I had not heard that term used before you wrote it, but I'm familiar with the business practice of outsourcing specific job functions to other companies or groups.

I'm of two minds on the subject: For one, I understand the benefits of said outsourcing to small and medium sized businesses. I think this can be a great time and cost saver in much the same way as a good accountant can be stand-in for a CFO.

That said, and using the same example, I still don't like the idea of calling someone an “employee,” leased or otherwise, the same way I would never call my small business accountant my employee. These people are even less employees since they're being outsourced. So the outsourcing company should be coming up with innovative ways of describing their people: Business Backbones or Function Junctions.

I had not heard that term used before you wrote it, but I'm familiar with the business practice of outsourcing specific job functions to other companies or groups.

I'm of two minds on the subject: For one, I understand the benefits of said outsourcing to small and medium sized businesses. I think this can be a great time and cost saver in much the same way as a good accountant can be stand-in for a CFO.

That said, and using the same example, I still don't like the idea of calling someone an “employee,” leased or otherwise, the same way I would never call my small business accountant my employee. These people are even less employees since they're being outsourced. So the outsourcing company should be coming up with innovative ways of describing their people: Business Backbones or Function Junctions.