I read that presidential candidate Hillary Clinton warned about Outsourcing in a message to the audience at Pan-IIT conference

“If the United States continues to outsource jobs to India in increasingly large numbers, people will begin to feel insecure and may very well seek more protection against what they view as unfair competition. America is not just a a marketplace to get a foothold in.”

The above quote made me think about Outsourcing again. For me, it was and it is always a given that marketplace determines what is right and what is wrong.

Let me explain my dilemma through a scenario:

Let us run a scenario. You are a $100M company and all your competitors are outsourcing and gaining some sort of advantage. Would you stop your Outsourcing initiative because it may not be good for the greater good of the country. That would mean taking a hit and having a competitive disadvantage against others who ARE outsourcing today.

Extend the scenario. You are competitor to the company that is discussed above. You are already well into full-scale outsourcing. Would you want to go back on your Outsourcing strategy because it is good for the country or would you rather press on the initial advantage you have got over your competition?

Whatever way you think, I get a feeling that it is ultimately the marketplace that defines what’s next for Outsourcing.

My $.02 of course.