| Often I am requested by my client companies to help | | | | In order to answer the question if offshoring continues |
| improve their offshore operations - they are | | | | to make sense, as part of your offshoring strategy, |
| experiencing various symptoms which are becoming all | | | | business reasons for initially going offshore must be |
| too common in offshoring - high turnover of offshore | | | | spelled out. Despite what many people assume, it is |
| staff, costs beginning to escalate and senior | | | | not always cost; cost is the most common reason, |
| management is not sure if offshoring makes sense. | | | | however. Other reasons are to have a beach head in |
| When I begin the engagement, one of the first | | | | a growing economy like India or China to take |
| questions I ask client management is to help me | | | | advantage of market opportunities, to have regional |
| understand their offshoring strategy. Quite often I get a | | | | presence to provide support to that part of the world |
| blank stare that says something like "Is that not | | | | more easily (regardless of cost). |
| obvious?" When pressed, usually the answer is to | | | | In addition to business reasons, you need to have a |
| reduce cost. Upon further analysis, I usually find that | | | | clear set of rationale in place for other parts of the |
| over a period of time since offshoring effort began | | | | offshoring strategy (such as the offshoring business |
| there has been turnover of management and if there | | | | model, vision for the offshore operation, types of |
| was a vision up front no one can now articulate it in a | | | | projects you plan to execute and so on). In addition, |
| cohesive manner and for sure not something the | | | | you need to revisit global outsourcing strategy as your |
| whole management team would agree on. | | | | business strategy changes and evolves over time. |