Going to China for Engineering
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Jeff Burk, the CIO of NeatReceipts (the folks that sell receipt scanners in airport kiosks and electronics retailers) has this interesting perspective about going to China for development expertise.
Mr. Burk describes three major challenges – language skills, time differences and IP losses – as major issues in doing engineering in China. In addition, Burk mentions project management as a key challenge in dealing in this market.
Key to this (a recurring story) is a disciplined project management approach. Of course, this is true if you outsource to Beijing, Bangalore or Baltimore.
As Mr. Burk's article indicates, putting proper project management in place is probably the single best way of increasing the chance of outsourcing success.
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Mr. Burk is right to highlight the advantages and challenges in outsourcing development work in China, a country with a vast technically-competent human resources sector. However other than the barriers of languages and time differences, one should also be aware of cultural differences that could impede or immolate business relationships. True that China has opened its doors to Western practices and culture but still it is the world’s oldest living civilization, its people still respects traditions and business values that seeped deep in their genetic code. Understanding what they value can help you navigate them to understanding and achieving what you value.
Comment by Outsource Opinionist on September 22, 2008 11:36 pm