The lived experiences of federal agency information-technology employees in times of outsourcing.

摘要

United States (U.S.) federal agencies and other organizations are turning to Information Technology (IT) as a strategy for improving business productivity. Despite the rapid growth of outsourcing, few studies have been conducted on the effect of outsourcing on employees who remain with the company. In the current qualitative study, the effect of outsourcing on federal agency IT personnel was examined and the importance of understanding employees' concerns was discussed. Outsourcing's effects on employees' career decisions, the adequacy or inadequacy of the support that employees received from management, the transfer of knowledge, and the benefits and disadvantages that employees experienced when working with external service providers or contractors were addressed in the study. The sample consisted of 20 employee participants from one federal U.S. agency. NVivo 7 software was used to assess the responses of the employees, and a content analysis was conducted on responses to the open-ended questions.;The results indicated that outsourcing does have an effect on federal employees' career progress. The results of the current research supported the belief that given the effects of outsourcing, agency supervisors need to ensure employees understand set policies associated with outsourcing, keep communication open to avoid uncertainty, and ensure employees understand the process and reasons for outsourcing. Communication with contractors is also suggested, while offering the employees the ability to move to other positions through training and career advancement. The results of the current study may contribute to managers' understanding about the effect of outsourcing on employees such as loss of key employees or change of employment status, insecurity due to stress related to the fear of job loss, and lack of career prospects.