IBM: outsource yourself
Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009
Really, why wait until your tech job is outsourced to an emerging economy with lower overhead? IBM will allow you the opportunity to take the initiative with Project Match, and outsource yourself to India. Today!
The climate is warm, there’s no shortage of exotic food, and the cost of living is rock bottom. That’s IBM (NYSE: IBM)’s pitch to the laid-off American workers it’s offering to place in India. The catch: Wages in the country are pennies-on-the-dollar compared to U.S. salaries.
Under a program called Project Match, IBM will help workers laid off from domestic sites obtain travel and visa assistance for countries in which Big Blue has openings. Mostly that’s developing markets like India, China, and Brazil.
So, essentially, IBM will match you up with structural poverty, at no particular cost to them… so, why are you still here? Get started.
IBM has laid off some 4,000 employees since the beginning of the year. It is unclear at this point how many will be opting to relocate themselves.
An IBM spokesman said the program shouldn’t be seen in that light. “It’s more of a vehicle for people who want to expand their life experience by working somewhere else,” said the spokesman. “A lot of people want to work in India.”
Well, sure, but maybe to work there for U.S. dollars?
