Evolution of Outsourcing

The outsourcing of operations and services, including data entry, is a long-standing tradition in America, going back to the early fifties, when back-file conversion dominated the first wave of data entry tasks.

A second outsourcing trend emerged in the 1980s, when the manufacturing industry had to adjust to foreign companies providing automobiles, electronic equipment and components at lower prices. To compete, U.S. manufacturers began contracting operations to offshore companies that could provide labor at significantly lower costs.