The Latest in Outsourcing: Crowdsourcing

If you want something done right, have a bunch of strangers do it for you. That’s the ethos behind “crowdsourcing,” a trend that has companies turning to the masses for a host of jobs normally done in-house – from writing code to designing products to conducting market surveys. Companies hope hordes of helpers will speed up development, and invite innovative ideas, ComputerWorld explains.

Usually, mass efforts are corralled through contests, picking out the best ideas or programming. “The focus of every company today is on innovation, which has led to an 'all-hands-on-deck' mentality,” said one analyst. It’s also meant some cheap labor, leading some to worry about exploitation. But crowdsourcees are generally an enthusiastic bunch, demanding input into their favorite products. (More Web 2.0 stories.)