Outsourcing and the lack of skilled UK IT workers
This week's Computing - out tomorrow (13 December 2007) - features a full interview with Duncan Aitchison, where the partner at outsourcing advisory specialist TPI suggests talks at length about multisourcing and future destinations for offshoring.
In the piece, Aitchison says he expects any remaining hesitancy surrounding offshoring to subside because of an increasing requirement to source specialist workers.
The ability to tap into a broad skills pool at a financially attractive price means more UK firms will look overseas for external service provision:
“Cost is clearly significant. But do not underestimate the skills issue. We generally do not have enough skilled talent in the West any more.”
Demand for traditional, bulk IT skills is depressed locally. And Aitchison advises UK IT professionals to migrate towards process-oriented specialities, rather than heavy-lifting skills:
“These days you have to be able to drive and manage projects and these are skills that firms are much less likely to outsource."
Full interview with Duncan Aitchison: IT directors must consider a range of outsourcing options
Sort of a catch-22 isn't it? You outsource the work. Fewer people enter the field causing a shortage, so you outsource more work causing fewer people to enter the field etc.
You can't really be very good at driving and managing IT projects unless you have a background in the "heavy lifting." If you disagree with that statement, then there is no problem because you can get a secretary to do it, but how will you know when the outsourcer is screwing you?
Pretty soon, the "driving" and "management" will have to be outsourced as well. When that happens, the outsourcing price advantage disappears leaving you with same or higher cost structure than in house with none of the advantages of in house.
Can't wait until I retire.
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Posted by: Biswaroop Todi | Tuesday, 15 January 2008 at 05:41 AM
Well, there you have it. Just outsource it to India. Of course you will have to have some moron with a degree in marketing manage your IT outsourcing. Strange that business wants the smart people to have the skills of the people who couldn't make it in CS or IT and settled for Marketing or Business Administration. I remember a programming instructor I had in college who would remark about students who didn't attend class, "Tell them there is plenty of room in marketing." The problem is you have a lot of people with business and marketing degrees telling tech people what skills they need, and not surpisingly they seem to think that "communication" and "business" skills" are more important than techinal acumen. Just outsource it and put us all out of our misery.
Posted by: Sam | Wednesday, 27 February 2008 at 07:26 PM
I'm not sure what the hold-up is... maybe they have re-thought their stance on how this is going to actually make the company any money. Or perhaps their lawyers pointed out the liability of providing agents a platform to stick their feet in their mouth. Whatever it is, it's hardly something I'd claim as being "Well done".
www.jebshouse.com/wordletter.php?l=A
Posted by: Stan Bricks | Friday, 09 May 2008 at 08:38 PM