Posts Tagged ‘outsourcing’

Bet You Didn’t Know: The U.S. Still Manufactures 40% More Stuff Than China

Friday, February 11th, 2011

“WASHINGTON — U.S. factories are closing. American manufacturing jobs are reappearing overseas. China’s industrial might is growing each year.

Yet America remains by far the No. 1 manufacturing country. It out-produces No. 2 China by more than 40 percent. U.S. manufacturers cranked out nearly $1.7 trillion in goods in 2009, according to the United Nations.

The story of American factories essentially boils down to this: They’ve managed to make more goods with fewer workers.”

What do you think?

What if higher production adds up to fewer jobs? Is efficiency always a good thing?

How often do you see “Made in U.S.A.” on the products you buy? How about “China?”

Outsourcing is…

Monday, March 8th, 2010

Outsourcing is the practice of using third-party service providers. Companies typically outsource in order to reduce costs or enhance their product, as other companies or service providers may be more experienced or effective in that particular area of production.

The Economy Is Looking Up, But That Might Not Mean More Jobs Tomorrow

Friday, February 26th, 2010

For now it seems as though the eye of the storm has passed, but we’re not out of the woods yet, especially those of us looking for jobs…

  • Throughout the course of a nation’s economic history, job markets fade and expand, but this recession has thrown a wrench into this natural process of economic evolution—some of the jobs lost in this recession will never come back.
  • With corners being cut and companies outsourcing work to more efficient producers, businesses have altered their business and learned new techniques and methods for doing more with less.
  • Though the economy is beginning to recover and jobs are coming back, the rate of job creation has slowed considerably. That, coupled with many people joining and rejoining the workforce, means that unemployment and economic growth indicators will continue to be somewhat stagnant in the foreseeable future.

Facts & Figures

  • Nearly a quarter of the 8.4 million jobs have been lost since 2007 won’t ever be coming back.
  • About 133,000 jobs will be created each month of this year, but economists predict that the unemployment rate will fall only to 0.3% by year’s end.
  • In order for unemployment to fall at a faster rate, economists say that over 200,000 jobs will need to be created each month.

Best Quote

“There’s a certain Darwinian angle to recession. Firms that survive are stronger for having the experience. They tighten down and look for ways to cut waste.” -–Sean Snaith, Economist at the University of Central Florida.

Why do customer service calls connect you to India?

Friday, June 5th, 2009

Chances are if you’ve called a large company to ask them to help you with your phone, computer, or pretty much anything, you have talked to someone in India. Not just anyone, but a trained professional who can help you through your problem.

Companies from all over the world outsource their call centers to India and other countries because a strong portion of the educated class there speaks English and the workers do not require as much in wages as call center operators in America. The economic theory behind the difference in wages is called comparative advantage, which is when one provider can produce something more efficiently than another provider. In this example, Indian call centers have a comparative advantage because they can pay their workers less than American call centers can.

So what’s the easy answer? Companies contract with Indian call centers simply because it’s cheaper. And if they can lower their operational expenses without lowering their income, it adds up to more profit for company shareholders.