Outsourcing is a Symptom

OUTSOURCING has arisen from the source of most problems: lack of creativity and communication. This lack is on both the companies outsourcing and the contractors/employees whose livelihoods are being outsourced.

Companies outsourcing are going where the creativity, drive and enthusiasm is in employees and contractors; They're leaving where it ain't. They've given up on finding contractors and employees who understand theirs is a competitive market now. Too many of these now appear to feel they own the exclusive domain of coding/design/project management/call center operations and can strangle a company's progress. Too few understand that in this environment of constant change they too need to be flexible, adaptable and willing to partner with their customers or employers on finding creative solutions that benefit each other and their shared audiences, the enduser of their resulting product.

I recently worked at another telecom company where the IT department could regularly report no progress on 'mission critical' projects...for months on end. They would deflect queries on their progress by saying they were involved in something else. Or it was taking longer than expected. True. Sometimes. But clearly they communicated to their audience an indifference to the need for crisp, efficient, profitable execution of a project.

But that leads us to Management's role. Obviously in the above example they were not taking leadership in communicating the urgency, nor were they incentivizing their contractors/employees, nor were they taking any responsibility for their role in creating an unprofitable enterprise. Management's failure is not being able to communicate these issues to their contractors and employees. Nor have they shown any openness to partnering, sharing the success of an early project's completion, creating meaningful incentives; Nor have they been particularly effective it seems in communicating the dire straits of and the resulting need by their company for creative solutions. It's quite similar to automotive unions threatening to strike when faced with reductions in hourly pay that takes a line worked from $80,000 per year to oh say $60,000 per year. How can management and union leadership not point out that pay gap and then the gap with 3rd world sources?

It's to no one's advantage on the short term to invest in infrastructure overseas. The investment to analyze those options should instead be focused on creating a solution with the existing resources. Surely the millions it takes to research and build a factory overseas could be invested to generate a local solution, generating positive PR for the company. Again, the issue becomes one of enthusiasm on management's side to consider a creative solution.

But with a lack of creativity, energy, enthusiasm and a high degree of mental fatigue and frustration no real solution, other than the cut and run option of outsourcing will be sought. Insanity is continuing to do the same thing and expecting different results. When bothparties expect to maintain their respective status quo both are doomed to fail.

Don't fight the darkness, just turn on the light. Bring a 2nd element to the discussions. Bring in a source of creativity and intelligence to the discussion. Show the companies that rather than take the money outside the community they should reinvest it, partner with the local chamber (Oh, I forgot, the US chamber of Commerce supports outsourcing.) or business community, partner with the local schools and universities, partner with the employees.

But for that you need trust, patience, patience and more patience. Companies already have a trained staff in place. Why not reward them for their commitment to the company with some well-earned rewards like 'retraining'? If that's the solution then why are so few companies taking it?