“Outsourcing” is usually associated with moving tasks previously done by US workers to other countries.
This morning, in a workshop with a room full of CEOs, the discussion turned to outsourcing. But, instead of talking about moving jobs offshore, most of the CEOs said that in the last few years they had outsourced many tasks to companies nearby. Maintenance of truck fleets, accounting, IT, HR—the real outsourcing happening in America is using your neighbors’ expertise to help you thrive.
This is exactly what Tom was talking about 5 years ago in his Professional Service Firm50 book—whatever task your department does for your company, there is an outside company ready to prove that they can do it better, for a fee.