Many companies outsource to overseas contractors and others set up large development staffs in other countries to take advantage of the cheaper labor rates found there. This change has put downward pressure on salaries for United States programmers and other IT professionals who are still employed in the industry. .
The ramifications of IT offshore outsourcing do not end with lower United States salaries and higher unemployment numbers. Many are concerned about a national "brain drain" as the most talented IT workers choose to work overseas rather than in the United States As more IT jobs are moved to other nations, fewer opportunities are available to United States workers. Fewer United States workers will seek training in the field, leaving the United States at the technological mercy of other nations. One Fortune 100 Chief Information Officer (CIO) said, "I don't want to wake up one day and find that American IT has disappeared." Joe Drouin of TRW Automotive wonders where he will find his next rising stars in IT if we are not growing them internally. "It isn't clear what the new entry-level job in IT will be. He says "Where do you look for that superstar who is doing a great job and has a rapport with the customer and understands your business?" Phil Friedman, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Computer Generated Solution, Inc. worries about the moral responsibility of companies to their employees. "We need those technology skills. This country is making productivity gains only because of the technology we've been able to implement, and all of a sudden, we are abandoning those employees, and it's bothersome" said Friedman. Countering this moral concern, Gordon Coburn, Senior VP and Chief Financial Officer at Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. suggests that in the long run, the offshore model is actually protecting American jobs. He points to the many companies that tried to keep all of their manufacturing in the United States and have since failed and closed their doors.