* Tips for living with outsourcing without getting a pink slip
As I write this article in the waning days of 2004, and look forward into 2005, I have been thinking about the future of IT and the fate of many of us in the industry. Worries about retaining jobs in the continued slow economy and with the looming threat/opportunity that outsourcing brings to the industry are real concerns, and justifiably so.
Outsourcing, in one form or another, has been with us for a very long time. In the early years of the U.S., the manufacture of wagon covers and ship sails was outsourced to workers in Scotland, and the raw material was imported from India. Interestingly, England’s textile industry became so efficient in the 1830s that eventually Indian manufacturers could not compete, and that work was outsourced to England!
The point of all of this is that outsourcing has been, and will continue to be, a reality for a long time to come. Given that all of us will most likely have to deal with outsourcing at some point in our careers, how do you ensure that, if your IT function is outsourced, you are one of the people who retains their job?
It’s not an easy question to answer, but as someone who has been employed in the industry for a long time (I’m entering my 24th year in IT), I do have some advice that I hope will be of use (Hey, it’s free advice, so take it for what it’s worth!). This was brought to my attention the hard way a couple of years ago when I was laid off in a corporate downsizing effort, and it took me five months to find another position – previously, the longest period of time that I ever had to search for a position was around three weeks.
Remember that when a company decides to outsource, a “land grab” for the remaining non-redundant jobs always ensues. A certain percentage of employees are retained to perform oversight and liaison duties with the service provider, and another percentage move over to the service provider as “badged employees.” It is impossible to outsource the entire IT function as the company absolutely must retain its best, brightest and best-educated personnel to make sure the outsourcing initiative bears fruit. Your challenge is to ensure you are one of these people.
The short answer is continuous education. Those people who continually improve themselves, staying up with current trends and technologies, are the ones who generally keep their jobs (and if they do get laid off, they find new jobs more quickly). Fortunately, there are many different ways to continue your education, and not all require formal classroom time:
1. Read industry trade magazines. The fact that you’re reading this column in the first place is a good sign – it shows that you care about what’s happening in the industry. Make a short list of hot, emerging technologies that are in demand, and determine which of these you are a) interested in and b) are likely to be able to master.
2. Subscribe to the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN). Included in the MSDN subscription is access to Microsoft products and documentation, which you can install and learn on virtually any PC.
3. Spend some of your spare time “playing around.” Investigate technologies that interest you, and download free/trial versions of software to try out. Think about creating a small home computer lab that you can use as a sandbox for learning new technologies.
4. Consider formal higher education. Those with higher-level degrees will oftentimes get the nod over lesser-educated peers. It is now possible to obtain advanced degrees over the Internet, for a very reasonable cost.
5. Network, network, network! When the time comes for you to find another position, your personal network is oftentimes the key differentiator between finding a job and drawing unemployment. I am particularly fond of LinkedIn (hhtp://www.linkedin.com), where I have been able to build a network of 151 direct connections (these are people whom I know personally). By leveraging their networks, I can reach 6,800 people that are two degrees away (friends-of-friends), plus 186,400 third-degree and 628,900 fourth-degree contacts. This means that I have access to a total pool of more than 822,000 people in the industry – an amazingly powerful arsenal for finding new opportunities when the time comes.
I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a healthy and profitable 2005, and to thank you for reading. I appreciate the privilege of writing to you every week, and look forward to continuing the process over the next year. As always, I welcome your ideas, suggestions and comments on the subjects of outsourcing and information security; my e-mail address is below. Thanks for reading.
