Week 7 Reflection

This week part of the study involved the concept of off shoring and outsourcing work to other companies.  This concept has become of particular interest due to the development and growth of the internet, as it now allow for offshoring or outsourcing of technical jobs rather then just manufacturing jobs as had been done previously for cars or electronics.  A main difference with these two styles of offshoring is the level of technical ability required by the worker.  The manufacturing level can be done by mostly unskilled laborers once the factory is in place.  The IT level work requires the workers to be trained to a higher level to deal with both the computer technical skills as well as the possible customer service skills which may include language courses.

These two different levels also allow for a discussion of how they effect the local economy of the country in which they are placed.  Many argue that the manufacturing helps the developing country and it is true to a certain extent.  But there is also the possibility for the manufacturing country to simply pull out the factories and move them to another country that is less developed if it is better for the company.  It may be better for the company to due this as it would allow them to avoid certain labor laws or perhaps a rising demand for higher wage due to a growth in the standard of living.

The higher trained IT jobs present a different version of this though.  Due to the need for a higher level of training it is better for the offshoring company to move into a country such as India that has the education already in place but still is not as developed as some Western countries to help defer costs.  But due to the nature of these jobs, it helps to grow the middle class rather then the working class as the jobs pay more and provide more advanced skills.  A person that gets trained for an IT position could then uses the skills to develop technical jobs within their home country.  This is in contrast to the manufacturing position that requires the funding of a large company to operate the factory.  The technical position could start small by providing online services that have little start up cost in comparison.

These are only a few thoughts on the subject but this topic has incredible depth to explore.