Reasons why digital work is outsourced

Reasons why digital work is outsourced to foreign markets

Of the kinds of digital work and expertise outsourced to other countries, ‘Application Development’ represents the most outsourced digital service. This is more than likely as a result of the significant IT-enabling services available in markets such as India. This would also explain the relative weight attached to ‘Cost’ and ‘Skills/Talent’. In other outsourced digital work and expertise, cost does not play a decisive role; of greater persuasive value are ‘Skills/Talent’ and the associated criteria of ‘Specialisation’. In fact, on average, the reasons for outsourcing this work and expertise is evenly balanced across ‘Cost’, “Market Confidence’, ‘Skills/Talent’ and ‘Specialisation’. This points to the need for South Africa to create a stronger pipeline of in demand skills/talent that would enable jobs/work to be reshored back to the country. Additionally, it could create opportunities for local businesses and entrepreneurs to develop core competencies in some of these technologies, such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, IoT, and medtech, to invent products and services that can solve local problems and ultimately be exported globally.