Barter: An Alternative To Outsourcing

Post written by Marlon Ribunal.
Follow me on twitter.

Barter, cashless trading of goods or services, is a growing trend among corporate businesses. This ancient form of commerce has been revived by many factors, one of which is to dispatch excess resources while acquiring needed provision. According to International Reciprocal Trade Association(IRTA), 400,000 companies worldwide have earned $10 Billion dollars from bartering their  “excess business capacities and underperforming assets.” There is really a great opportunity for companies to make good use of their surplus. But the good thing is, even the small-to-medium businesses are benefited by the same opportunity.

Service businesses are bartering for other needed services from other companies as a way to accomplish things that they themselves cannot fulfill. An example is an appliance repair shop needing a reporting system for the business. The shop may not have the necessary skills to accomplish what they need. So they look out for a developer who might happen to have some electric stuff needing repair. Both parties can agree on exchanging services so they both fill each other’s need without involving  money. The worth of exchanged services must be of equal value; but this value is not monetary-based. The value is measured by time-based currency or man-hour.

There are many occasions that bartering can totally displace the need to outsource. In some respect, outsourcing is inevitable but not indispensable. Having the right venue to appraise what is needed and what can be offered can lead to a successful business reciprocity. It is good to know that outsourcing is no longer the last option.

In what aspects do you think that bartering is a good option in place of outsourcing?

Subscribe to Productivity Bits - Productivity & GTD Hacks Blog