From Cost Center to Profit Enabler: How Atento’s BTO Model Reduces Costs Without Sacrificing CX

Reducing costs doesn’t have to mean cutting corners. By adopting a Business Transformation Outsourcing (BTO) approach, migrating to the cloud, automating with RPA/AI, and applying advanced analytics, organizations can lower expenses while maintaining or even improving customer experience. The key is to target high-volume processes, measure results through KPIs, and adjust continuously every 90 days.

 

What is BTO and Why Now?

BTO isn’t “outsourcing at a lower cost”. It is rethinking how your company operates:  leveraging technology, data, and agile operating models, while partnering with an expert who transforms alongside you.

The goal is to achieve sustainable efficiency without compromising quality or the customer experience.

In recent projects, the most significant savings didn’t come from cutting hours, but from removing friction: fewer reprocesses, shorter wait times, and faster, better-informed decisions.

 

Three Cost Factors and How to Optimize Them 

Knowing where the budget is going allows you to prioritize.

1) Infrastructure and technology:

• Major costs:  servers, data centers, licenses, security, compliance.
• Optimizations: hybrid/multicloud, autoscaling, flexible licensing, observability tools.
• Impact: 2–3x faster deployments and fewer peak saturation incidents after cloud migration.

2) Human resources:

• Major costs: salaries, training, turnover, compliance audits.
• Optimizations: automation of repetitive tasks, dynamic staffing, internal academies.
• Impact: forecast-based staffing cuts idle hours without reducing service levels.

3) Operational processes: the heart of savings

• Major costs: manual tasks, rework, bottlenecks.
• Optimizations: RPA, AI, and analytics to streamline end-to-end workflows, SIPOC mapping, and shared dashboards.
• Impact: most significant efficiency gains typically come from API integrations that eliminate duplicate work.

 

3 Strategies to Reduce Costs Without Losing Quality

1. Migrate to the Cloud

• Cuts CAPEX and some OPEX, adds scalability and vendor-managed security.
• Best practices: inventory apps, prioritize by value, apply FinOps, run load tests.
• Case: autoscaling during campaigns avoided oversizing servers and cut costs significantly.

At the peak of campaigns, well-calibrated autoscaling avoided oversizing servers for an entire month. Pay-per-use, and when you need it.

2. Automate with RPA/AI

• Bots run repetitive tasks 24/7, with fewer errors and faster cycles.
• Best practices: start with 3–5 stable processes, apply governance, monitor continuously.
• Case: RPA in invoicing reduced rework and ensured full audit traceability.

3. Apply Advanced Analytics

• Forecast demand, optimize staffing, and simulate scenarios.
• Best practices: unified data model, clear KPIs, operational + business metrics.
• Case: reallocating staff during low-activity shifts maintained service levels while reducing idle time.

 

Tangible Benefits

• Savings without sacrificing quality: lower infrastructure costs, less rework, more investment in innovation.
• Productivity & efficiency: faster, more consistent processes; better response times.
• Scalability & control: costs aligned with demand, predictable budgets, growth without runaway expense.

 

How to Implement BTO in 3 Steps

1. Assess Current Costs: map processes, benchmark KPIs, inventory systems, prioritize by impact.
2. Deploy Solutions in Waves: Wave 1 (cloud + RPA bots), Wave 2 (analytics), Wave 3 (end-to-end orchestration).
3. Measure & Adjust Quarterly: track KPIs, review FinOps, update backlog of improvements.

 

FAQs

• What should I automate first? High-volume, rules-based, digital processes.
• How do I calculate cloud ROI? Compare current vs projected CAPEX/OPEX, including migration + FinOps costs.
• Does GenAI apply here? Yes. Summarization, agent assist, triage with strong quality and privacy controls.
• What about compliance? Security by design (RBAC, encryption, audit trails) with periodic reviews.
• How to manage turnover after automation? Retrain staff for higher-value and oversight roles.
• When do the results show? Focused pilots deliver impact in 6–12 weeks.

 

Real Cases

Retail

Before	Action	After
Oversized on-prem servers	Cloud Migration + RPA in Order Management	Lower infrastructure costs, higher peak capacity, shorter cycles.

 

Contact center

Before	Action	After
Fixed staffing on night shifts	Predictive Analytics + Workforce Management	Fewer idle hours, same service levels.

 

Financial Outsourcing

Before	Action	After
Rework from manual tasks	RPA in billing and reconciliations	Fewer failures, full audit traceability.

Note: impact figures may vary by sector, technological maturity, and seasonality. We recommend measuring by cohorts (before/after) and reporting monthly.

 

Request a free assessment:

Get a custom opportunity map, a 90-day savings estimate, and a wave-based implementation plan.