Rural Sourcing

Can the Indian outsourcing model work in rural America? Dr. Kathy Brittain White, founder and president of Rural Sourcing, Inc., has developed a model to do just that. From Jonesboro, AR, a second location in Greenville, NC and three rural satellite offices in AR and NM, she is determined to prove the effectiveness of rural locations.

She explained the idea for RSI, “I set up a foundation for technology in Arkansas and committed $2 million to economic development and technology outreach. I was searching for something that I could do to integrate my passion and technology skills. Rural Sourcing is it.”

Her success is predicated upon lower costs and higher quality of life, “We locate in areas that have 35 to 50 percent lower cost of living than major metro areas. We like to choose locations that have a nice quality of life that would attract people back to the area or entice experienced professionals to move to the region.”

She has carved out a niche for shorter term projects of two to three months and smaller projects. Even though her blended rate is $38 to $48/hour compared to $20 to $40/hour in India, her flexibility and ability to move much faster has proven successful.

She has encouraging words for the agurbs®, “I think that we can be a catalyst for rural America to think about other knowledge work. Many other services can be done remotely.” And, I’m convinced that other entrepreneurs, like Dr. White, will develop similar models that will capitalize upon the advantages of the rural USA.