The Modern Marco Polo Looks to Asia for Outsourcing

Outsourcing has evolved beyond cost-savings. Smart multinational companies scour the globe for skills and expertise the way smart moms scour the Safeway for Weekly Specials.

For example, a recent CNET article mentioned the distinct skills of workers in Asian countries as a big reason why the region has become a main outsourcing hub recently.

Japan before has proven to be a force to reckon with in terms of product innovation, whether in electronics or in the automobile industry.

Now, China and Taiwan are following a more or less similar path. These two countries boast of engineers that produces today's most advanced computer chips. They also design some of the most sophisticated software available (handwriting recognition software on tablet PC's for example).

In the Philippines, some call center service providers have consistently performed better than their clients' native in-house operations.

All things equal in terms of skills, Western companies will benefit from outsourcing since they pay less for managers and workers.

"Free Trade Works"

Management guru Tom Peters, a trusted adviser of many respected service companies shocked many (as usual) with his recently published Offshoring Manifesto/Rant.

Peters writes that the trend of offshoring cannot be reversed. He continues with point 6, that Americans are bound to lose their unearned wage advantage due to the globalization.

The notion that workers in America are far superior to those from other countries is but a thing of the past.

Times do change. When Marco Polo travelled to Asia over 700 years ago, he reported of the riches of jade, porcelain, silk, and ivory. Today, the modern explorer will find treasures in software, hardware, and business process outsourcing.

If Peters is right, these treasures may mask a double edged sword. Keep an eye on India and China. With their rapid growth rates, and easy access to technology, they will soon make developed nations slightly uncomfortable with their perches high on the global food chain.