Examine More Than Cost Savings When Judging the Nearshore
February 2nd, 2012By Patrick Haller
When making sourcing decisions, a lot of attention is paid to the pricing structure and qualifications of service providers, while their actual location is sometimes a secondary consideration. However, when assessing a destination, it’s important to realize that what might be favorable today can morph into a nightmare scenario tomorrow. Don’t be caught unaware and unprepared for the ever-changing dynamics of the Nearshore.
Nearshore Agile Development Needs to Fix Major Flaw
January 31st, 2012
By Katy Demong
Companies that want to grow their bottom line while saving money by speeding software cycles are turning increasingly to Agile development. But how can companies combine the cost savings of Agile with the economies of Nearshore while protecting themselves from miscommunication and the mismanagement of time and resources?
Forget Arbitrage: Just Take Labor Out of the Cost Equation
January 30th, 2012
By Dan Berthiaume
Labor arbitrage, or the moving of jobs from more expensive to less expensive locations, has long been seen as one of the chief potential benefits of BPO. And while reducing the cost of labor by shifting it overseas certainly remains an appealing option for many BPO customers, with the assistance of technology the BPO model is starting to evolve to a point where, in many cases, labor can be removed from the equation entirely.
Second Annual Nearshore Nexus Comes to New York City this April
Nearshore Nexus, the only North America investor conference focused entirely on the Caribbean and Latin America IT and BPO sector, will take place on Thursday April 19, 2012, in New York City.
Nearshore Nexus will feature the best minds in global services to examine the growing role Latin America is playing in delivering quality outsourcing services to businesses across the Americas. The outsourcing sector in Latin America has been growing at over 20 percent per year – noticeably higher than the global average. The theme for the 2012 edition of Nexus is: “Intelligent Analysis of Outsourcing in the Americas.”
“I’m very proud of the fact that we will attract delegates and sponsors from over 15 countries in Latin America. This testifies to …
What Sluggishness? TCS Exec Sees Robust Nearshore Momentum
January 26th, 2012
Prakash: Customers want "mobility, big data, business intelligence."
By Robert L. Scheier
Days after Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) announced a 14 percent growth in quarter-over-quarter revenue, Ankur Prakash, Vice President and COO for TCS-Latin America talked with our affiliate Global Delivery Report about prospects for the Nearshore amid continued economic uncertainty.
Prakash, who is ranked number 15 on the Nearshore Americas Power 50 list, lauded for being “a strong supporter of Latin American services,” does not see the slowdown in demand for outsourcing that some analysts are forecasting.
Investment Data Reveals State of Interest in Latin America Locations
January 25th, 2012By Reshaad Durgahee
Lima, Peru: Surprisingly emerging.
In the period 2003 through 2010, Europe and Asia were the largest recipient regions of foreign investment projects in shared services and BPO activities, accounting for 46% and 29% respectively. Meanwhile, interest in Latin America has clearly been growing. The number of shared services and BPO foreign investment projects in Latin America rose year on year until 2010, when the total number of projects entering the region decreased by 15%.
Staff Reduction: How to Make the Most of a Painful Situation
January 24th, 2012
By Daniel Berthiaume
A crucial aspect of many IT outsourcing and BPO initiatives is internal staff reduction. Despite the cost savings and more efficient operations that might result, few managers look forward to determining who stays and who goes when a department outsources certain functions. But properly evaluating employees in the event jobs need to be terminated is absolutely critical to BPO success.
Latin America’s Ranking Reflects ‘Intensifying’ of IT, BPO Skills
January 20th, 2012
#55 Bogota: "Broad spectrum" of IT-BPO services.
Nearly a quarter of the locations in the new Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations rankings, by the strategic advisory firm Tholons, are in the Nearshore region. Considering the number of locations in the region, maybe mathematically that doesn’t work out to be especially remarkable. But what is notable is that most Nearshore destinations improved in the standings, and some by quite a bit, and that signifies improved capabilities and better service delivery. The word Tholons analysts use to summarize the region’s outsourcing market is “vitality.”
Nearshore’s 2012 Outlook: Time for Industry to ‘Stand on Its Own’
January 18th, 2012
By Patrick Haller
With 2012 in full-swing, a critical look at what lies ahead for Nearshoring is in order. With a shaky global economy, and some forecasts calling for a sluggish year in IT and BPO sourcing, this is no time to be complacent. Whether it’s building solid skill sets, creating sufficient scale, matching client’s expectations, managing expansion, or doing business amidst social change and myopic political theater, providers have a lot to confront. We tapped some of the leading experts in the Nearshoring space for their answer to the burning question: What is the single biggest challenge you think the Nearshore outsourcing industry faces in 2012?
US Congressional Bill Would Penalize Offshoring
January 17th, 2012
By Peter Ryan
The US Congressional initiative House Resolution 3596 (HR 3596) is the most recent effort on the part of certain US legislators to inhibit the offshore outsourcing of contact center services. However, no matter how sincere the spirit of this and other previously proposed and similarly worded resolutions, Ovum believes such a law would badly hurt outsourcers and ultimately impact the US consumer negatively. Therefore, vendors need to come out swinging against such initiatives.
