Outsourcing Can Be Fun! My Outsourced Experience

Who knew Outsourcing was so fun? Apparently the creators of the sitcom Outsourced did. After watching the pilot and the episode The Measure of a Manmeet of the lighthearted show, I was really able to take away a lot from the observations I made about the show.

For one, throughout the show they had very dynamic characters and cultural portrayals. In the show the Indians are portrayed as at first backwards and not yet up to speed on American customs but generally nice people and fast learners. Like they don’t know what mistletoe is in the beginning but they make an effort to learn about it and the other catalog items and they invite Todd to sit at their lunch table. Americans were portrayed as somewhat slow to change, for example Charlie still only ate peanut butter and jelly for lunch. They were also portrayed as either kind or cutthroat. Seeing as Jerry wanted Todd to fire an employee Todd couldn’t bear to do so.  I would consider they characters appropriately round for a sitcom because they are like people everyone can relate to, like the stupid-mean well friend in Charlie ( he never even learned his employees names) or the person that talks too much in Gupta. Like many sitcoms, certain characters archetypes are apparent. Gupta is the witless because he truly doesn’t understand what is going on around him and that he talks too much and people hate his stories although they make it clear by hiding from him and Todd even telling him in his employee evaluation. Rajiv is the want to be wit because he thinks that he understands how to manage the employees when he really has a lot to learn, such as fear through firing isn’t going to make them work any more efficiently. Todd is the true wit because he understands that he doesn’t understand everything and it takes a truly smart person to get that their job is to be adaptable and learn as they go along.

Also in observing the sitcom Outsourced I was able to come up with some reasons as to why it might have been canceled. First of all, outsourcing is portrayed as a nonchalant thing that sometimes happens that you have to go along with. Also it showed that outsourcing can happen on a whim. This can be seen by the fact that when Todd went to work one day his boss Jerry just told him that the company was being outsourced to India to make a bigger profit and that he would lose his job if he didn’t go. Also, there were also other people, including another American named Charlie whose job was outsourced too. Maybe it hit too close to home with people because they realized although its funny, it’s happening in the real world. On the same coin, maybe some people couldn’t relate to it enough since as Americans we rarely think of where our services come from. That could have taken away some of its appeal. Secondly, Cultural issues like food and dating are emphasized while things like religion and the sacredness of the cow are taken lightly. For example, in The Measure of a Manmeet, Todd is constantly seen craving beef even though he knows cows are considered sacred and not to be eaten ( even in the pilot Gupta told him not to touch the cow outside the office).  India is portrayed as a hot, muggy, colorful, busy place with lots of open bazaars and people. Basically a common stereotype.  It just makes me wonder how much responsibility the sitcom has and whether it’s to the general populace or just gaining viewers. Although it was a funny show, if the sitcom had not gone the stereotypical route which could have offended some people or hit either too close or too far away from home it wouldn’t have been canceled.

All in all, Outsourced was a wonderful show that did try to make outsourcing fun. It gave Americans a look at what does happen when jobs are outsourced and made us step back and see our pre conceived notions of others from a new perspective. Maybe the world wasn’t ready for it, but it will be missed. 

Outsourcing Can Be Fun! My Outsourced Experience

Egypt and Outsourcing

 

Egypt- the land of sand and pharos. The place where you can say hello to a mummy on your way to school or work and those pyramids make a cute picture backdrop. A country as old as civilization itself. Not exactly the first place someone thinks about when talking about outsourcing and off shoring. But not so fast. Recently Egypt has begun to throw its hat in the outsourcing ring.

As a country where the youth unemployment rate was about 25% in 2011, Egypt needed an economic boost and jobs and outsourcing has provided just that. (Youth Unemployment)  Much new outsourcing business has come from the Information Technology world. For example, they have opened a 600 acre Smart Village of Cairo where all of the IT businesses are going. (Outsourcing to Egypt) This center is predicted to make up to 2 billion dollars by 2013 and 10 billion in ten years. Although with the technology outsourcing the employees don’t make an exorbitant amount of money ( A junior software analyzer with about four years of experience only makes about 12% of what their U.S counterparts do ) it has proved a step in the right direction. (Outsourcing to Egypt)  Also, there is still the old stand by of oil. That is especially true since they produce about 155, 200 barrels of oil a day (Egypt Trade).

Sadly, outsourcing when it comes back to importing has not been all that good to Egypt. That’s because they don’t produce many of the basics. For example, they need to import wood, equipment and some food from other countries like China and the U.S. Due to that their imports increased by 24%  in 2009, giving them a negative trade balance. (Egypt Trade) So although more technology jobs like call centers are being outsourced to them, Egypt still needs to make some more strides before out sourcing and off shoring can impact their economy in a completely positive way.

           

Still, Egyptians remain positive that outsourcing and off shoring will turn around and benefit them  more than it has in the past.  When asked why outsource to Egypt and Raya, Raya Technologies said it best when they said “Egypt is strongly emerging as a global call center destination, consented by international business intelligence pioneers - A.T.Kearny and Datamonitor, with a highly competitive industry offering a combination of operational expertise, people skills, cutting-edge technology, and competitive pricing schemes.” (Raya) Egypt has the youth and drive to succeed.  There is a reason that they were chosen outsourcing destination of the year in 2008 (Outsourcing to Egypt).  Now that the actual revolution has passed, Egypt has the chance to start over and really make a change. Hopefully with ambitious people and great outsourcing partners like Vodafone and Microsoft, Egypt will go nowhere but up. In this era of a shrinking world due to instant communication, things like off shoring and outsourcing have become easier than ever.

                                                            Citations

"Egypt Trade, Exports and Imports | Economy Watch." World, US, China, India Economy, Investment, Finance, Credit Cards | Economy Watch. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. <http://www.economywatch.com/world_economy/egypt/export-import.html>.

"Outsourcing to Egypt | Country Profile & Statistics | 2011." SourcingLine | The Line on Top Services Firms. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. <http://www.sourcingline.com/outsourcing-location/egypt>.

"Raya - Why Outsource?" Welcome to Raya - Pulse of the Future. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. <http://www.rayacorp.com/ShowPage.aspx?PID=63>.

"Youth Unemployment: Young, Jobless and Looking for Trouble | The Economist." The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. <http://www.economist.com/blogs/schumpeter/2011/02/youth_unemployment>.

                                      

 

Foreign Products and Me!!

Outsourcing. The very thought of it brings fear to the hearts of many Americans. I mean, wasn’t it part of the reason that all the good manufacturing jobs left America? Exactly how much of what we use is outsourced?  If you guessed a lot- you’re a winner!! The large amount of items made in other countries shows that as Americans, we have unconsciously become dependent and addicted to foreign made products.

I am an addict. Without my Paper Mate erasable pens that were assembled in Mexico and imported from Canada, and my Jansport backpack that was made in China; I start to get the shakes. If the Chinese made computer I am writing this blog from gets separated from me, I begin to sweat. Yes, I am addicted to foreign products through and through and I didn’t even know it.  The kicker, most Americans are too. Truthfully, I couldn’t on without some of these items and I know many Americans couldn’t go on without some of their foreign made products either. Where would we be without our Japanese phones, Pakistani towels and favorite pajamas made in Mexico? That’s right. Nowhere. These and other foreign items dominate everything we use from the time we get up to the time we go to sleep (even my bed was made in Taiwan). Because people hardly pay attention to where their things come from, foreign products have become like a drug unwittingly slipped to us until we are dependent and have reached the point of no return. As a country and humans in general, we are cheerful robots and we don’t think; we use. The really sad thing is that all of this never had to happen. In the 1950’s, America was a manufacturing powerhouse. What happened?  At this point, finding made in America on anything seems a rare occurrence (only one lone College Edition notebook I had was made in America) and it shouldn’t be.  Although outsourcing and gaining back jobs is a concern, we have a long way to go before we kick our addiction and dependency to foreign products and see the label made in America prevalent again.

Unreal Depictions; Ads and Media Today

      There is a girl leaning against a thriving green tree. A plush rain forest lies in the background, with a waterfall flowing and mist flowing in the air. The girl, she's otherworldly with wet , raven colored hair strewn across her face and lips pursed in a seductive smile. Her eyes, they are a piercing green, almost animalistic. Who wouldn’t want to be like this beautiful creature? That’s exactly what this ad for Aqcua di Giorgio wants people to think. The ad is built upon people's insecurities. Most people will never look like this model and this model probably doesn’t look like what her picture portrays in real life anyway. Even though people know she may be photo- shopped and her eyes are most likely contacts, we as humans fall for the ploy anyway.  It is exactly ads like these that are destroying us. According to this ad, women are now supposed to be  these almost beautiful animals kept in solitude, which isn't true at all. Images like these are shown time and time again.
      So although there is no perfume apparent in the ad, only the tagline of the fragrance, it still works. All we need need to know is thats it's "The Fragrance" and requites no more explaination. That’s because we are buying into the image that it portrays not the product. For women, when they see the beautiful women in the ad, they may want to emulate her. So if it’s saying to buy Armani perfume, why not if it will make them look like the model. For men sex sells, and this ad has no shortage of it. With a gorgeous woman on a deserted rain forest , practically screaming come hither off the page ; what man wouldn’t find someone to buy the perfume for? With her you will "Experience the essence of joy"  and whatever sexual implications that goes along with. That is exactly what kind of thinking the marketing executives count on. Essentially, buy the woman. Who cares about perfume?

Final Reflection

Due to consciously observing Fairfield County for the first time, I was able to see it through a whole new set of eyes and learn so much in a short amount of time. For example, I learned that the cultural and physical places in Fairfield County are so dependent on one another. When children are in an adult physical space they are expected to behave with respect while amongst other children in a children physical space, they are beholden to little values and feel a little freer. Overall, I could see that talented children are very valued due to shows like glee, I Carly, Victorious, etc. At the same times bad behavior is rewarded with shows like Jersey Shore, Bad Girls Club and all of the different “Housewives”. Whether or not that’s because we like bad behavior or because we like to compare ourselves to them is another question. This is surprising because while bad behavior is such a huge focus, there are so many groups that get ignored and are practically invisible. Some would be Native Americans, the disabled, the lgbt community, etc. Although they are apparent in our communities they are hardly apparent on television. That’s a problem because television a lot of the time is the first way children learn about the other parts of society. Because of that I feel that people are very obligated to act in the interest of bettering society. While they don’t have to spend their days picketing at places considered to perpetuate inequalities, they do have the responsibility to call it out when they see it. If not for them, for their children who deserve to have an honest, fair, and unbiased look and chance of success in this world. So if society now doesn’t change us, nobody else will. Now that I have looked around me I will do what I have asked of society and try to change things that I have noticed that I consider to be unjust. Most importantly, I will continue to look around me and consciously think about what I participate in or allow to happen on a regular basis. The least I owe to society is the think before I act and consciously object if I disagree with it; or in other words follow in the footsteps of Thoreau.

Television

Hail to the spunky, talented children , to the spirit of competition and people behaving badly. As an outsider to Fairlfield County looking in on what’s popular on TV, those are the things humans revere the most. From Glee to X factor to Bad Girls Club these things dominate television. Sometimes stereotypical, each group has their own role. For example, men of color are often the villains or side characters in the shows. This can be seen in NBC's show Grimm where Detective Griffin plays sidekick to Detective Burkhart when solving fairytale like crimes. Furthermore African American women are often seen as nagging, demanding and sometimes "ghetto". The Parkers are a perfect example of these traits. Kim parker, the main protagonist of the series is always seen as wearing outrageous clothing, never passing her classes and saying “Heyy” or “Dang Mamma” in a very loud, stereotypical fashion. Surprisingly, this program airs on BET which is supposed to refute these stereotypes.  The portrayal of black women isn’t very far off from how women are shown in general. That is a bossy person that demands attention all the time. Nothing is a more perfect example of this than the children’s cartoon the Fairly Odd Parents which airs on nick. Wanda, the fairy wife is famous for demanding her husband Cosmo get her chocolate calling him a "Stupid idiot" and being "Naggy". Although these shows are showing a reversed gender role, with men now being seen as incompetent or complacent and women as more assertive, whether it is a good or bad thing is the real question. It seems that women are either portrayed as too bossy or too weak. In general there seems to be no happy medium for any group, with Asians, LGBT's Native Americans and the disabled underrepresented or ignored. My only hope is that at some point that happy medium can be found.