I believe that off-shoring should be a two way street in order for the practice to be good for America. When there is an imbalance in off-shoring between America and another nation, then it becomes more difficult to make the case that off-shoring is a good thing. The type of work being off-shored also needs to be considered to make the determination of whether or not off-shoring is good for America. There are several advantages to off-shoring. Two such advantages are, “most of the times an organization cannot handle all aspects of a business process internally. Additionally some processes are temporary and the organization does not intend to hire in-house professionals to perform the tasks.” (Flatworld Solutions, 2014) Another reason a company may find it beneficial to outsource work is because the firm lacks internal personnel with the required skills or expertise that is required to carry out a project.
There are some disadvantages to off-shore outsourcing. One of the most significant risks is the exposure of sensitive information and/or trade secrets. A firm that off-shores its HR department or payroll department, “involves a risk of exposing confidential company information to a third-party.” (Flatworld Solutions, 2014) A firm that outsources its IT department to China in particular exposes itself to security risks. For example, “The growing interrelationships between Chinese and US companies—such as the employment of Chinese-national technical experts at US facilities and the off-shoring of US production and R&D to facilities in China—will offer Chinese Government agencies and businesses increasing opportunities to collect sensitive US economic information.” (United States Government, 2013, p. 8) The employment of foreign nationals, in this case Chinese nationals, put the firm and that individual at risk of being recruited by the foreign nation’s intelligence organization, or foreign firms. “China’s intelligence services, as well as private companies and other entities, frequently seek to exploit Chinese citizens or persons with family ties to China who can use their insider access to corporate networks to steal trade secrets using removable media devices or e-mail.” (United States Government, 2013, p. 5)