Homeshoring: An Alternative Solution To Domestic Unemployment

"When the music changes, so does the dance" - African Proverb

We introduced the Homeland Onshore Model five years ago. At that time, the economy was in recovery mode and unemployment really wasn't an issue. Those who wanted work could get a job. The market for I.T. outsourcing was really taking off, but no one really seemed to care too much. After all, companies were anticipating great savings, and those who were impacted here either found other work or got out of the business altogether. Most of the I.T. managers we spoke with at the time really liked the HOM concept, but were still being mandated to go offshore.

Five years of actual execution and hindsight have provided some much needed clarity. Many companies have learned that offshore outsourcing isn't the silver bullet it they were hoping it would be. Hidden costs, (ex. rework, high transition expenses, travel, turnover, dollar devaluation, expensive on-site/off-site ratios, additional management) risks, and other issues have many firms questioning their offshore strategy.

Lately, I have been spending a lot of time speaking with very qualified people who are currently looking for work. They are not just I.T. people. Many come from finance, accounting, human resources, marketing and legal backgrounds. Budgets being what they are, I fear that the ranks of the unemployed may grow larger in 2009.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong.

And yet, even with unemployment growing in this country, we still see stories about companies looking to save money by shipping jobs overseas. (Computerworld November 10, 2008).

It appears as if a company's first reaction to saving money is to look some where else. I can understand that because that has been the accepted solution for the last 8 years. However, the economic landscape is rapidly changing in this country, and huge opportunities exist for firms that are open to looking at fresh and innovative ideas.

One solution to our spiraling unemployment is not to move jobs overseas, but to take advantage of lower cost areas that exist throughout the U.S. by allowing workers to work remotely. People outside the big cities cost less because the cost of living is usually much less in outlining areas (Basically the same thinking behind offshoring). The remote worker wins because they no longer have the commuting costs, and gains between one to two hours a day of additional family time. The cost of living differences combined with higher unemployment may mean even further cost savings for the employer, a trade off many workers may be willing to make for a better quality of life and lower gas bills. Albeit on a small scale, we have found this model works extremely well and has allowed us to directly compete with offshore resources when all the costs were added up.

How many jobs can be created by taking the Homeshoring approach? How many jobs can we save by taking a different path to cost reduction? Maybe it's time for companies to think outside the box by looking within. When we implemented the Homeland Onshore Model, we proved that domestic workers could compete directly with offshore resources. Notice I'm not advocating protectionist policies; I am saying we can compete. This is America, and we always find a way to solve even our most dire problems. After all, we are amazing innovators. America is home to world's most productive workforce. It's time to take a new look on how we can deploy them to everyone's benefit. We have the technology (high speed internet) to solve our unemployment challenge, let's use it.

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