An outsourcing company is a third-party organization that a company hires to perform tasks, handle operations, or provide services for the company. Outsourcing is a business practice that enables companies to reduce labor costs significantly by enlisting the help of outside organizations to complete certain tasks. Outsourcing can involve using a large third-party provider, such as a company like IBM to manage IT services or FedEx Supply Chain for third-party logistics services. But it can also involve hiring individual independent contractors, temporary office workers, and freelancers. Outsourcing can affect a wide range of jobs, ranging from customer support to manufacturing to the back office. Companies can outsource entire divisions, such as its entire IT department, or just parts of a particular department. Outsourcing is also used by companies to dial down and focus on the core aspects of the business, spinning off the less critical operations to outside organizations.