Listening to Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida” (song and lyrics here) brings together a number of thoughts about how we deal with ourselves and each other, both in our personal and business relationships. Specifically, I’m thinking about the need for cooperation, self-knowledge and the absolute necessity for honesty. It’s a great song with a great beat […]
vested outsourcing
A Nobel Laureate Who Says Globalization Needs Fixing
For the most part the economics of outsourcing series has examined the big thinkers in economics who have influenced the development of modern outsourcing. Today I’ll put the focus on Joseph E. Stiglitz, whose work has the power to influence how companies think about globalization. Joseph E. Stiglitz, a professor at Columbia University, received the […]
The Psychology of Outsourcing, Part 10: Daniel Kahneman – Bridging Economics and Psychology
I’ll close this 10-part series with a bang: a Nobel Laureate in economics who also happens to be a psychologist, Daniel Kahneman. Kahneman, a professor emeritus of Psychology at Princeton University, questioned the assumption of rationality behind the decision-making process and the “cognitive traps” that make it virtually impossible to think clearly about happiness and […]
The Psychology of Outsourcing, Part 9: Daniel Gilbert, Perception and Bias
Business relationships obviously are based on economic assumptions and expectations, but they are also based on the human perceptions and biases we bring to the table. And that’s where we can go wrong. Daniel Gilbert, a Harvard professor of psychology, is a social psychologist who focuses on the nature of perception, belief, forecasting and cognitive biases […]
Psychology of Outsourcing, Part 8: Thomas D. Gilovich, Decisions and Behavioral Economics
Many of the mistakes we make when outsourcing stem from a failure to recognize and account for the psychology that surrounds decision-making. Then businesses compound the problem by using poor judgment when reacting to the results of those decisions. Psychologist Thomas D. Gilovich (born 1954) is a professor of psychology at Cornell University who has researched […]
Psychology of Outsourcing, Part 7: Abraham Maslow and the Hierarchy of Needs
Abraham Maslow (1908-1970), a founding father of humanistic psychology, has more to do with outsourcing than you might think. He is famous for his breakthrough work on the “hierarchy of needs,” featured in his book: Toward a Psychology of Being. His premise was simple, yet profound: human beings are motivated by unsatisfied needs, and certain lower needs must be satisfied […]
The Psychology of Outsourcing, Part 6: Wayne Dyer and the Power of Intention
Wayne Dyer, widely known for his new-agey and somewhat metaphysical teachings on self-development, is also known as the “father of motivation.” In a very real sense this highly aphoristic spiritual guru and author of more than 30 books has a lot to say about the business and outsourcing mindset. Much of what Dyer says boils […]
Keep the Core Competency at Home
Job No. 1 when it comes to outsourcing is never to outsource a core competency. I was reminded of this essential fact recently when I read a TechRepublic news story about GE’s huge investment to build a state of the art “green” data center on the same site in where the world’s first commercial computer […]
Business Happens—Embrace It!
Business happening is making headlines with HP. The computer and IT giant’s share price has plummeted after announcing it would exit the PC and tablet computer business. The company’s rationale: Ability to improve focus on higher-margin cloud and business software solutions “with an emphasis on enterprise, commercial and government markets.” Exiting the PC market is […]
Beware the Scope Nazi!
Flexibility and insight when it comes to statements of work and workscope changes—and the dreaded “scope-creep!”—is necessary when crafting a properly governed and collaborative Vested Outsourcing agreement. This was brought home to me recently by Jack Everett, president – CEO at Triad Logistics Partners, LLC, who related the story of how he became known as […]
