Application of Web 2.0 -A New Paradigm in Outsourcing

Web 2.0 is the next generation transformation of the World Wide Web, It is neither a new technology or a technique but it is a new way of thinking .Web 2.0 are a set of principles and practices that when applied would bring in the change .This concept is more an ‘evolution’ and has ‘revolutionized’ the world of web . The web is now been viewed as a participative medium with greater collaboration among Internet users, other users, content providers, and enterprises, Using the 2.0 principles of network effects , This eco system has now a greater benefiticial value . This concept could be extended to build a collaborative outsourcing ecosystem and could be related to Outsourcing 2.0

Web 2.0 is not just a ‘thing” It is a state of mind ,Outsourcing 2.0 is a Innovative state of mind in which customers could seamlessly weave internally and externally available services by applying the web 2.0 principles of Network effects thereby harnessing the collective intelligence within the network to optimize the profitability of their products, services, and business models
While cost is one of the factors for deriving outsourcing benefits, It is no longer a competitive edge and hence companies are adopting the global network effect and gain the first mover advantage. In order to gain maximum benefit it is important that the firms effectively harness innovation from a multiprovider services delivery network

Web 2.0 capabilities will bring in an entirely new mindset to the outsourcing community .It is not a product or a strategy ,it is not owned by any market segment .It is an intersection of this new and evolving outsourcing demographics and the power and capabilities of Web 2.0

Web 2.0 is a buzzword but the concept is important it embodies ideas like software as a service and open development, and wraps it in the bigger notion that the value of the Internet is in the ''long tail" .It is all about social networking and community collaboration which has revolutionalised the Web world. Mirroring this concept with the Global outsourcing we would set a stage for a change that would enable collaboration to take place across the globe and open up floodgates for more and more people, various cultures to get wired .

The merge of outsourcing and Web 2.0 is a real phenomenon that will take the outsourcing to the next level thereby increasing the capabilities and efficiencies. Globalization combined with the Web 2.0 principles can be a good intersection point for future outsourcing models, with this model companies can leverage varied infrastructure and cultures and hence can benefit use of best brainpower in the world and can create themselves a competitive advantage.

Building Enterprise portals – How long is the journey

Portals today has become the de facto UI for adoption of SOA and also for any Web based applications .Over the last few years the usage of portals has undergone a major transformation and the Portal is being viewed by companies today as a basic foundation and infrastructure for resolving business problems, Thereby increasing productivity and increased ROI .

While most of the companies clearly realize the value of creating enterprise portals, one of the Key points that ponder a CXO is the ROI and “True value for Investment”. For 70-80% of the companies Portal journey may not be the first time which means they must have invested in some portal solution small or big in at least a few departments in the organization. The major decision is whether they need to invest on standardizing portal infrastructure and hence achieve common integration between people, processes and technology.

Next comes creating a vision which aligns with immediate business needs and also provides a cushion for further scalability. The technology choice is not a easy decision either with so many open source and big vendors in the market the choice becomes even more difficult, added to this is the changing market positioning of each of these products each quarter .But The key decisive factor while selecting a tool or technology is best done when a good balance with regard to long term strategy with meeting the immediate business goals is taken into consideration. My experience with most of the customers have been that the major influencer with choice of the tool or technology has been the cost factor and vendors relationship with the client.

This long journey also needs to be taken in incremental steps which means Iimplementation of this vision needs to be done in multiple releases, tested, wait for user feedbacks before taking the next leap. A big bang approach may not be the right choice to complete this journey.

Last but not the least , one needs to adopt enterprise portal and create a differential value by building features which makes real business sense and not implement features just because a product provides them or it is the latest trend .one such example is the RIA and SOA that is being widely discussed today .

We need to do a context based, situational, competitive analysis before we can arrive at what can be best implemented for the portal before beginning the journey .Few examples are: customer facing portals, which is front facing for the business and is the key to increase the business, then RIA and SOA can be adopted but if this is for more of content portal then RIA doesn’t make any sense. For a KM portal features like advanced collaboration search, chat etc would definitely be a value addition. However one should definitely create this portal infrastructure keeping the long term strategy in mind