You know the feeling of getting home from the airport.
You get in the taxi, and as the driver wings his way through the streets, you know your way. Should the taxi driver dart down some crazy avenue, or decide to take you for a spin, you're instantly able to avoid being taken for a ride.
But when you're in an unknown city, you rarely have such luck. You don't know the streets and are not quite sure whether you're being taken for a ride, or it just happens to be a long ride.
And outsourcing may feel like you're being taken for a ride.
So what are we to do? Should we outsource without knowing anything about the topic (e.g. should we outsource our website construction without any knowledge of how to manage the website?). Or should we outsource projects based on the fact that you've learned a little bit, and like the ‘hometown taxi ride' you're in control (even if you're not actually driving the taxi).
I'm no control freak.
But I find that if I outsource something, I need to have a smattering of understanding of the subject. I also find that if it's mission critical or something that affects my day-to-day work (e.g. websites, design, etc), then knowing and understanding the topic and the applications enables me to get a better understaing of how to direct the outsourced job.
Of course this takes time…
Imagine wanting to have a site up in Joomla, and then learning a bit (or a lot) of Joomla. Imagine wanting to have your book designed in InDesign and learning a bit (or a lot) of InDesign. It all takes time. And yet, I often find myself learning the skills that I've outsourced, if only to be able to know where I'm going and how to get out of a mess if needed.
Do you think it's overkill? Should you just outsource and do nothing? Or should you actually put in the effort to learn?
“You can outsource execution, you can’t outsource strategy”.
So you have to learn first, before outsourcing.
Outsourcing without learning is expensive. You learn while the job is being done for you, but you save money if you can speak the language a little bit to let your consultant know what you want done.
I think it’s in the HOW that you get stung if you don’t know anything about it. If you can’t speak the language of the work, then how do you know you want an html page rather than a php page?
In that case, you could be stung for a very, very long time with a site that you can’t update without advanced skills that you didn’t even know you needed!
I too believe it’s important to outsource after a bit of learning. Even if it’s something as far out as say cartoons, or accounting 🙂 you should know a little bit at the very least.
And while everything can’t be learned, at least the mission critical stuff needs to be learned.
As you rightly said: You can’t fix stuff when you don’t even know it’s broken.
I think it is essential to have a basic knowledge and understanding of a certain topic or subject before outsourcing. there can be a limit or a point where we can stop learning and just outsource it and let the “professionals” execute it. However, I feel that one should at least read up on the subject before outsourcing, not necessarily learning per say.
What say you?
Happy to read this thread.
Should make an end to the critics of some of my friends about ‘wasting your time’ instead of focusing on what really matters.
“What ? Learning Dreamweaver, css and stuff alike for weeks and finally outsource the design of your website to a professional programmer? What a waste of time, money and energy !”
All to often such remarks succeed to make me start doubting, even paralyzing me. So much else to learn…
Moreover programmers almost never work the way things are explained in manuals. You look at the code, you don’t get it at first, you feel helpless and pops there it is f ‘they’re right, shouldn’t have invested all that time”.
Until you dig once more into the code because you want to understand. Suddenly you’re able to adapt little things by yourself thanks to your previous learnings. “Yes !”
So “learn first before outsourcing”? Most certainly. It’s well worth the time invested. BTW serious programmers adore you 100% understand what they’re talking about. Really helps to move things faster.