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> If my job could be outsourced, it would’ve been ten years ago when I first joined the workforce as a remote employee The difference this time is that we are

> If my job could be outsourced, it would’ve been ten years ago when I first joined the workforce as a remote employee The difference this time is that we are heading for a recession. Company leadership doesn't want to take the risk of outsourcing while times are good and profits are doubling each year. But when the stock price is in freefall and they are under pressure to cut costs, then the risk/reward of outsourcing looks more attractive. We haven't had a recession since '08, and the landscape is very different now. Remote work tech was in its infancy back then - Zoom, Slack, Google Drive weren't even created yet. Plus India and China (and others) have developed further and starting pumping out 100s of thousands of CS grads each year that didn't exist in '08. I think we're about to see a big wave of outsourcing over the next few years. And if companies are smart about it (e.g. do it slowly to allow knowledge transfer and compete for top talent, not bottom of the barrel) then it will be successful.

Clubber 4y ago
>The difference this time is that we are heading for a recession. >I think we're about to see a big wave of outsourcing over the next few years. Yes, but if companies are gonna outsource, they are gonna outsource whether their employees work at the office or work remote. It's purely a financial decision, not a "if you don't come to the office, we are going to outsource you," decision. Executives might use that ploy/threat to get people into the office, but they will still outsource regardless, if it makes sense for their company, just like they have been doing for the last 20+ years.
thenerdhead 4y ago
While you bring up great points, similar points were made many years ago. You still have the most challenging things to work through which are general people/team problems: - Language barriers - Timezones - Craftsmanship/Quality - Leadership involvement - etc I've read over 300 books in the last few years on companies/leadership topics and I would really challenge that this time will be any different regardless of the economic conditions. The tech industry is still at a deficit for talent. Companies are still hiring faster than ever and the supply is limited between them all and future grads/bootcamps/apprentice programs. India and China have a thriving tech education system and the growth definitely is showing, but most of these companies hiring on full blast already have huge developments for these regions and will continue to expand like US. While more business opportunities may land in these major regions, the article suggests worker shortages, limited immigration, etc as a means to "offshore" current or future work from the US. I think both the US and these major regions will continue to grow at unprecedented paces. Perhaps slower during a recession, but most of these big companies are growing faster than ever, not showing signs of slowing down too much.

Clubber 4y ago

>The difference this time is that we are heading for a recession. >I think we're about to see a big wave of outsourcing over the next few years. Yes, but if companies are gonna outsource, they are gonna outsource whether their employees work at the office or work remote. It's purely a financial decision, not a "if you don't come to the office, we are going to outsource you," decision. Executives might use that ploy/threat to get people into the office, but they will still outsource regardless, if it makes sense for their company, just like they have been doing for the last 20+ years.

thenerdhead 4y ago

While you bring up great points, similar points were made many years ago. You still have the most challenging things to work through which are general people/team problems: - Language barriers - Timezones - Craftsmanship/Quality - Leadership involvement - etc I've read over 300 books in the last few years on companies/leadership topics and I would really challenge that this time will be any different regardless of the economic conditions. The tech industry is still at a deficit for talent. Companies are still hiring faster than ever and the supply is limited between them all and future grads/bootcamps/apprentice programs. India and China have a thriving tech education system and the growth definitely is showing, but most of these companies hiring on full blast already have huge developments for these regions and will continue to expand like US. While more business opportunities may land in these major regions, the article suggests worker shortages, limited immigration, etc as a means to "offshore" current or future work from the US. I think both the US and these major regions will continue to grow at unprecedented paces. Perhaps slower during a recession, but most of these big companies are growing faster than ever, not showing signs of slowing down too much.