So where are the VC "successes" offshore?Pause...
Class. Class. Anyone?
AT&T Wireless Self-Destructs [Offshore IT Outsourcing Disaster Kills Company]
Posted on 05/06/2004 4:57:34 PM PDT by sarcasm
Last December, Hilmi Ozguc, chief executive of Maven Networks Inc., began looking for venture capital to expand his 30-person startup. One of his first moves was to e-mail James W. Breyer, managing partner at venture firm Accel Partners, who had pocketed a hefty return on a company Ozguc had co-founded years earlier. Breyer immediately saw promise in Maven's software, which helps companies such as Virgin Records distribute interactive video over the Net.
But there was a catch: Breyer thought Ozguc should be using more developers outside the U.S. than he was planning on. While Ozguc had been eyeing South Korea and Japan, Breyer thought he should open an office in China, too. Ozguc agreed, and in March, Accel invested $10 million in Maven. Breyer, now a director at Maven, continues to urge Ozguc to think about the opportunities for sending work overseas. "There is not a board meeting that goes by in which outsourcing does not play a significant role," says Breyer.
A new trend is sweeping through Silicon Valley and other centers of U.S. innovation. Startups, spurred by their venture investors, are catching offshore fever, and not just a mild case -- like some big multinationals have. While 15% of the 145 large companies recently surveyed by Forrester Research Inc. (FORR ) say they have made offshore a permanent part of their strategy, an informal survey of venture capitalists suggests 20% to 25% of the companies they invest in have a comparable commitment. The fervor has gripped some of venture capital's biggest names. Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Sevin Rosen Funds, and Norwest Ventures say at least 30% of their companies have moved jobs overseas, and that figure is rising. "The venture guys are driving offshore as much as anyone," says Forrester Vice-President John C. McCarthy.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessweek.com ...
So where are the VC "successes" offshore?Pause...
Class. Class. Anyone?
AT&T Wireless Self-Destructs [Offshore IT Outsourcing Disaster Kills Company]
BWAAAA Ha Ha! What's hilarious is that some people will actually believe that hiring some grunts in mudholes is doing cutting edge "research!"
Indians probably say the same about Alabama.
Call me when they build rocket motors that match what Boeing is building here in Alabama. Shoot, call me when they can build a simple SUV as well as Mercedes does in Alabama.
The startup ventures are the core of the United States economy. They are a major source of new employment, and an important part element in the growth of the overall economy.
They develop new methods, new processes - they are the source of numerous inventions.
And now this is all going away. So that people can buy more cheap trinkets at Great Wall Mart.
If you want on or off my offshoring ping list, please FReepmail me!
 |
| DAILY Photo by Gary Cosby Jr. Exhaust billowed at the launch pad Wednesday night as the Alabama-built Delta IV left Earth for a 37-minute flight to place a French communications satellite into successful orbit. |
Huntsville is part of missile defense in a big way.
A wide array of information is needed by Boeing when it comes to National Missile Defense. Engineers need to know what amount of stress the silo's concrete structure can withstand, and how silo doors will behave in sub-zero conditions.
"We are going to have a special shroud built around the top of the silo, and then lower the temperatures to at least 30 degrees below zero," said Edwards. "That's just to test the doors. It sounds funny that we would do that in Alabama, but it's actually cheaper than flying them to the Artic or Alaska somewhere."
The silo is a construction process test and evaluation area more than anything else, Edwards said.
Boeing needed to know how to build the silo and what challenges it would face by digging a 90-foot hole in the ground. The Huntsville silo showed the NMD team what is required to build the unique silos.
Boeing started design work on the project in 1998. In August 1999, it broke ground for the silo, and within the next week the silo should be operational, Edwards said.
"It's been a very fast paced program," he said.
The $3-million test silo is part of the $13 billion National Missile Defense program, for which Boeing is the lead contractor. About 70 percent of all NMD work is performed in Huntsville, and Boeing has about 1,300 employees and contractors supporting the project.
The first test launch of a geostationary satellite launch vehicle was aborted after a fire broke out shortly after its Russian engines were ignited. The launch has now been postponed indefinitely.
Ford Motor Co.'s accounts payable processing unit in India typically loses power three or four times each day. On top of that, it's difficult to establish a telephone connection there. Meanwhile, employee turnover for IT staff in this region is an eye-popping 30% per year.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.