Should You Outsource Intellectual Property Management Services?

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Whether you manage a small portfolio or multiple large ones, intellectual property management is often complex and demanding. That’s why many companies and law firms outsource intellectual property portfolio management tasks to a trusted third-party supplier.

Intellectual property portfolio management can be very complex, and—with so many tasks and deliverables on your plate—you may be wondering how a trusted intellectual property outsourcing partner can assist.

While some companies still prefer to do everything in-house, outsourcing has become a common practice in the IP sector, with most organizations customizing their unique blend of in-house vs. outsourced tasks. That’s why questions around IP outsourcing today focus more on which intellectual property portfolio management services to outsource—and to which provider(s).

What Are the Benefits of Intellectual Property Outsourcing?

Outsourcing intellectual property portfolio management tasks can help save time, effort, and cost—and provide vital access to knowledge, resources, and expertise.

Without access to the right resources, managing your portfolio internally can be more costly than working with a specialist intellectual property service provider. Likewise, managing your portfolio internally may require focus, attention, or skills your internal team cannot provide.

For instance, if your company is launching a new product and your legal team is overwhelmed by the administrative work required to prepare and prosecute intellectual property applications, an IP specialist provider can deliver the necessary support. This way, you offload the burden of hiring, managing, and potentially downsizing your staff. Instead, by working with a partner, you can benefit from their industry expertise, global network, and cutting-edge technologies throughout the IP life cycle—from cost management to international filing support and AI assistants for patent preparation and prosecution and trademark productivity.

Why Outsource Intellectual Property Portfolio Management Tasks?

Three reasons for intellectual property outsourcing, number 3 on a red background

Here are three reasons why it may be best to work with an external intellectual property services provider:

1. Access to Experience

When developing and managing your intellectual property portfolio, it’s important to bring as much knowledge and experience to the process as possible. IP providers help support the IP portfolios of companies in a wide variety of industries, each with their own unique set of requirements. By leveraging their subject matter expertise, you can more efficiently and cost-effectively develop and maintain a strong, competitive, and productive portfolio.

2. Save Valuable Resources

The ongoing process of aligning your IP portfolio with your corporate strategy requires attention to detail and constant adaptation to suit your business needs throughout its lifecycle. Capturing, protecting, and leveraging your intellectual property assets can put a strain on your company’s resources, especially when your team needs to focus on innovation rather than IP administration.

From patent and trademark search to IP renewals, an intellectual property services provider will help you safeguard the commercial benefits of your IP assets from an early stage. Meanwhile, your company’s internal resources are unburdened from the ongoing demanding requirements of portfolio management.

3. Standards & Certifications

Developing and managing an intellectual property portfolio requires a unique combination of knowledge, platforms, and resources, which can be unnecessarily expensive to build in-house. Therefore, many businesses look to intellectual property service providers to access valuable resources efficiently and cost-effectively.

An IP provider delivers the same—or better—standard of service for a fraction of the cost of maintaining certain intellectual property management functions in-house. Using an IP provider, your company can access the high-quality resources necessary to optimize your portfolio. Whether you rely on external specialists for complex translations, to fulfill vital IP administrative tasks, or to deliver timesaving AI solutions, intellectual property outsourcing can help your team work smarter and more effectively while reducing costs.

Knowledge is Power

Building a robust intellectual property portfolio provides the strongest level of protection for the future of your business. Understandably, you will want access to the most knowledgeable contributors to support that IP portfolio.

Working with a trusted intellectual property services provider, such as Questel, will enable you to leverage the knowledge and resources of industry-leading experts so you can maximize the potential of your intellectual property portfolio.

How to Choose the Right Intellectual Property Outsourcing Partner

It’s tempting to assume that a piecemeal approach—where one provider helps you with renewals and another with searches, and so on—would be the most effective approach. However, in most companies, intellectual property is not treated as a series of small issues but rather as a whole area for a team to manage. That's why, when it comes to engaging external partners to support your intellectual property portfolio management needs, it makes sense to look for a provider that offers an integrated and holistic service.

With an intellectual property services provider that delivers end-to-end support, you will have access to a single point of contact for all outsourced IP services—and can benefit from their specialist technologies, global agent network, and economies of scale.

As the complexity of international business increases, intellectual property portfolio management will only grow more complex. Outsourcing routine IP tasks to a trusted partner helps intellectual property teams minimize administrative demands so they can focus on their core and more strategic tasks.

Intellectual Property Outsourcing: Take Your Next Steps

Managing IP is an exercise in reducing risk and maximizing value. Doing it effectively can also be an exercise in detail—that is, making sure all your bases are covered, all your boxes ticked, and all your potential threats monitored.

With Questel, you have a partner who understands what your intellectual property means to your business and the level of care required to manage that IP. Discover the benefits of entering our IP ecosystem or contact our subject matter experts today to discuss how our IP services and technologies can support your intellectual property portfolio management needs.