# Outsourcing - good or bad idea



## True Blue (13 Feb 2004)

Is outsourcing a good or bad idea for the economy that loses those jobs?


----------



## MugsGame (13 Feb 2004)

Outsourcing per se doesn't have anything to do with an economy losing jobs, e.g. Bank of Ireland recently outsourced some of their IT function to HP, but the jobs are remaining in Ireland, at least for now (though if the outsourcing leads to higher productivity this may also lead to some jobs being "lost".).

I don't think you can talk about it being "good" or "bad" in a general way. Outsourcing is currently in vogue, particularly in IT. It is probably used more often than appropriate by companies climbing on the band-wagon in order to appease their shareholders.

Bank of Ireland is an interesting example, as the function now being outsourced (ITSIS) was originally a separate joint-venture company which was "insourced" in the 90s!


----------



## enibhraoin (26 Feb 2004)

*But what about outsourcing to India?*

What do you think of American companies moving their locations in Ireland to India or where call marketing firms open locations in India instead of Europe?


----------



## purple (19 Mar 2004)

*Re.Call centers*

These are low tech jobs that don't add value to the economy and costs being so heavily weighted towards labor, it was inevitable that they would be the first to go.....


----------



## piggy (19 Mar 2004)

*Re: Re.Call centers*

I recently left a company who were outsourcing all their highly technical development work to India!


----------



## The Economist (19 Mar 2004)

*Outsourcing*

The rationale for outsourcing is to get someone who has the critical mass and experience and efficiencies that one lacks to do the task oneself.

In fact, most companies and individuals outsource the vast majority of their requirements e.g.

Cars - very few companies make their own cars
Electricity
Telephones
Computer hardware
Generic software
Stationery

etc.  etc. 

I admit that the term is generally associated with situations where "insourcing " is a viable or maybe more common alternative.

I have always felt that, much as I am a republican at heart, we should outsource most of our civil adminstration to say the UK which has vast economies of scale over a littele country like ours.  Put another way (although I stand to be corrected) I presume the ratio of civil servants to the population is much lower in the UK than in Ireland.


----------



## ImFatAndLonelyPleaseLoveMe (20 Mar 2004)

*re*

"The rationale for outsourcing is to get someone who has the critical mass and experience and efficiencies that one lacks to do the task oneself."

Actually the rational for outsourcing is usually, "look, thsoe feckers acoross the water will do this for a bowl of dog food and the promise that we won't kill his wife and we're paying Paddy 50 grand for the pleasure. We must be mad!!"

Incidentally, cars, electricity and telephones weren't viable jobs the last time I looked...although I always fancied the idea of being a telephone myself. Brrring brrrinng (me practicing to be a telephone!)


----------

