Does Outsourcing Equal High IT Unemployment?
After a few posts about fuzzy stuff like "adding value" (the kind of stuff I have decided to leave to the MBA's with spreadsheets), I thought I would get back to Outsourcing. Implicit in most of the discussions on this topic is the assumption that Outsourcing (especially offshore) has contributed to IT unemployment. Here is a Yahoo Posting that challenges that assumption. Among the points I note:

1) The gap between the overall unemployment rate and IT unemployment is now quite small. In the late 90's it was several percentage points. This is in keeping with my "gravy train" comment from yesterday.

2) IT unemployment increases with age. Not a real surprise, but I take greater notice with each passing day.

3) A quote from an MIT management professor, "It hasn't reached the danger level; we have a window of time, five or 10 years, for IT professionals to sit down and talk about what it'll take to maintain the knowledge and skills of the workforce,"

I will contrast that with a comment from a former colleague, "We've got 12 - 36 months. After that you and I are in trouble".

How are you feeling today?
"it"