs for 24/7 coverage.
• Develop governance model with oversight roles,coordinators per location, central accountability,standard KPI reporting,and escalation framework.
• Implement knowledge sharing platforms,collaboration tools,and automation to seamlessly transition tasks between locations and teams.
• Foster unified corporate culture via leadership messaging, talent exchanges, and shared metrics on global initiatives.
• Continually refine resource allocation, processes, and technology infrastructure through feedback loops across sites.

Measuring Implementation Success

There are a few key performance indicators to measure whether a follow the sun model is delivering on its expected benefits after implementation:

Service Quality Metrics:

• Customer satisfaction scores specifically for round-the-clock service delivery
• First call resolution rates measuring issue clarity
• Wait times/response times to gauge responsiveness

Productivity Metrics:

• Plan delivery timelines for key milestones before vs after
• Volume of daily/weekly output per process before vs after
• Employee utilization rates during the extended operating hours

Financial Metrics:

• Cost to serve customers over 24 hour period
• Expanded revenue opportunities through new global markets
• Extension in billable hours leveraging round-the-clock teams

Human Capital Metrics:

• Employee satisfaction across time zones
• Attrition/retention at follow the sun sites
• Cross-regional participation metrics

FAQs

1. Q: Can small businesses adopt the follow the sun model?
   A: Yes, follow the sun can work for small businesses with thoughtful coordination between a few sites.
2. Q: How does the follow the sun model affect work-life balance?
   A: Balance can be achieved by limiting consecutive or double shifts, giving enough time for sleep and permitting leaves. Most importantly achieved by having enough manpower and replacing lost resources
3. Q: What are the key technologies needed for this model?
   A: Key technologies include unified communications, collaboration software, cloud-based workflows, and automation tools.
4. Q: How do you handle language and cultural differences?
   A: Bridge cultural gaps through training on regional nuances, shared corporate values, and social interaction opportunities.
5. Q: Is the follow the sun model expensive to implement?
   A: Upfront costs are offset in the longterm by enhanced productivity, optimizing staff coverage, and gaining a competitive edge

Conclusion

Thus, the follow the sun model offers a compelling vision for the 24/7 global business – one of seamless workflows and unified effort between internationally dispersed teams. By cleverly leveraging time zone differences, rather than allowing them to hinder progress, organizations can accelerate delivery, amplify responsiveness, and expand market reach.

Yet realizing this potential requires overcoming misconceptions through education and facts. It also demands patient consulting between all involved to address localized needs and challenges. When thoughtfully executed, however, the model unlocks synergies difficult to achieve otherwise. Teams worldwide can function in harmony as one integrated unit.

So while initial coordination may seem daunting, the returns often prove well worth the investment. Follow the sun allows businesses to meet customer expectations for continuity and accessibility we now take for granted in our always-on world. It represents the next stage in globally distributed services – one of boundless productivity without borders or closing times. The future of round-the-clock value delivery is already here for progressive organizations to embrace.