{"id":77,"date":"2013-03-01T15:00:45","date_gmt":"2013-03-01T15:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.microsofttraining.net\/b\/?p=77"},"modified":"2023-12-30T23:06:22","modified_gmt":"2023-12-30T23:06:22","slug":"obama-insourcing-and-microsoft-office","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stl-training.co.uk\/b\/obama-insourcing-and-microsoft-office\/","title":{"rendered":"Obama, Insourcing and Your (Microsoft) Office"},"content":{"rendered":"

Passing your spreadsheet and database needs to an external company is all too appealing when looking for quick results at low cost. But, is this economically viable or is outsourcing slowing bringing Britain to its knees? Can the US President’s passion for insourcing make Britain Great again?<\/p>\n

Insourcing is the process of bringing operations back from an external company \/ country and integrating them into your company. Put simply, for anyone that knows outsourcing – it\u2019s the opposite.<\/em><\/p>\n

Unemployment<\/h2>\n

Britain spends untold billions of pounds to overseas outsourcing companies every year, with the main loser being the home-grown workforce.<\/p>\n

UK unemployment levels remain at 7.7% <\/a>according to figures released early in 2013. Many jobs that have been taken away from the British workforce include manufacturing, customer service, tech, marketing and more. Perhaps even more worrying is that over 1 million young people aged 18-24 are without employment,<\/a> not to mention, in ever increasing debt from university courses.<\/p>\n

Although the experts claim that we as a nation are moving towards the end of the recession, this does little to instill confidence in the millions of unemployed. But could this be avoided to some part by bringing jobs back home? Tasks the UK market knows how to do; maintaining a database in Access or building financial models in Excel.<\/p>\n

The lure of outsourcing sits firmly in the corner of saving money for business. Cheaper labour costs in overseas countries means that wage bills can be cut and profits can increase.<\/p>\n

Obama\u2019s Big Idea<\/h2>\n

\"Obama<\/a><\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lot to be said about our friends from across the pond, and whilst Obama may not have realised it, his recent initiative could have just saved a large number of businesses here in the UK.<\/p>\n

Early in 2012, Obama sought to tackle the issue of unemployment head on, by setting to reward businesses that opted to bring operations back home<\/a>. Insourcing was born (or at least publicised) and the world was beginning to listen.<\/p>\n

In fact, he even attempted to pass a bill which would see tax breaks for companies that adopted the insourcing initiative. Although this was ultimately unsuccessful in parliament<\/a> and the bill was narrowly rejected, the idea is still going strong.<\/p>\n

A case study: General Motors re-hires 10,000 IT professionals<\/h2>\n

\"General-Motors\"<\/a><\/p>\n

While GM<\/a> was one of the early adopters of outsourcing, news late in 2012 seems to be suggesting of a U-turn. Whilst manufacturing looks set to remain offshore, the company plans to bring home 10,000 IT jobs for the benefit of the US workforce. And with the help of a little training, these employees are set to flourish.<\/p>\n

Part of GM\u2019s insourcing plan is to open what they call innovation centres. These centres will be based across the US in areas that reflect a substantial amount of industry knowledge. That\u2019s a no brainer right? One such centre will employ 500 people in Austin, TX, matching their skills to the relevant IT roles. Just as the best businesses match their employees skills and knowledge base to the tasks that need to be performed.<\/p>\n

Is there a bright future for General Motors? Only time will tell if it\u2019s the best decision for them, but it\u2019s definitely a great move for the US unemployed.<\/p>\n

So, what are the benefits of insourcing?<\/h2>\n

\"Motivated<\/a><\/p>\n