IT Outsourcing Need Not Threaten Our Future

Xeo writes "The topic of the moment in a lot of people's minds is the outsourcing overseas of 'white collar' jobs. While many people are perhaps rightfully worried about this, there's an editorial on the subject that tends towards the other direction. It makes some very interesting points on the whole idea of outsourcing and what it means for the US at least."

Comments

It need not threaten your future

[dsanfte]

Outsourcing need not threaten your future, there are plenty of new opportunities for aspiring programmers within the food service sector. Dare to dream!

Actual content

[kahei]

This is an article about how Americans see themselves -- or rather, about how the author would like them to. It does not appear to actually touch on the economic realities (good or bad) of outsourcing.

Yay for fluff.

However, it is quite interesting in the American self-image that it pushes. While Americans are indeed diverse and tolerant, I think the remarks on innovation (which I hear often) could do with a little consideration.

Innovation

[pubjames]

America's technological strength is based on innovation.

I would say it is partly based on innovation.

One huge advantage that the USA has in most areas of business is a huge, practically borderless, single market containing almost 300 million people. The benefits of this can't be understated, and it's something that other countries can't completely emulate (although in Europe we're trying to create a single market, we'll always have the issues with different languages and cultures).

I think commentators often overestimate the advantage that the USA has in terms of the greater capabilities of it's people, and also are blinkered if they think that other countries can't achieve greatness as well.

Re:Innovation

[swb]

(although in Europe we're trying to create a single market, we'll always have the issues with different languages and cultures).

I'm sure many will mod me into oblivion for saying this, but in the U.S. we're working on accomplishing this, too. Instead of encouraging our immigrants to learn English and assimilate, we instead promote bilingualism under the misguided notion that it promotes diversity, when it actually discourages assimilation and limits immigrants opportunities to the lowest end of the economic spectrum, since without a "push" to learn English they never do become bilingual.

A friend's grandmother was an immigrant from Poland. She said that she learned English not because it was around her, but because it was seen as a badge of honor to speak English. As a teenager when she's shop with some of her older sisters, she would occasionally try to ask them questions in Polish at the counter with a salesperson. Her sisters would either ignore her or tell her to speak English.

Like it or not, there was a strong social pressure to become an English speaker. Diversity and bilingualists have attempted to eliminate this pressure (it's alternatively xenophobic, racist, or just simply bigoted). If they continue succeeding, we'll end up like Europe, or worse, a Balkanized country divided by language. History demonstrates that nations do not stay healthy divided by language and culture -- the term isn't called "Balkanized" for nothing. Switzerland is the only country I can think that's made it work, everywhere else it always leads to division at best and bloodshed at worst.

I plan to have my son learn Spanish at the earlist possible age, since even in Minneapolis, it's impossible to hold even a basic functional conversation with many service workers, since they don't speak *any* English. I don't understand how non-Spanish speakers even manage in Southern California, but not living there I don't have a great feel for the Anglo/Latino cultural divide.

Re:Again...

[ffub]

People with PHDs are over qualified for most commercial programming jobs, and will demand a far higher pay.

They should stick to research, commercial programming is not just about theoretical know how. I know good commercial programmers that don't even have A Levels, that have learnt on the job and at home, and I know graduates who can't get a good job. The latter cost more and expect more.

Re:Basic premise

[Anonymous Coward]

Most people argue that "when we outsource one sector of work, the country advances and most of our people go into a greater field of work, above what they were doing before".

In other words, we outsource production/manufacturing jobs and then we become a service and information based economy. But the problem with this NOW is that you're not talking about putting a bunch of assembly line workers out of jobs and making them go to school and learn something. You're talking about forcing educated, professional people who have often gone into debt to acquire their educations or people who have technical skills but no on-paper-degree out of their work as the work is shipped overseas.

It's one thing to tell a guy who runs the bottle-capping machine at 7-UP that his job is being shipped overseas and he's going to have to go back to school and persue college toward some sort of office job or higher technology job. It's quite another to tell someone who has spent a decade or three building their white collar career or a person who spent four or more years in college, then building their career and dedicating themselves to a particular field that now they're going to have to go back to school all over again (sometimes after just having graduated and gone into debt a first time) and learn something new...

Sure, maybe it's great for the country overall... but it sucks ass for individual people in the meantime. It fucks a whole generation over.

Missing from the article

[I8TheWorm]

A point I think the article misses on, and a fairly important one, is the current education system in the US. While problem solving (vs. memorization) is still the focus of education here, it's not as enforced as it was in the past.

I have family in several states in education and most agree that we're turning out fewer problem solvers than in the past. None seems to have a solution, outside of parenting (or lack thereof), which I think is the leading killer of a solid education.

What used to draw innovators from other countries was the freedom and opportunity found in the US. Both of those seem to be dwindling. Where does that leave us?

I think we're also in for a lull in innovation in the US, which is scarier to me than the trend in offshore outsourcing. I've been a professional developer for 13 years. Although I haven't been affected yet, I have to assume it will affect me sometime (hopefully later than sooner).

With three children, I am the math and science homework helper in the house. What I find is my children are taught tricks and workarounds rather than an understanding of the fundamental math problems. I'm glad to help my children, and love seeing the light go off in their head when they actually understand the problems they work on. So I have this idea. When I "retire" from development (forced or otherwise) I'm going to become a math teacher, preferably at the middle school ages. I've worked in math my whole career, and have had a wonderful experience with my own children (I know, teaching 25 kids is completely different). I think if more people were to go into teaching towards the end of their career, and in a field that matches their respective career, we would be turning out more innovators and maybe worry less about the future of the working world in the US.

Re:creativity and innovation

[Roger Keith Barrett]

What do you mean that there is no strategic long term concern?

I'll tell you just one, a big one... when there is absolutely no reward for going into a technical, I.T. or engineering career then no one is going to go to school to learn these professions.

Then you really WILL lose creativity, innovation, and have a REAL lack of in-country talent.

MBAs ruining technicians

[leandrod]

> When I talk to CEOs about the career paths of the engineers in their companies, they say that many reach a career plateau very early, often after only five years. This happens not because of any technical deficiency, but because of a lack of "people" skills such as communication and teamwork.

No news here. These are MBA-type CEOs that love to ruin people's lives because they can't lie enough to keep customers happy but screwed. The kinda guy who thinks he's a success because he's filthy rich, and who can't understand he needs people. He can't grok that people want to do something instead of bloodsucking like him. So his company lacks an Y-shaped career path.

Contrast this to Germany where CEOs are engineers.