Gray Matter 11

The Two Sided Coin of Outsourcing

6ac3b18a63d39bd0af78a6425759a16ec3630033Outsourcing labor is a two sided coin. On the one hand, outsourcing labor to another company that can perform the same work for less expense is definitely a cost savings. This can mean the difference between thriving as a going concern or going out of business all together. On the other hand, outsourcing labor can be very disruptive to the lives of the people who were performing whatever function had been outsourced. Moreover, there is no guarantee that the cheaper source of labor will perform the same work at the same level of quality. But when the choice is between existence and non existence it is hard to argue that an outsourcing should not happen and that the ship should sink as a result.

There are occasions, however, where outsourcing labor can result in a “win win” situation. For example, many businesses choose to outsource their IT department to an IT support Austin because the operation of their own in-house IT department is too complex and costly to maintain on their own. In this case the company is relieved of an albatross that depletes countless man hours and expense. Moreover, the functioning of their IT department once outsourced to a managed IT services Austin may very well operate at a higher level of quality than it did when it was operated as an in-house department.

Every situation is different. Some outsourcing is clearly a bottom line type decision that may or may not represent an existential decision for the company. Other outsourcing is effected out of necessity in order to better compete in the global marketplace. In other situations outsourcing just makes sense strategically from the standpoint of an efficient allocation of corporate resources. Whatever the motivation is behind a corporate decision to outsource labor, the fact of outsourcing labor is a fact that all labor must anticipate.