An eye on India: outsourcing debate continues

US companies increasingly began outsourcing software development work to countries such as India, which touts low personnel costs and plentiful technical expertise, during the dotcom shakeout. Today, the trend shows no sign of stopping. It has changed the landscape for US software professionals, reshaping how companies plan projects and choose employees. US software developers will not be going the way of the dinosaurs, analysts say, but they will need to cleverly manage their careers and thoroughly understand the new environment. At the same time, businesses are learning more about offshore outsourcing's challenges. The author discusses the growing debate about its merits.