the.world.is.flat-第79部分

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HP。　But　some　of　the　profits　will　find　their　way　back　to　the　mother　ship　in　Palo　Alto；　
which　will　be　supporting　the　whole　operation　through　its　global　knowledge　supply　
chain。　
Most　of　HP's　revenues　today　come　from　outside　the　United　States。　But　the　core　HP　
knowledge　and　infrastructure　teams　who　can　put　together　the　processes　that　win　those　
contracts…like　running　the　back　room　of　the　Bank　of　India…are　still　in　the　United　
States。　
〃The　ability　to　dream　is　here；　more　than　in　other　parts　of　the　world；〃　said　Conway。　
〃The　nucleus　of　creativity　is　here；　not　because　people　are　smarter…it　is　the　
environment；　the　freedom　of　thought。　The　dream　machine　is　still　here。〃　


Rule　#6：　The　best　companies　outsource　to　win；　not　to　shrink。　They　outsource　to　innovate　
faster　and　more　cheaply　in　order　to　grow　larger；　gain　market　share；　and　hire　more　
and　different　specialists…not　to　save　money　by　firing　more　people。　
Dov　Seidman　runs　LRN；　a　business　that　provides　online　legal；　compliance；　and　ethics　
education　to　employees　of　global　companies　and　helps　executives　and　board　members　
manage　corporate　governance　responsibilities。　We　were　having　lunch　in　the　fall　of　
2004　when　Seidman　casually　mentioned　that　he　had　recently　signed　an　outsourcing　
contract　with　the　Indian　consulting　firm　MindTree。　
〃Why　are　you　cutting　costs？〃　I　asked　him。　
〃I　am　outsourcing　to　win；　not　to　save　money；〃　Seidman　answered。　〃Go　to　our　Web　site。　
I　currently　have　over　thirty　job　openings；　and　these　are　knowledge　jobs。　We're　
expanding。　We're　hiring。　I　am　adding　people　and　creating　new　processes。〃　
Seidman's　experience　is　what　most　outsourcing　is　actually　about…companies　
outsourcing　to　acquire　knowledge　talent　to　grow　their　business　faster；　not　simply　
to　cut　costs　and　cut　back。　Seidman's　company　is　a　leader　in　one　of　those　completely　
new　industries　that　just　appeared　in　the　flat　world…helping　multinationals　foster　
an　ethical　corporate　culture　around　an　employee　base　spread　all　over　the　world。　
Although　LRN　

is　a　BE　company…founded　ten　years　before　Enron　exploded…demand　for　its　services　surged　
in　the　PE　era…post…Enron。　In　the　wake　of　the　collapse　of　Enron　and　other　corporate　
governance　scandals；　a　lot　more　companies　became　interested　in　what　LRN　was　
offering…online　programs　for　companies　to　forge　common　expectations　and　
understandings　of　their　legal　and　ethical　responsibilities；　from　the　boardroom　to　
the　factory　floor。　When　companies　sign　up　with　LRN；　their　employees　are　given　anonline　
education；　including　tests　that　cover　everything　from　your　company's　code　of　conduct　
to　when　you　are　allowed　to　accept　a　gift　to　what　you　need　to　think　about　before　hitting　
Send　on　an　e…mail　to　what　constitutes　a　bribe　of　a　foreign　official。　
As　the　whole　issue　of　corporate　governance　began　to　mushroom　in　the　early　2000s；　
Seidman　realized　that　his　customers；　much　like　E*Trade；　would　need　a　more　integrated　
platform。　While　it　was　great　that　he　was　educating　their　employees　with　one　online　
curriculum　and　advising　boards　on　ethics　issues　with　another；　he　knew　that　company　
executives　would　want　a　one…stop　Web…based　interface　where　they　could　get　a　handle　
on　all　the　governance　and　ethics　issues　facing　their　organizations…　whether　it　was　
employee　education；　the　reporting　of　any　anomalous　behavior；　stewardship　of　a　
hard…earned　corporate　reputation；　or　government　compliance…and　where　they　could　get　
immediate　visibility　into　where　their　company　stood。　
So　Seidman　faced　a　double　challenge。　He　needed　to　do　two　things　at　once：　keep　growing　
his　market　share　in　the　online　compliance　education　industry；　and　design　a　whole　new　
integrated　platform　for　the　companies　he　was　already　working　with；　one　that　would　
require　a　real　technological　leap。　It　was　when　faced　with　this　challenge　that　he　
decided　to　enlist　MindTree；　the　Indian　consulting　firm；　in　an　outsourced　relationship　
that　offered　him　about　five　well…qualified　software　engineers　for　the　price　of　one　
in　America。　


〃Look；〃　said　Seidman；　〃when　things　are　on　sale；　you　tend　to　buy　more。　MindTree　offered　
a　sale　not　on　last　season's　closeout；　but　on　top…notch　software　engineering　talent　
that　I　would　have　been　hard…pressed　to　find　elsewhere。　I　needed　to　spend　a　lot　of　
money　defending　and　extending　my　core　business　and　continue　to　take　care　of　my　
customers；　who　
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were　working　off　my　current　programs。　And　at　the　same　time；　I　had　to　make　a　giant　
leap　to　offer　my　customers　what　they　were　asking　for　next；　which　was　a　much　more　robust　
and　total　online　solution　to　all　their　ethics；　governance；　and　compliance　questions。　
If　I　don't　meet　their　needs；　someone　else　will。　Partnering　with　MindTree　allows　me　
to　basically　have　two　teams…one　team　＇mostly　Americans＇　that　is　focused　on　defending　
and　extending　our　core　business；　and　the　other　team；　including　our　Indian　consultants；　
focused　on　making　our　next　strategic　leap　to　grow　our　business。〃　
Since　ethics　is　at　the　core　of　Seidman's　Los　Angeles…headquartered　business；　how　he　
went　about　outsourcing　was　as　important　as　the　ultimate　results　of　the　relationship。　
Rather　than　announcing　the　MindTree　partnership　as　a　done　deal；　Seidman　conducted　
an　all…hands　town　hall　meeting　of　his　170　or　so　employees　to　discuss　the　outsourcing　
he　had　in　mind。　He　laid　out　all　the　economic　arguments；　let　his　staff　weigh　in；　and　
gave　everyone　a　picture　of　which　jobs　would　be　needed　in　the　future　and　how　people　
could　prepare　themselves　to　fit　in。　〃I　needed　to　show　my　company　that　this　is　what　
it　would　take　to　win；〃　he　said。　
Have　no　doubt；　there　are　firms　that　do　and　will　outsource　good　jobs　just　to　save　money　
and　disperse　it　to　shareholders　or　management。　To　think　that　is　not　happening　or　will　
not　happen　is　beyond　naive。　But　firms　that　are　using　outsourcing　primarily　as　a　tool　
to　cut　costs；　not　enhance　innovation　and　speed　growth；　are　the　minority；　not　the　
majority…and　I　would　not　want　to　own　stock　in　any　of　them。　The　best　companies　are　
finding　ways　to　leverage　the　best　of　what　is　in　India　with　the　best　of　what　is　in　
North　Dakota　with　the　best　of　what　is　in　Los　Angeles。　In　that　sense；　the　word　
〃outsourcing〃　should　really　be　retired。　The　applicable　word　is　really　〃sourcing。〃　
That　is　what　the　flat　world　both　enables　and　demands；　and　the　companies　that　do　
sourcing　right　end　up　with　bigger　market　shares　and　more　employees　everywhere…not　
smaller　and　fewer。　
〃This　is　about　trying　to　get　bigger　faster；　about　how　we　make　our　next　leap　in　less　
time　with　greater　assurance　of　success；〃　said　Seidman　of　his　decision　to　source　
critical　areas　of　development　of　his　new　platform　to　MindTree。　〃It　is　not　about　cutting　
corners。　We　have　over　two　hundred　clients　all　over　the　world　now。　If　I　can　grow　this　
company　the　way　that　I　
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want　to；　I　will　be　able　to　hire　even　more　people　in　all　our　current　offices；　promote　
even　more　people；　and　give　our　current　employees　even　more　opportunities　and　more　
rewarding　career　paths…because　LRN's　agenda　is　going　to　be　broader；　more　complex　and　
more　global。　。　。　We　are　in　a　very　competitive　space。　This　＇decision　to　use　outsourcing＇　
is　all　about　playing　offense；　not　defense。　I　am　trying　to　run　up　the　score　before　
it's　run　up　on　me。〃　


Rule　#7：　Outsourcing　isn't　just　for　Benedict　Arnolds。　It's　also　for　idealists。　
One　of　the　newest　figures　to　emerge　on　the　world　stage　in　recent　years　is　the　social　
entrepreneur。　This　is　usually　someone　who　burns　with　desire　to　make　a　positive　social　
impact　on　the　world；　but　believes　that　the　best　way　of　doing　it　is；　as　the　saying　
goes；　not　by　giving　poor　people　a　fish　and　feeding　them　for　a　day；　but　by　teaching　
them　to　fish；　in　hopes　of　feeding　them　for　a　lifetime。　I　have　come　to　know　several　
social　entrepreneurs　in　recent　years；　and　most　combine　a　business　school　brain　with　
a　social　worker's　heart。　The　triple　convergence　and　the　flattening　of　the　world　have　
been　a　godsend　for　them。　Those　who　get　it　and　are　adapting　to　it　have　begun　launching　
some　very　innovative　projects。　
One　of　my　favorites　is　Jeremy　Hockenstein；　a　young　man　who　first　followed　a　
time…honored　path　of　studying　at　Harvard　and　going　to　work　for　the　McKinsey　consulting　
firm；　but　then；　with　a　colleague　from　McKinsey；　veered　totally　off　course　and　decided　
to　start　a　not…for…profit　data…entryfirm　that　does　outsourced　data　entry　for　American　
companies　in　one　of　the　least　hospitable　business　environments　in　the　world；　post…Pol　
Pot　Cambodia。　
Only　in　a　flat　world！　
In　February　2001；　Hockenstein　and　some　colleagues　from　McKinsey　decided　to　go　to　Phnom　
Penh；　half　on　vacation　and　half　on　a　scouting　mission　for　some　social　entrepreneurship。　
They　were　surprised　to　find　a　city　salted　with　Internet　cafes　and　schools　for　learning　
English…but　with　no　jobs；　or　at　best　limited　jobs；　for　those　who　graduated。　
〃We　decided　we　would　leverage　our　connections　in　North　America　to　try　to　bridge　the　
gap　and　create　some　income…generating　opportunities　

for　people；〃　Hockenstein　said。　That　summer；　after　another　trip　funded　by　themselves；　
Hockenstein　and　his　colleagues　opened　Digital　Divide　Data；　with　a　plan　to　start　a　
small　operation　in　Phnom　Penh　that　would　do　data　entry…hiring　locals　to　type　into　
computers　printed　materials　that　companies　in　the　United　States　wanted　in　digitized　
form；　so　that　it　could　be　stored　on　databases　and　retrieved　and　searched　on　computers。　
The　material　would　be　scanned　in　the　United　States　and　the　files　transmitted　over　
the　Internet。　Their　first　move　was　to　hire　two　local　Cambodian　managers。　Hockenstein's　
partner　from　McKinsey；　Jaeson　Rosenfeld；　went　to　New　Delhi　and　knocked　on　the　doors　
of　Indian　data…entry　companies　to　see　if　he　could　find　one　…just　one…that　would　take　
on　his　two　Cambodian　managers　as　trainees。　Nine　of　the　Indian　companies　slammed　their　
doors。　The　last　thingthey　wanted　was　even　lower…cost　competition　emerging　in　Cambodia。　
But　a　generous　Hindu　soul　agreed；　and　Hockenstein　got　his　managers　trained。　They　then　
hired　their　first　twenty　data…entry　operators；　many　of　whom　were　Cambodian　war　
refugees；　and　bought　twenty　computers　and　an　Internet　line　that　costthem　100　a　month。　
The　project　was　financed　with　25