Definition

reshoring

Reshoring is the practice of bringing outsourced personnel and services back to the location from which they were originally offshored.

Many organizations initially pursue outsourcing arrangements, often overseas, in order to take advantage of reduced taxes, cheaper labor, a 24-hour-a-day workforce and the ability to hire employees with specialized skill sets in their own country of origin. IT and manufacturing are two areas that have undergone a great deal of outsourcing but are now seeing the reshoring of some of these jobs as part of a larger rightsourcing effort.

The recent movement toward reshoring typically stems from corporate concerns about operational challenges that have caused a decline in productivity and quality. In the United States, additional factors that encourage reshoring initiatives include an increase in wages overseas, improvements in domestic energy production, government incentives and the trend towards locating production closer to consumers.

See also: nearshore outsourcing, offshore outsourcing, domestic outsourcing, business process outsourcing

This was last updated in November 2012

Continue Reading About reshoring

Dig Deeper on IT applications, infrastructure and operations

Cloud Computing
Mobile Computing
Data Center
Sustainability and ESG
Close