US IT programmers for a China price - Bill Dodson

Bill Dodson

The pendule of globalization is now moving towards the US, notes Bill Dodson in his weblog, where IT programmers cost a much as those in China. An analysis of the moving IT market in the eyes of Bill's American friend:

“They sharpest ones (in India) took their money and left. And the country hasn’t cultivated the rest.” She was enthusiastic about the Dutch, who are producing some “amazing” technologies, she said. She’s also working with a Finnish team. “The Finns are doing some cutting-edge stuff,” she added. So what else is there to do during those long, cold, dark winter days, I wanted to quip (but didn’t). I asked her about the Chinese software team she had been working with six months ago.

“They were so-so. Nothing really sparkling. And now, because the economy in the States has been so bad, American developers are now costing me about the same price.” She gave me an example. “A Chinese team leader quoted me a price of 300 rmb per hour for a programmer. That’s more than $20 and hour: I can get a really good American programmer for that price – and we’ll have a cultural affinity that I’ll never have with the Chinese, even though they may just be a fifteen minute drive down the road from me (in Suzhou).”

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Bill Dodson is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you need him at your meeting or conference, do get in touch.

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