Outsourcing Plays a Vital Role at Texas Instruments

The article discusses how outsourcing plays a vital role at Texas Instruments Inc., the Dallas, Texas, based semiconductor manufacturer. The decision to outsource a key element of its corporate learning function was born of necessity at Texas Instruments. The year was 2001, the industry's fortunes were plummeting. A downsizing move under way affected professional development courses made available to all employees. The catalog of instructor-led courses was offered within a training organization that was required to break even each year. Not only was the directive difficult to meet within that climate, but complaints were mounting about higher tuition costs charged to employees who had to fly to the Dallas learning site.