Outsourcing: Peter Harrison, CEO Of GlobalLogic (Part 4)

By guest author Tony Scott

On Course for a Collision? The Future of Product and Services Companies

Tony: In that environment [where it’s more about solving business problems than technology problems], much of the technology becomes totally contextual and therefore less important and of much less value. Outsourcing services companies that are only focusing on providing an alternative to context without helping on the core still have the issue of “what is the solution you are providing”? Because if you aren’t helping on the core, then ultimately you can be commoditized out. >>>

Outsourcing: Peter Harrison, CEO Of GlobalLogic (Part 3)

By guest author Tony Scott

Tony: It would it would seem to me that there’s a huge value proposition in someone being able to say: “We’ve got this kind of talent and we could apply it when you need it. And then when you don’t need the world’s most brilliant expert on RF antenna design, he can go work on something else.” >>>

Outsourcing: Peter Harrison, CEO Of GlobalLogic (Part 2)

By guest author Tony Scott

The Nature of R&D and Innovation

Tony: So, your focus, the heart of the service provided by GlobalLogic, is to manage the R&D process for your clients?

Peter: Correct, we call on the CTO. IT services always calls on the CIO.

Tony: Tell me a little bit about how you perceive the difference between those two clients. How are the kinds of services you provide different from, say, an outsourced development organization that’s going into the CIO? >>>

Outsourcing: Peter Harrison, CEO Of GlobalLogic (Part 1)

By guest author Tony Scott

Introduction and Background to GlobalLogic

I recently had a conversation with Peter Harrison, the CEO of GlobalLogic.  GlobalLogic provides research and development (R&D) services for software products through their team of over 3,000 software engineers based in the U.S., India, China, Ukraine, and Argentina. Their value proposition is to work as a collaborative partner with their clients on both context and core product engineering through a range of R&D services, including advisory, customer research, ideation, product engineering, QA/IVT, support and maintenance, and product line management. The company has ongoing partnerships with more than 150 clients in markets such as digital media, electronics, finance, healthcare, infrastructure, retail, and telecom. GlobalLogic’s investors include New Enterprise Associates, Sequoia Capital, Goldman Sachs, and Draper Atlantic/New Atlantic Ventures.

My discussion with Peter touched on how the technology and outsourcing industries are changing; his perspectives on perceived wage inflation in emerging economies; and his insights on the challenges of building a global organization with a consistent culture that encourages innovation. >>>

Outsourcing: Jean Cholka, President and CEO Of Freeborders (Part 7)

By guest author Tony Scott

China versus India in the Outsourcing World

Tony: You have worked with Indian outsourcers and now in China. Are there any differences in what people are doing in China?

Jean: There are some differences in the markets. Indian companies grew around Y2K, mostly, and the model was different. There was a need, there was a due date, there wasn’t enough talent, it was something that was fairly easy to do,  and companies needed bodies to do it. Initially the Indian companies were just bringing hordes of people to the United States. Then, after the Y2K work was finished, the companies doing Y2K work realized people that they brought over to the U.S. or employed in India to work on the Y2K issues were pretty smart, so how could their talents be utilized against other IT problems? And it evolved from there. >>>

Outsourcing: Jean Cholka, President and CEO Of Freeborders (Part 6)

By guest author Tony Scott

Managing across Cultures

Tony: Do you see a cultural gap between your people in China compared to the U.S. and Western Europe? If so, how do you manage that?

Jean: I have a fundamental belief that in the end we are all human beings, so it doesn’t matter what country you come from or live in or what language you speak.   >>>

Outsourcing: Jean Cholka, President and CEO Of Freeborders (Part 5)

By guest author Tony Scott

An International Workforce in China

Tony: Since you were a product company at one point in the past, have you thought about marrying the trading product technology you have created along with the expertise you have developed from providing consulting and outsourced services to create a unique offering? >>>

Outsourcing: Jean Cholka, President and CEO Of Freeborders (Part 4)

By guest author Tony Scott

Growing in China

Tony: Are people reacting positively to the China alternative, or is it something that you have to work on changing their perceptions over time?

Jean: Some clients simply don’t care. It doesn’t matter if they are going to take it across the street or across the world, if they are taking it out of their own organization, it doesn’t matter where it’s going. Their goal is to get the best price and the best skills that they can. For others in the financial services world, they are very concerned about security and have protocols for what can and can’t be off-shored. We deal with that either by not taking some types of work to China, or by tapping into their systems rather than trying to open up something in China directly. We are not creating CDs or DVDs that you can sell on the street, so there is essentially no “IP leakage” risk in the kind of work that we do. >>>