Is outsourcing really bad?

Question: Many people say outsourcing is 'bad for workers but good to consumers'. Do
you agree? Why?
Answer:
As the world economics have gone through an unstable growth in recent years, many
businesses are seeking way to cut the costs of operating companies or producing goods
and services. At the present, one of the most easiest and effective ways is outsourcing.
Outsourcing occurs when a company purchases products or services from an outside
supplier, rather than performing the same work within its own facilities, in order to cut
costs. The decision to outsource is a major strategic one for most companies, since it
involves weighing the potential cost savings against the consequences of a loss in control
over the product or service. Many people believe that outsourcing is unpleasant and
unwelcome to workers, while consumers will benefit from it. I partly agree with this
opinion.
First and foremost, for many companies, outsourcing is a great deal. It is a method of
giving them a hand in reducing expenses, making better products and taking the edge off
works that managing directors or administrators normally have to take responsible for.
While outsourcing has its own unique set of advantages, it can negatively impact workers.
As a result of companies being able to hire qualified and professional employees, many of
these companies’ current staff will be laid off, leading to unemployment problem. The
people who have been dismissed often have a hard time finding a suitable job and usually
involve in financial difficulty. Moreover, outsoucing can also have unintended
consequences. When employees see fellow workers being threw out, they may begin to
wonder when will it be their turn. As a consequence, many of them usually experience
increased workplace stress, causing decline in productivity, interpersonal conflict, and
overall downturn of the whole companny. Nevertheless, outsourcing still has a lot to offer.
It help skilled and proficient workers find the right job and generally give a boost to their
salaries. Besides, outsourcing can sometimes act as an opportunity for employees to travel
around the world.
On the other hand, it is said that outsourcing is good for consumers. Most often, all or part
of the cost savings from outsourcing of a company go toward a reduction in price to the
customers so that the company can remain competitive in the given marketplace.

Accordingly, such outsourcing makes products cheaper and therefore benefits the
purchasers. Nonetheless, it does have some drawbacks. Cultural differences, for example,
is a major problem when company choosing to outsource in a foreign country. In this
case, offshore outsourcing usually ending in poor support and post-purchase services,
since there may be language barriers among countries and high costs of calling overseas.
This is defenitely not good for consumers.


All in all, ousourcing has both advantages and downsides. It may help a lot with
decreasing costs and prices, therefore benefiting company and consumers; however, it
also have negative effects on workers and customers supporting services. It is the
company and consumer that decide whether outsourcing is good or bad for them.