Many months ago (10), we started hearing that our company was thinking about out-sourcing it’s IT functions. Not to worry we were told, it is just part of due diligence to make sure the right thing is being done. A few months pass and we learned that they would be pursuing it by talking with some vendors and seeing if it might actually makes sense. We were told not to worry, it would all be done in the best interest of the company. A few more months pass and we were told that “yes, it makes sense” but it needed to be approved by the powers so nothing was official so no one should draw any conclusions from what was happening (e.g. don’t quit). And there was no guarantee that they would reach a contract with the company they decided to go with. A few weeks pass.
Guess what happened?
Of course, they signed a contract with the outsourcer and it was approved by the “powers”. Again, we were told not to make any assumptions about what might happen and to just wait.
Again, a few weeks pass. This time the official revelation of the plan was completed. Most people would be transitioned to the outsourcer but only in specific countries. Other staff would not be moving to the outsourcer but our positions would be moving. Again, we were told not to jump to conclusions.
At some point we’ll get official notification as to what will happen to each of us. For me, I’ve stayed where I am because I’ve invested too much time to jump ship. But I’ve seen many co-workers bow out and leave early. I am not surprised. Who wants to wait for a good “kick” out the door or worse, go to another company you don’t know and didn’t seek out.
Many of the IT jobs are going to these large out-sourcing companies where IT seems like a fast-food industry.
But does it make sense to actually go to the service provider and take a job there? Can it be beneficial? I think it can be but it really is based on your own attitude. You might get a road block put up in front of you, but you can get around it. Be open to it and see what happens.
The good news is that there really are lots of IT jobs out there, if you have good business knowledge and some technical skills to put to use.
What am I going to do? Well, my hands are tied. I’m in one of those countries where going to the outsourcer seems unlikely. So I’ll wait to see what happens. Perhaps they will make me an offer anyway. Or perhaps they won’t and I’ll be forced out the door.
I’m already taking steps to ease that pain if it happens. If it is happening to you, you should do what you can to ease it as well. Join a professional organization, make sure you’ve got lots of contacts for when you are gone and read as many industry magazines, blogs and news articles as you can. The more knowledge you have, the better off you’ll be.
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