Comments on: We Are Expensive and Expendable http://oracleappslab.com/2008/03/19/we-are-expensive-and-expendable/ Driving Oracle Innovation Fri, 29 Aug 2008 21:56:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: Oracle AppsLab: Expensive Labor and Outsourcing Storage - AskSmartDog http://oracleappslab.com/2008/03/19/we-are-expensive-and-expendable/#comment-3221 Oracle AppsLab: Expensive Labor and Outsourcing Storage - AskSmartDog Mon, 24 Mar 2008 15:22:52 +0000 http://oracleappslab.com/2008/03/19/you-are-expensive-and-expendable/#comment-3221 <!--%kramer-ref-pre%-->[...] View Discussions "Rich and I were bemoaning the current state of the economy yesterday, and eventually, the conversation turned to outsourcing, not jobs, but storage, computing power, databases, applications, etc. You know, cloud computing." Read the rest of this blog post/editorial here. [...]<!--%kramer-ref-post%--> [...] View Discussions “Rich and I were bemoaning the current state of the economy yesterday, and eventually, the conversation turned to outsourcing, not jobs, but storage, computing power, databases, applications, etc. You know, cloud computing.” Read the rest of this blog post/editorial here. [...]

]]> By: Jake http://oracleappslab.com/2008/03/19/we-are-expensive-and-expendable/#comment-3205 Jake Fri, 21 Mar 2008 20:34:50 +0000 http://oracleappslab.com/2008/03/19/you-are-expensive-and-expendable/#comment-3205 @Gretchen: You're right that people with certain skills may not seem as core to a company when times are lean, e.g. product management could do marketing if necessary to save money. The resulting work may/may not be as good. Eventually though, people with core skills will be cut too, leaving the remaining workers to do more work, e.g. one product manager to manage all products and all marketing. Again, the resulting work may/may not be as good. The most critical objective of a company is staying in business. Cut deep enough, and the only skill that matters is the ability to do as many jobs as possible for the same (or lower) salary. @Gretchen: You’re right that people with certain skills may not seem as core to a company when times are lean, e.g. product management could do marketing if necessary to save money. The resulting work may/may not be as good.

Eventually though, people with core skills will be cut too, leaving the remaining workers to do more work, e.g. one product manager to manage all products and all marketing. Again, the resulting work may/may not be as good.

The most critical objective of a company is staying in business. Cut deep enough, and the only skill that matters is the ability to do as many jobs as possible for the same (or lower) salary.

]]> By: Gretchen http://oracleappslab.com/2008/03/19/we-are-expensive-and-expendable/#comment-3204 Gretchen Fri, 21 Mar 2008 18:52:38 +0000 http://oracleappslab.com/2008/03/19/you-are-expensive-and-expendable/#comment-3204 Yes, it's a downer, but welcome to the knowledge-based economy. As we move away from creating _objects_ to creating _information_ the cost model for a company shifts significantly to labor. But while there will continue to be labor churn as companies look for the lowest cost options, keep in mind that companies will always pay for critical skills - they are what will differentiate companies in this new economy. And there is a global shortage of skilled workers. So the question isn't whether or not your job is at risk, the question is how do your skills match with your company's needs? How do you make sure your skills are valued as differentiators, or are aligned with the critical objectves of the company? Sounds like a job for Profile Mgmt (/productadvertisement). Yes, it’s a downer, but welcome to the knowledge-based economy. As we move away from creating _objects_ to creating _information_ the cost model for a company shifts significantly to labor. But while there will continue to be labor churn as companies look for the lowest cost options, keep in mind that companies will always pay for critical skills - they are what will differentiate companies in this new economy. And there is a global shortage of skilled workers. So the question isn’t whether or not your job is at risk, the question is how do your skills match with your company’s needs? How do you make sure your skills are valued as differentiators, or are aligned with the critical objectves of the company? Sounds like a job for Profile Mgmt (/productadvertisement).

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