The Outcry against Outsourcing Jobs

There is much debate about the implications of outsourcing: on US economy if it continues, and on other economies (e.g., India) if it banned.

This is someting which I wrote to someone today:

"...though noone says it, but the 'hulla' is not because jobs are being outsourced, but because it is the middle-class white-collor jobs which are being outsourced.

US always outsourced blue-collor jobs (in fact, at present 10mn blue collor jobs are outsourced). There is also "insourcing" of jobs in US (6.4mn, in number), but these are also blue-collor jobs.

But in US polity, blue-collor labour is not part of public discourse (being the only democracy in the world, where there is no labour representation in political party system). The unconscious ideology that labour party will be "leftist" (therefore communist), and "ballot access" restrictions ensure that blue-collor labour (for that matter all underdogs in the US society) does not get represented in political system.

The new jobs, e.g., Walmart, which are being created are not white-color jobs (either blue collor or part-time).

The caucuses and lobbies are run by middle-class and the rich. So this actually is a revolt by the middle-class against the rich. For the first time, the middle-class started getting the treatment which the blue-collor workers were getting since long.

So, whatever The Economist or Jadish Bhagwati, or whoever, says, this issue will be a major issue in times to come - even beyond elections."....

Management Education vs. Management Literacy

One more batch of MBA graduates is passing out now. And I was thinking about the learning that I have derived - in the process of teaching - during last couple of years or so... There are of course, many personal learnings, but on a conceptual level, one which became so obvious was the difference between literacy and education.

A literate knows how to read and write, can add and substract, etc. But that's it. S/he may not necessarily know where and how to apply and leverage these skills. More importantly, s/he does not know the "meaning" of what s/he has learned - and therefore, is unable to stretch those skills to apply to other domains of living.

If one is able to do these (apply skills to other domains of living, know the context/context of what one has learned, and is able to use what one has learned to make life's decisions, etc.), only then can one be caled educated (Ok, these are my definitions, but they do help to see the difference).

In that sense, a large number of MBA graduates merely acquire "management literacy" - they know the latest terms, frameworks, formula, etc., but very, very few actually stretch themeselves to apply these to other domains (other than the quizzes and exams)... which is somewhat sad, given that most of them are bright people, and will be taking decisions which will affect others...

One way to understand this situation is to believe that once people start working, they also learn to apply these skills, understand the context, etc., and so, become educated. But I don't think that lack of work-experience is the only rationale of this state-of-affairs. It has, in my understanding, something to do with the premium value (mainly in terms of its earning potential) which is given to the MBA degree, and which attracts a large number of people who are just looking for a nice lucrative job - and not towards becoming a professsional.

Well, though I already have another blog - the alternativeperspective - I thought it may be interesting to start one more, which is of more general nature... so here we have, My Musings on life in general... and on nothing in particular