We were surprised at the strength of outsourcing to Pakistan, yet we have learned it is a strong offshore services community. As we reported, there are many global locations that have internal issues, yet remain viable offshore business locations. Mexico has the current drug wars, India has it's own issues as does the Philippines, yet they remain strong sources of valuable services. Apparently the same is true with Pakistan.
Truth is, we believe that the entrepreneurial spirit and a true eagerness to work resides in all countries. The recent uprising in Iran and the use of technology show that there is innovative spirit under any government or regime. In Pakistan, from a recent conversation with a business owner in the southern provinces - there is a strong thriving business community and enough labor to support high quality low cost services. "The trouble is mostly in the North," He spoke of the Taliban issues as if it was in a different country, and not kilometers away.
According to global consulting company AT Kearney, their annual Global Services Location Index (GSLI) increased the ranking for Pakistan from #30 in 2007 to #20.
As one of the comments in this article stated: most of the outsourcing is coming from the top 5-7 global locations. However, we believe it is critical to look at the services offered, the quality of the workforce, their innovation and costs - before judging if the location is undesirable. We remain optimistic about Pakistan and other countries that are below the top-three.
