Offshore outsourcing is the business practice of acquiring the services of organizations or employees to do certain company functions from overseas. Developments in the internet made various categories of work for offshore outsourcing available. Usually the following work categories are the most common when it comes to outsourcing.

• ITO (Information Technology Outsourcing)- This is when a company outsource computer work and internet related tasks like data center operations, testing and quality assurance, application management and development to an outside provider. A company outsources IT for lack of resources and to reduce costs.
• BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) – Usually covers payroll in the early years of outsourcing but coverage grew to management of employee benefits, until present where managing more functions have become possible to outsource. IBM, Accenture, Hewitt Associates, Capgemini, Genpact, TCS and Wipro are some prominent outsourcing providers in the BPO and ITO category.
• Software R&D (Software Research and Development) – is defined as the instructions followed by a computer to do a particular task. Software research in a more elaborate meaning deals with applied research, covering design and prototype of new products or systems. It is the process where requirements are defined and translated to instructions for the computer, testing to make sure it is correct and documenting and maintaining this program as it may require modifications.
• KPO (Knowledge Process Outsourcing) – is the field of outsourcing acquired only from highly skilled personnel. This includes engineering, market research, legal research and patent research.

When companies shift work offshore where wages are lower than the base country, critics blame it for the loss of jobs for domestic employees and the negative effects on economy. An additional opponent to offshore outsourcing is the dissatisfaction to the quality of service and technical support such as in call centers offshore where language is a determining barrier that do not satisfy customers.

But opponents have their counter proponents who see offshore outsourcing as a solution to help economy because it lowers costs in general. It makes economy more stable by creating new jobs in developing nations.

Offshore outsourcing is universally understood as an important feature of globalization; that gives opportunities to companies outsourcing services to other countries overseas to lower costs thereby making them more effective and competitive. That’s why many companies in rich countries have ventured to explore and outsource in developing countries.

So much with the shifting of work, let us now know where to find the best offshore outsourcing destination. Here is a copy of the press release:

(Free-Press-Release.com) October 30, 2009 — The Philippines, where fast-growing company, The Live2Sell Group is based, once again came out outstandingly triumphant as the 2009 Off-shoring Destination of the Year during the 4th National Outsourcing Association (NOA) Awards held last October 15 at Park Plaza Riverbank in London. The Philippines bagged this prestigious award for the 2nd time since 2007, and won the outsourcing race ahead of Egypt, Sri Lanka, Russia, and Malaysia among several other countries.

“This is a most welcome and fitting recognition to our local outsourcing industry,” said CICT Sec. Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua III. “The award just shows that our outsourcing sector is world class and has the capacity to compete among the best. We give our heartfelt congratulations to everyone who has made this possible.”