Source:infoworld.com
India has emerged as the biggest consumer of outsourcing services in the Asia Pacific region, ahead of Japan, China, and Australia, according to sourcing consultancy firm Technology Partners International Inc. (TPI) in Houston, Texas.
Most of that business, though, went to multinational service companies, such as Hewlett-Packard and IBM. Indian outsourcers don't tend to focus on their home market because they don't find it as lucrative as the U.S. and Europe, analysts have said.
In the first half of the year, outsourcing contracts from India were worth $1.7 billion and accounted for almost a third of contracts awarded in the Asia Pacific. Japan came second with contracts worth $1.2 billion and China third with $1.1 billion.
The demand in India has come mainly from the country's booming telecommunications industry, including two very large contracts worth about $1.3 billion. Still, momentum for contracts in India is huge and the country will stay among the top three consumers of outsourcing even if more large contracts don't materialize, Siddharth Pai, a partner at TPI and managing director of its Indian operations, told reporters in Bangalore on Wednesday.
The global market continues to grow robustly, however, even if business is shifting to smaller contracts, said Mark Mayo, a TPI partner and managing director of its global advisory services. Contracts are getting smaller because companies are dividing work among multiple suppliers, rather than awarding business to one supplier, Mayo said. Many contracts also tend to be short term and have a large offshore component, he added.
Friday, August 10, 2007
For drug making industry, center of gravity shifts to Asia
Source:www.iht.com
The center of gravity for the $643 billion drug-making market is shifting to the Asia-Pacific region from the United States and Europe, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers, and a third of Asia's drug makers want to buy rivals.
More than half of the drug makers based in Asia are looking to enter markets outside the region, including through partnerships and acquisitions, according to a study by the largest accounting firm in the world.
"In addition to becoming the largest market in the world for drugs, led by growth in China, India and Singapore, Asia Pacific is seeing an influx of multinational companies, and its own pharmaceutical companies are bulking up by acquiring international market share," Pricewaterhouse said Tuesday.
The findings are based on a survey of 185 senior pharmaceutical executives, half of them located in China, India, South Korea and six other Asian countries.
The MSCI Asia Pacific health care index, which tracks the region's 31 largest health-related companies, has risen an average of 18 percent a year since 2003, compared with 3 percent annual growth in the S&P 500 Health Care Index, which tracks the 53 largest U.S. health-related stocks.
"There is a dearth of innovation that plagues the pharmaceutical industry, and R&D must become a greater focus," Pricewaterhouse said in the report, "Gearing Up for a Global Gravity Shift: Growth, Risk and Learning in the Asia Pharmaceutical Market."
The center of gravity for the $643 billion drug-making market is shifting to the Asia-Pacific region from the United States and Europe, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers, and a third of Asia's drug makers want to buy rivals.
More than half of the drug makers based in Asia are looking to enter markets outside the region, including through partnerships and acquisitions, according to a study by the largest accounting firm in the world.
"In addition to becoming the largest market in the world for drugs, led by growth in China, India and Singapore, Asia Pacific is seeing an influx of multinational companies, and its own pharmaceutical companies are bulking up by acquiring international market share," Pricewaterhouse said Tuesday.
The findings are based on a survey of 185 senior pharmaceutical executives, half of them located in China, India, South Korea and six other Asian countries.
The MSCI Asia Pacific health care index, which tracks the region's 31 largest health-related companies, has risen an average of 18 percent a year since 2003, compared with 3 percent annual growth in the S&P 500 Health Care Index, which tracks the 53 largest U.S. health-related stocks.
"There is a dearth of innovation that plagues the pharmaceutical industry, and R&D must become a greater focus," Pricewaterhouse said in the report, "Gearing Up for a Global Gravity Shift: Growth, Risk and Learning in the Asia Pharmaceutical Market."
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Outsourcing Shifting to Full Service
Source:eweek.com
Outsourcing firms that once focused solely on providing IT and software development services at a lower cost are increasingly reforming themselves as end-to-end IT infrastructure management firms.
The latest evidence of this trend came this week with the announcement of yet another outsourcing partnership. Through its $600 million acquisition of the infrastructure management services provider, Infocrossing, based in Leonia, N.J., the outsourcer Wipro Technologies hopes to expand its presence in the U.S. and position itself as a full-scale IT services provider.
At $18.70 per share, the deal announced Aug. 6, adds five data centers and approximately 900 employees to the Indian outsourcer, which considers global infrastructure services an important driver of its future growth.
"This acquisition of an industry leader broadens the data center and mainframe capabilities of Wipro Technologies to uniquely position us in the remote infrastructure management space… Infocrossing also brings in significant expertise in health plan and payer management segments," Sudip Banerjee, president of enterprise solutions for Wipro said in a statement.
IT outsourcing and infrastructure services for Wipro, which is headquartered in Bangalore, grew 75 percent in the past year, and the company believes this acquisition will bring in larger orders. The all-cash transaction is expected to be completed by the end of March 2008.
Outsourcing firms that once focused solely on providing IT and software development services at a lower cost are increasingly reforming themselves as end-to-end IT infrastructure management firms.
The latest evidence of this trend came this week with the announcement of yet another outsourcing partnership. Through its $600 million acquisition of the infrastructure management services provider, Infocrossing, based in Leonia, N.J., the outsourcer Wipro Technologies hopes to expand its presence in the U.S. and position itself as a full-scale IT services provider.
At $18.70 per share, the deal announced Aug. 6, adds five data centers and approximately 900 employees to the Indian outsourcer, which considers global infrastructure services an important driver of its future growth.
"This acquisition of an industry leader broadens the data center and mainframe capabilities of Wipro Technologies to uniquely position us in the remote infrastructure management space… Infocrossing also brings in significant expertise in health plan and payer management segments," Sudip Banerjee, president of enterprise solutions for Wipro said in a statement.
IT outsourcing and infrastructure services for Wipro, which is headquartered in Bangalore, grew 75 percent in the past year, and the company believes this acquisition will bring in larger orders. The all-cash transaction is expected to be completed by the end of March 2008.
The Benefits of Outsourcing
Sorce:www.kingwood.com
When you outsource a project or part of a project, you are enlisting the services of an independent contractor (IC). The services available from ICs are numerous and varied. You might need someone to do some writing, some web design, a bit of software programming, research, develop a layout concept for your new brochure, or just about any other task imaginable.
Instead of heaping another responsibility on the shoulders of your already-stressed-out staff or hiring another person that you will have to find work for during the next slow down, you can look for help from the outside.
Pay for only what you need.
In most businesses, the amount of work comes in cycles. It is a familiar drill to us all--one month everybody at the company seems to have more work than they can handle, the next month, they're searching for things to do.
One of the wonderful things about outsourcing is that you never have to find things to keep an IC busy, so you will never pay for anything more than exactly what you need.
A lot of ICs charge by the project rather than the hour, so you get a good project estimate up front. Another bonus...ICs handle their own taxes and health insurance.
Get a higher level of experience.
Oftentimes, ICs have a higher level of experience than what you might be able to afford in a full-time employee. Many ICs have worked many years as full-time employees and reached the point where they realized they could go it on there own--be their own boss, focus on the kinds of projects they like to take, and have more control over their working environment.
You can take advantage of that experience without budgeting for a new full-time employee.
Get an additional, often more objective perspective.
ICs make great sounding boards. They've been around. They know what's been tried, what works well, and what doesn't. They aren't as close to the project as you are and can usually offer a fresh and valuable perspective on what kinds of solutions might work.
They are great in a pinch.
When the deadlines are looming and there just doesn't seem to be anyway to get everything done that needs to be done, ICs are great. They are on a different pace and schedule than you, and though they might be busy, too, chances are you will be able to find one who will be able to meet the deadline you need. In crunch time you can use ICs in different ways. You might want to delegate a critical project with a nonnegotiable deadline to an IC, putting some distance between the project and the office crunch. Or you may want to call in an IC as backup, giving them back-burner projects to handle, so that when the office crunch ends, you're not behind.
They come with their own infrastructure.
Many ICs prefer to work out of their home office. They have a rhythm worked out and feel more productive in the environment they've created for themselves. So, unless you absolutely need an IC to work onsite, you'll find that most ICs come with their own infrastructure. They have their own computer and programs.
A writer will have MS Word, Adobe Acrobat (or Acrobat Writer), and possibly an HTML editor; a web designer will have Dreamweaver, Fireworks, and Flash or similar programs; and a Graphics Designer will have the Adobe suite of design programs or something similar. These programs are all substantial investments. If your company doesn't already have them, the initial cost of a new employee who knows them will be much higher. On the other, with an IC you don't have to worry about that.
Outsourcing is a cost-effective way to increase your resources.
Many companies who have never outsourced a project before find the idea a bit stressful and a bit strange. How can you know that the project will get done? How can you be in control when you have someone working for you who isn't there? While these are understandable concerns, they aren't well-founded. A reputable IC has built his or her reputation by doing work that is done on time for prices that match the work's value.
The bottom line is that, for many projects, outsourcing to an IC will often result in higher quality work for less money than doing it in house.
When you outsource a project or part of a project, you are enlisting the services of an independent contractor (IC). The services available from ICs are numerous and varied. You might need someone to do some writing, some web design, a bit of software programming, research, develop a layout concept for your new brochure, or just about any other task imaginable.
Instead of heaping another responsibility on the shoulders of your already-stressed-out staff or hiring another person that you will have to find work for during the next slow down, you can look for help from the outside.
Pay for only what you need.
In most businesses, the amount of work comes in cycles. It is a familiar drill to us all--one month everybody at the company seems to have more work than they can handle, the next month, they're searching for things to do.
One of the wonderful things about outsourcing is that you never have to find things to keep an IC busy, so you will never pay for anything more than exactly what you need.
A lot of ICs charge by the project rather than the hour, so you get a good project estimate up front. Another bonus...ICs handle their own taxes and health insurance.
Get a higher level of experience.
Oftentimes, ICs have a higher level of experience than what you might be able to afford in a full-time employee. Many ICs have worked many years as full-time employees and reached the point where they realized they could go it on there own--be their own boss, focus on the kinds of projects they like to take, and have more control over their working environment.
You can take advantage of that experience without budgeting for a new full-time employee.
Get an additional, often more objective perspective.
ICs make great sounding boards. They've been around. They know what's been tried, what works well, and what doesn't. They aren't as close to the project as you are and can usually offer a fresh and valuable perspective on what kinds of solutions might work.
They are great in a pinch.
When the deadlines are looming and there just doesn't seem to be anyway to get everything done that needs to be done, ICs are great. They are on a different pace and schedule than you, and though they might be busy, too, chances are you will be able to find one who will be able to meet the deadline you need. In crunch time you can use ICs in different ways. You might want to delegate a critical project with a nonnegotiable deadline to an IC, putting some distance between the project and the office crunch. Or you may want to call in an IC as backup, giving them back-burner projects to handle, so that when the office crunch ends, you're not behind.
They come with their own infrastructure.
Many ICs prefer to work out of their home office. They have a rhythm worked out and feel more productive in the environment they've created for themselves. So, unless you absolutely need an IC to work onsite, you'll find that most ICs come with their own infrastructure. They have their own computer and programs.
A writer will have MS Word, Adobe Acrobat (or Acrobat Writer), and possibly an HTML editor; a web designer will have Dreamweaver, Fireworks, and Flash or similar programs; and a Graphics Designer will have the Adobe suite of design programs or something similar. These programs are all substantial investments. If your company doesn't already have them, the initial cost of a new employee who knows them will be much higher. On the other, with an IC you don't have to worry about that.
Outsourcing is a cost-effective way to increase your resources.
Many companies who have never outsourced a project before find the idea a bit stressful and a bit strange. How can you know that the project will get done? How can you be in control when you have someone working for you who isn't there? While these are understandable concerns, they aren't well-founded. A reputable IC has built his or her reputation by doing work that is done on time for prices that match the work's value.
The bottom line is that, for many projects, outsourcing to an IC will often result in higher quality work for less money than doing it in house.
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