"The Managing Director himself welcomed my parents"
A good friend forwarded me this article on Forbes : To hire a son, woo his parents.
Interpreting this story in the larger context raises interesting questions. Are software companies getting so desperate to retain people now? I dont think so - given that the quality of work in outsourcee companies does not rise above a certain level (see my earlier posts for an explanation), companies would actually encourage some amount of attrition. So the purpose of this rigmarole cannot be just to reduce attrition as claimed.
Reminds me of a conversation I had with a manager-type, a while ago. He said that the sign of a maturing market is that the USPs of the competing product move away from money. Advertisements begin to talk about quality, dependability, patriotism, and other such waffle. The idea is to differentiate ones product from the others - when the customer doesnt care about what it costs.
It is likely that this move by Sierra is an attempt to create a aura of Quality and Caring around itself, as an attempt to draw attention away from the USP of outsourcee companies so far - salary. Note that Sierra, an American company, is paying less than Satyam, an Indian one. Even so, it is getting good people to join it. Companies are now saying, "Yeah, well, we're paying you less, but check out the amazing atmosphere we have!" Google, for example, has been using this strategy to advantage in its hiring efforts, and the Bangalore/Hyderabad market is now catching on.
The next logical conclusion would be : Salaries in the outsourcee industry must have reached their highest possible range for now, otherwise Sierra would just have increased salaries to get the best people.
Interpreting this story in the larger context raises interesting questions. Are software companies getting so desperate to retain people now? I dont think so - given that the quality of work in outsourcee companies does not rise above a certain level (see my earlier posts for an explanation), companies would actually encourage some amount of attrition. So the purpose of this rigmarole cannot be just to reduce attrition as claimed.
Reminds me of a conversation I had with a manager-type, a while ago. He said that the sign of a maturing market is that the USPs of the competing product move away from money. Advertisements begin to talk about quality, dependability, patriotism, and other such waffle. The idea is to differentiate ones product from the others - when the customer doesnt care about what it costs.
It is likely that this move by Sierra is an attempt to create a aura of Quality and Caring around itself, as an attempt to draw attention away from the USP of outsourcee companies so far - salary. Note that Sierra, an American company, is paying less than Satyam, an Indian one. Even so, it is getting good people to join it. Companies are now saying, "Yeah, well, we're paying you less, but check out the amazing atmosphere we have!" Google, for example, has been using this strategy to advantage in its hiring efforts, and the Bangalore/Hyderabad market is now catching on.
The next logical conclusion would be : Salaries in the outsourcee industry must have reached their highest possible range for now, otherwise Sierra would just have increased salaries to get the best people.
posted by Sudarshan | 3:40 AM
3 Comments:
But isn't this a trend in most industries? Initially, everybody looks at the money; after a period of time the quality of work-life and opportunities for growth become more important. When people shift from one workplace to another, they expect AT LEAST the same facilities that were at the previous workplace, else they feel dissatisfied (the extent of dissatisfaction varies). That's expectancy theory. :)
Cheers,
Nikhil
http://www.nixxin.tk
As per a recent DataQuest Magazine survey, the growth oppurtunities is the #1 factor deciding a switch-over.
Hi Nikhil,
You're right - this is a feature of every market. The Outsourcing market, however, is somewhat different in the sense of the goods, the "quality" of the manufacturing, pricing, all being intangibles. Besides that, the market is almost 'perfect' in the economic sense because of the international nature. It would be interesting to see how the old laws of supply/demand apply here. Perhaps, this will be the first time we get to see the full impact of those laws :).
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