In this month’s outsourcing news, we take a look at some shifting trends in global outsourcing and offshoring, as well as some structural changes within the US:
- India Losing Its Luster as Outsourcing Leader – BusinessWeek wrote an eye-opening piece on how India is no longer the primary choice to consider outsourcing for many companies. Last year, there were more outsourcing facilities in Latin America and Eastern Europe than there were in India which is a marked shift from prior years. The trend to higher value white collar outsourcing roles seems to be shifting outsourcing volume out of India and into countries like Poland and Argentina. Definitely a trend to watch.
- Outsourcing 401(k) Plan Oversight – One of the last bastions of outsourced services, now retirement plan outsourcing is becoming increasingly common. An interesting driver is the lack of perception of conflict of interest and liability to employees when outsourcing compared to managing plans in-house.
- Would You Go to a College That Outsourced its Professors? Apparently that’s en vogue at some of the nation’s universities given budget cuts and dwindling state aid. For instance, colleges in Florida and Missouri have partnered with the Poynter Institute to outsource their online journalism classes. This seems logical for virtually delivered content.
- As US Outsources R&D, Are We Losing Our Edge? This is an age-old question that scholars will probably look back on with mixed opinions. On one hand, if your competitors are outsourcing their R&D, in the near-term, research productivity would increase and you’d find yourself needing to mimic their strategy in order to compete. However, in the long-term, are we enabling new future competitors in countries such as China and India? Harvard Business Review takes on the topic.
- School Board Outsourcing – In yet another story involving school systems evaluating outsourcing workload, Savannah officials are looking to hire private firms to manage everything from nurses to custodians. Evidently, the school is facing a fiscal gap of over $15 Million and this is a logical step. How school systems find themselves in such a hole to begin with says something about perhaps the mismanagement at the top to begin with, but faced with such challenging financial gaps, outsourcing seems to be a necessity.
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