Is outsourcing the poster child for all the things that have
gone wrong in society? Outsourcing isn’t about a vindictive approach to
treating people but rather a survival solution
that transcends many levels. Whether considered as a cost saving measure,
a means to deliver a higher return on investment, a way to overcome a problem
unsolvable through internal means or to open up innovative opportunities for future
corporate development, sourcing is one
possible solution alternative. To understand sourcing in its most
primitive form we need to understand the historical side. For thousands
of years companies have sought support for their
business through outsourcing by either buying goods
or employing temporary services. It wasn’t until the advent of the
demand caused by Y2K did we look much further afield for the much needed, an
affordable, resources. This quantum leap came with it the confusion
between outsourcing and offshoring. The result forced Western society to
jump on the anti-outsourcing band wagon without fully realizing that there was
a difference.
With offshoring comes the negativity that sourcing
is anti-Western society. It is uncertain whether the general public is
targeting their anguish toward the service provider or against the business
that has made a strategic sourcing decision. Maybe too many local sins have been committed that gives rise to a
lack of trust with any business. One could easily argue that beyond the outsourcing demand
caused by Y2K domestic labor costs, rising operational mandates, lack of
jurisdictional uniformity and trade subsidizes have all been contributors to
looking for alternative cost reduction opportunities. However, as
the world’s economies struggle to reassemble and return to a state of normalcy
the question of sourcing as a business solution
will remain.
We are seeing more companies shifting discussions from simply cost
reductions, which frankly is obvious, to increased capacity and the ability to
employ flexible scaling. It is recognized by a large portion of Western
business that sourcing is a choice, not a mandate and that in order to employ
it properly a realistic campaign is required. While suppliers focus heavily
on promoting their services, there has been little done to present sourcing in
a proper light. Rather than being viewed as a source for domestic job
reductions, it must be looked upon as a survival element for businesses.
Without the freedom of choice in this area, we are not only putting businesses
at risk, but the remaining domestic employment they provide. This shift
will require that businesses recast their employment approach from a
command-and-control focus to one that is based on remote resource
management. In making this transition, organizations will have to adapt
from doing to guiding. Companies that can make this transition quickly
will reach the goals that they
