Outsourcing Veteran Focuses on Execution with Own Firm – with Chris Van Vladricken of ScalableOS

In this week’s episode, we dive into a bold entrepreneurial move made right when the world seemed to stop.

When Chris Van Vladricken launched ScalableOS in 2020, he was already a long-time outsourcing leader with nearly two decades of experience in the Philippines. 

Founding a new company in the middle of the pandemic was a risk — but for Chris, it was an opportunity to build a better outsourcing model grounded in trust, performance, and execution.

ScalableOS

Chris’s story in outsourcing began long before ScalableOS.

“I’ve been working in the Philippines in some capacity since about 2005, so just about 20 years now. 

I really saw the early need for global staffing solutions that aren’t a kind of just customer service-based, ‘throw the work over the fence and have it turned around’ type of approach.”

That resulted in the foundation of ScalableOS: an outsourcing solution designed to function as a true extension of each client’s business.

“We are an outsourcing model that’s really focused on acting as an extension of our clients. We really want to take that outsourcing feel out of the outsourcing experience and really just operate like branch offices for our clients.”

Launching during the COVID-19 pandemic wasn’t ideal, but it brought its own benefit. 

“I think obviously one thing that came from that is we really embraced work from home. We do have in-office and work from home solutions. 

And just sorting through the challenges that that can come along with that [like] connectivity, obviously productivity. It really forced us to put that on the forefront of how we built the solution.”

His decades of experience in the Philippines, along with a strong executive team, helped the company overcome the challenges of launching remotely.

For Chris, ScalableOS wasn’t just about building another outsourcing firm, but about doing things better.

“It’s all down to execution. That’s what we focus on day in and day out. 

Are we executing well for the customer? Are we giving the customer the VIP experience?”

Managing people and performance

Chris believes that the real differentiator in outsourcing isn’t branding or marketing, but the ability to execute consistently.

“Pretty much every BPO company website looks exactly the same and pretty much says exactly the same thing. 

Offshore talent, save 70%, excellent communications. Every website’s almost a mirror image of each other. So it comes down to execution.”

That execution depends on people.

“The experience will [succeed] or fail based on the quality of the team members that you provide to your customers. That’s the end all be all. 

You can do everything right. You can execute well. But if the experience between the [client and employee] isn’t a success, nothing else matters.”

Even with a strong system, not every placement is perfect — and Chris is transparent about that.

“I would say our success rate is in the 90 to 95% range, which is great. But that five to 10% where that doesn’t work out with the employee, that’s obviously something we have to deal with, like every other BPO has to deal with.”

He adds that success comes from maintaining perspective and working closely with clients when things don’t go as planned.

“Most people that ScalableOS hires work out really, really, really well. But there’s a certain small percentage that don’t, and I encourage [clients] to not let that experience define how they think of ScalableOS or how they think of the Philippines.”

Mindsets and awareness on outsourcing

A key part of Chris’s philosophy is helping clients rethink how they view offshore teams.

“From day one, when we first meet a potential new customer, we really drive home that these are their employees. They should think of them as their employees.”

He encourages clients to integrate their offshore teams as fully as possible.

“Incorporate them into their company like they would any other employee that they would have locally. [For] all intensive purposes, treating ’em like they’re just down the street or down the hallway.”

One of the biggest misconceptions, he says, is that offshore work is only for entry-level or administrative tasks.

“The talent level in the Philippines is limitless. You can get the most senior employees, the most skilled employees that you would need, the same ones that you would hire stateside.”

As clients begin to see this quality firsthand, their mindset shifts.

“When they bring on their first employee and it’s like the greatest employee they’ve ever had… Usually it’s a couple months into the relationship where we’ve demonstrated some success… That’s where you really start getting some good traction.”

He also credits the pandemic with accelerating global acceptance of remote and offshore work.

“When COVID hit and everybody shifted to remote, that [issue] just vanished overnight.”

For Chris, awareness remains the next frontier.

“People who try it say, ‘I had no idea that this was out there.’ Once they see the quality of talent and the savings, they wonder why every company doesn’t do this.”

His advice to every business considering offshore hiring is straightforward:

“Keep the bar where you would normally keep it. There is zero expectation of you lowering the bar.”

To learn more, visit ScalableOS’s website or reach out to [email protected]. 

If you want to ask us anything, send an email to [email protected].