September 23, 2004 4:33 PM

High-tech start-ups feel push to outsource
Posted by Douglas Eisenhartat 4:33 PM

As Beth Healy reports in today's Boston Globe, it is not just mature firms that are looking to keep expenses down by outsourcing work overseas. Now it's a demand in the entrepreneurial world, as well, which is not welcome news for those looking to start-ups as an employment option in the economic rebound:

While large American companies have drawn the most attention for shifting jobs to cheaper overseas markets, the practice has quietly taken hold among start-ups as well. It's a trend that financiers of young technology companies say is inevitable. But they also admit it's controversial, and likely to rock a sector that Boston relies on for jobs and a vibrant economy.
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Speaking to a group of venture capitalists and business executives at a Harvard Club dinner on Tuesday evening, [TH Lee managing director Ramanan] Raghavendran said that Boston-based TH Lee is urging the companies it invests in to ''build offshoring into the business plan from day one." If management doesn't ''get it," Raghavendran said, ''venture firms need to drive the thinking" about hiring offshore.

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