This sounds dodgy
InfoWorld reports on a more deep form of outsourcing:
If previously the preferred route for low-cost, offshore development in India was to set up a captive development subsidiary, ISVs are now looking at alternatives such as third-party outsourcers that specialize in end-to-end product development, said Sarath Sura, managing director of the Indian operations of Sierra Atlantic Based in Fremont, California, Sierra Atlantic provides outsourced IT services and has a product development facility in Hyderabad in south India.
Which is kind of where I figured this would go. Why did I say it sounded dodgy? Well, get a load of this quote from the article:
To hedge risks, some ISVs outsource to more than one Indian outsourcer. Senable Technologies Inc. a startup in Dallas, for example, has outsourced development to three vendors in India, including Aspire, according to Andy Pulianda, the company's chief executive officer. Senable selected the three vendors after evaluating about 100 companies.
"India has the capability to provide robust commercial product development, but significant due diligence is required before selecting partners that meet your requirements," Pulianda said. A major pitfall, for example, could be low price because the vendor offering the lowest price may have cut costs on infrastructure, communications links or on security, Pulianda added.
Welcome to integration hell with that strategy. Here's a far better idea - hire half as many developers as you think you need, and have them use Smalltalk. You'll actually get a product out the door without the overhead of managing three development teams 12 time zones away.
Comments
[Logical Conclusion] May 12, 2005 21:02:48.069
What would happen if everyone used Smalltalk, including those cheap labor countries? Would you like fries with that?
Actually ...
[ Troy Brumley] May 12, 2005 23:56:30.936
Comment by Troy Brumley
In terms of fears of outsourcing's negative impact on employment here, the only problem that I see that is correctable is the real wage differential between US/Canada/EU and other countries. Our wages are going to continue to slip, and we have to hope that theirs rise enough to keep those dollar-obsessed spreadsheet jockeys from fixating on cost of a FTE and look at the full picture--quality of product, overhead costs, communication issues, and so on.
I don't fear that I'll end up in food service, but I expect several more years of adjustment as we (hopefully) struggle to reach some sort of sustainable equilibrium.
What's wrong with outsourcing?
[Steve] May 13, 2005 14:58:10.847
Hey, the displaced developers in Europe can ask if you want fries with that in at least 4 languages :) Our outsourcing supplier says Smalltalk is not a problem. And they've proven that they're very conservative -- they won't make committments they can't live to. And they're only 3 timezones away. Frankly, they're easier to manage than the typical overpriced arrogant consultants we typically get: they *listen* and they don't let their egos push your project all over the place. Imagine that, developers who treat their customers like customers instead of insulting their intelligence! I know not everyone has success with outsourcing, but I've seen it work. Part of the deal is treating the developers with respect. Most Euro/American project managers haven't figured that out yet, regardless of where they find their labour. But I don't lose sleep over tools. The other problems in our projects are way more significant. Java, C#, Smalltalk, COBOL, are all the same to me. I will draw the line at C++ however. Now I just have to find a way to get my boss to stop talking about Lisp. But I'm sure someone in Banaglore would be happy to help us with that too. Overpriced lazy developers shouldn't think of it as disintermediation. They should think of it as finding something better to do with their time.