Submitted By: Witold Sadowski

Yes, the little guy can outsource.

So you’re starting your new small business from the comfort of your rented studio apartment with your three roommates. How exciting! But once it comes down to putting those revolutionary ideas into motion, you breakdown as you realize the collective $1,000 cash in your account won’t get you very far.

Well, outsourcing to lucrative areas such as China and India is not just for those big “bad” businesses anymore - the ones most everyone loves to hate - but we too can get in on the action.

Websites such as Guru, Elance, Ninemotion, Rentacoder, and Getfriday have emerged which leverage the global economy and link you with individuals worldwide who can bid to work on your small-scale projects. Very much like eBay, you can view ratings/comments from previous employers, see peoples resumes and work experience, view how much they would like to be paid, and have people bid on your projects.

So what are the savings versus the local Yellow Pages? I found a 5-star rated lawyer in India specializing in Employment Law, International Law, IP/Trademark Law, Litigation Law, and Corporate Law for $20/hour.

A 5-star rated graphic designer specializing in flash creation and website construction also for $20/hour.

An engineer specializing in Integrated Circuit Design, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Scientific Computation from Romania for $25/hour.

You can even watch a video-resume from your prospective hires.

On the flip side, those of you who have some extra time or want to work from home and have some service or skill to offer, you can also post a listing (for free) on these websites.

However, you should be extra careful when outsourcing to these places. Like the Cal Poly mantra “learn by doing,” one downside to outsourcing is that it creates an opportunity for an outside provider to learn about your activities. If you outsource your strategically important business aspects, you may be unleashing a significant competitive threat to your company.

With such sites emerging, this might be the perfect time to leverage the global economy. Currently, the personal outsourcing marketplace generates about $250 million a year in revenue and is expected to grow to more than $2 billion a year by 2015 (source: Chicago Tribune).

So what’s your opinion – would you use these services? Are the savings worth the risk? Is it ethical to utilize such opportunities and resources?

Submitted By: Professor Singh

Check out this link: Return to India: One Family’s Journey to America and Back – A Special Report from Wharton

During my presentation on India recently, I mentioned “brain gain”, a term getting very familiar to Indians all over the world. I came across a report by an Indian author who, after having a successful career in the US for 20 years, decided to return back to her homeland. Being an “economic immigrant”, as is the case with most Indians immigrating to the US, the author discusses the reasons why Indians move back to India or decide to stay in the US.

Most Indians, according to the article, use a green card or citizenship as an insurance policy and activate their plans to move back to India soon after. Through my personal experiences in talking to innumerable Indians in the US, those raising or planning to raise their families in the US, always express concerns that the new generation may lose their Indian heritage and beliefs while growing up in the US. The author of this article expands on how India’s social fabric seemed more conducive to raising a family to here.

Many interesting comments regarding this article are posted here.

Here are some more sites I found interesting. Click here, here, here, here and here.