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Study: Could onshoring become the new offshoring?

The ITAA says that while offshoring to China and India will continue, some U.S. companies can take advantage of outsourcing their labor to rural U.S. locations with onshoring alternatives.
By Denise Dubie , Network World , 08/17/2007
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A recent ITAA report details how U.S. companies can kill two birds with one stone: outsource their labor force and keep jobs available to U.S. workers.

The Information Technology Association of America recently released a report that details why what it is calling lower cost domestic (LCD) sourcing, or onshoring alternatives, options could be a better choice for American business owners and IT executives.

Onshoring or as some have called it, near-shoring, would involve U.S. companies establishing data centers or other locations within the United States, but in rural or less-urban areas to keep costs down. The work would still be outsourced from the company's primary location but within U.S. border, which Proponents say would alleviate data privacy and security concerns.

Also onshoring could help companies tap specialized IT talents within the United States. For instance, companies are choosing their offshore locations based on the workforce there and adopting "cities of excellence" in certain areas such as software development or call centers, the ITAA says, meaning companies offering onshoring in the United States could also offer locations that could become centers of excellence for specific skills. While locations such as India and China will continue to serve some U.S. companies' offshore needs, the ITAA contends that onshoring labor to United States locations can help other organizations, such as government agencies, that are not able to hire specialized IT talent offshore.

"For some organizations using offshore services is just not an option. … Some work simply does not lend itself to an offshore solution," the ITAA report reads. "There are a growing number of examples of companies establishing or expanding remote delivery centers in cost-effective LCD locations. Many view onshoring as a vital component of their global delivery model."

The ITAA report does not discredit offshoring options and expects to see locations such as India and China continue to serve U.S. companies and the U.S. economy. But the group contends the United States -- with the right programs and government developments -- can also become an attractive and viable source for similar outsourcing scenarios. Outsourcing companies can take on work from U.S. companies and operate as though the work was offshored, except locating data centers within the United States.

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We offer onshore outsourcing servicesBy Anonymous on May 2, 2009, 1:52 pmAt Rural America Onshore we use talented professional from rural areas and pass the savings on to our clients. http://www.ruralamericaonshore.com/

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where would you get the work force and knowledgeBy Anonymous on May 1, 2009, 1:36 amPlease don't take it in a offensive manner. But if the onshoring is done then from where would the companies find the necessary work force with required skills and...

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OnshoringBy Anonymous on August 22, 2007, 5:04 pmCould it be that the world really isn't flat? Wait! Someone wrote a book about it. It has to be true! Offshoring IT work to India is in our best interest ... although,...

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Frozen North Best Thing EverBy Rick on August 21, 2007, 2:54 pmI teach telecommunications cabling and networking to affiliate schools nationwide. Long ago I heard from my North Dakota friends that farmers make excellent targets...

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RE: Study: Could onshoring become the new offshoring?By Cindy on August 20, 2007, 7:47 pmThis is the end result of destroying American industry and jobs so that consumers can have cheap junk, and as an added "bonus" lead paint on our children's toys............

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