The Beginning or The End

My name is Chris Jackson and I am a big picture person.  I just got back from the Gartner Outsourcing and Vendor Management Summit in Las Vegas and that was the theme of the conference.  The keynote speaker, Daniel Pink,  suggested that most traditional "left-brained" type jobs will be eliminated by a variety of factors including outsourcing.  He backed this up by explaining the numbers game of India and China and I for one took note.   We've been seeing the outsouring game to Asia for a number of years now, but I am shocked with the flat volume.  Thank goodness, I've moved over to the "right-brained" side for a number of years now.

I started talking to senior IT managers about this and to many they live in denial.  "Outsourcing will never work here," said one.  While another said, "I think there is too great a culture clash."   I disagree with both and here is why.  First, there is enough history with outsourcing that contract can be written to overcome any objections especially when an American is the delivery manager and contact with the outsourced country is minimal.  Second, in this economy and in the economy for the next few years IT budgets are going to be spread thin even when the recovery comes and it is hard to object to a CS degreed individual for $15k / year.

Never fear however, there is hope.   We...Us...as IT professionals must and will adapt.  We must be more creative.  Think about business results instead of our own.  Be glad to get rid of the repetative boring work and think about new opportunities.  How do we do this?

1. Don't be in a siloed job.   You may think being a great Oracle DBA or Exchange admin is the way to financial freedom, but you may soon be outsourced.

2. Learn a new skill.   Go back to school.  Get an MBA or a degree at all.   If you understand business, you'll be less likely to go.

3. Learn a different technology.   Complement your singular technical skill with a complementary one.   Application development / DBA / BI.  Windows / Linux / Storage.  Desktop / Change Management / Service Delivery

4.   Learn the skills it takes to manage an outsourcer.   Someone has to interface between the technical side and the business side and know a little about both.  Someone has to manage contracts and SLA's with the outsourcer.  It should be you.

Let me know what you think.  My email is cjackson@itstrategygrp.com