How I Joined the Outsourcing Revolution
Mention "outsourcing" to a programmer and you may as well be uttering profanity. The word suggests all the evils that have befallen the Information Technology sector since the Internet bubble burst a few years ago. We've been endlessly regaled with tragic tales of American companies who have closed up shop for many of their I.T. positions, only to "offshore" those same jobs to programmers overseas working for less pay than their American counterparts. A brain drain is taking place in the once highly secure computer programming profession.
Rather than cursing the darkness, however, I found myself recently lighting a candle (or making the problem worse, depending on your perspective). You see, just over six months ago, I joined the outsourcing revolution. I am therefore writing this article partly as a confession, my own personal "mea culpa" of complicity.
No, I haven't put myself up on the auction block to work for Indian rupees.
What I did was stumble upon several "reverse auction" web sites for outsourcing talent. If you haven't heard of them, they go by the name of Elance.com (the largest site to date) or Guru.com. Both of these sites give companies an opportunity to outsource their projects to freelance workers like programmers, graphic artists and writers. Freelancers from all over the world compete for open bid requests, offering to do these contract jobs for a fixed price.
I happened upon a site called Rentacoder. Unlike the two sites mentioned above, Rentacoder didn't require a subscription fee. Their take was a straightforward commission out of each project cost. Within minutes I posted my resume and profile. Then I had a choice to make. Which projects to bid on? In addition to programming projects, they also listed writing jobs as well. I decided to bid on some of the writing jobs first, just to see how it went, and because I had always wanted to do some freelance writing on the side.
Within my first week, I won a bid to write a document on Policies and Procedures. I completed that assignment, got paid, and then won another bid-a series of articles on stock market investing. Very soon I was addicted. I kept doing more writing?a technical white paper?web site content?economics articles?sales letters?a chapter in a novel?on and on. My payments were electronically transferred to my bank account, in New Economy style.
This addiction has grown into a decent part-time income for the past six months. I've worked for clients as far away as Australia and Turkey, in addition to clients in the East and West coasts in the United States. I became fixated with how easy it was to do business this way over the Internet, where the whole world became my market. Then I got hold of a book called Free Agent Nation, by a fellow named Daniel Pink. It was about how "teleworkers" such as myself are transforming America by doing business this new-fangled way, working for "gigs" instead of permanent commitments to one employer. I was part of another Big Thing.
Don't misunderstand, I haven't quit my day job just yet.
Am I getting rich?
Hardly. I make a few hundred extra dollars a month, and yes, I do get competition from workers in India. But now I am competing with them. The winning bid, in this case, doesn't always go to the lowest bidder. Writers from America have an edge in this arena. Some buyers of writing services prefer native English speakers.
As I said, however, there are programming jobs posted on most of these sites too. Can programmers from the United States make a living strictly off these sites? Probably not. But programmers who choose to freelance can use these sites to supplement their income while contracting through normal staffing channels. They might make some meaningful connections in the process.
So there it is. I got it off my chest.
"My name is Nader Ghali, and I joined the outsourcing revolution."
I feel much better. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go make some more bids.
Nader Ghali is a programmer living in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he writes on a variety of issues. He may be reached at mrnader1@go.com, and a sample of his writing portfolio can be seen at http://www.topwrite.net
 Google News Updated : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:50:53 GMT This week in Apple: New notebooks, new writers, and more Woz - Ars Technica
Ars Technica - By Jacqui Cheng | Published: October 11, 2008 - 09:30AM CT This week's most-read Apple news was all over the map, but in a good way. Don't Buy A Mac Laptop* Apple may launch new laptop Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 14:43:05 GMT Nobel Peace Prize winner wants jobs for the young - International Herald Tribune
International Herald Tribune - AP HELSINKI, Finland: Nobel Peace Prize winner Martti Ahtisaari said Saturday that finding jobs for more than 1 billion young people in the Middle East and Asia will be a major challenge to peacebuilding in the next decade. Ex-President Of Finland Is Awarded Peace Prize Nobel Finn Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 13:12:07 GMT Obama Aims for Electoral Edge, Block by Block - New York Times
New York Times - Lukas McGowan is focused on getting voters out on Election Day. “Once we register them,” he says, “that’s only half the job. Obama thanks McCain for remarks, presses attack FOX News poll: Obama leads McCain Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:21:34 GMT Stevens's Reputation 'Sterling,' Powell Says - Washington Post
Washington Post - By Del Quentin Wilber Former secretary of state Colin L. Powell told jurors in the corruption trial of Sen. Ted Stevens yesterday that the powerful Alaska Republican had a "sterling" reputation among the nation's military and political leaders. Reporter's Notebook: Powell Takes the Stand for Stevens Powell says Sen. Stevens' integrity "sterling" Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 03:13:53 GMT Marriage ruling not the end of debate in Conn. - The Associated Press
The Associated Press - HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Now that the Connecticut Supreme Court has ruled same-sex couples have the right to wed, opponents of gay marriage are pinning their hopes on an infrequent ballot question in a longshot bid to block the unions. Video: Connecticut Court Allows Gay Marriage Conn. Ban On Gay Marriage Reversed Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:41:18 GMT GM Is Said to Be in Preliminary Talks With Chrysler (Update2) - Bloomberg
Bloomberg - By Jeff Green Oct. 11 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. is in preliminary talks with Cerberus Capital Management LP's Chrysler LLC about a possible merger or other partnership, people with direct knowledge of the talks said. Source: Chrysler, GM discuss merger, acquisition GM mulled Chrysler acquisition: Huh? Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:39:15 GMT Palin hammers Obama on the abortion issue in Johnstown - CNN
CNN - (CNN) -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin took her message to voters in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Saturday, lashing out at Sen. Barack Obama for his views on abortion. Palin drubs Obama on abortion during Pa. rally Palin Gets Personal On Abortion Issue Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:06:21 GMT Increased Website Traffic |
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