Leaders today are making decisions concerning how best to use technology to enhance their products, to increase their customer base, and to reduce cost. One consideration is that of crowdsourcing as a means of increasing the leader’s strategic options. Crowdsourcing is a way of taking tasks or projects performed by internal employees or assigning new tasks and outsourcing them to a crowd of non-employees (Ford, Richard, & Ciuchta, 2015). The quandary some IT leaders face is whether the use of non-employees for information systems development will compromise their competitive advantage. Although the use of crowdsourcing is gaining popularity, the leader must consider both the advantages and disadvantages of selecting this option.

To prepare for this Discussion, read this week’s case study titled “Crowdsourcing: A New Way of Employing Non-Employees?” You will assess a leader’s consideration for crowdsourcing in this case. You will determine whether crowdsourcing requires the same strategic approach as that of traditional outsourcing or offshoring, or whether an entirely new strategic approach is necessary.

BY DAY 3

Post an analysis of the use of crowdsourcing as a strategic business approach based on the case study “Crowdsourcing: A New Way of Employing Non-Employees?” In your analysis, answer the following questions:

• Should a leader considering using crowdsourcing employ the same strategic approach as that of the traditional outsourcing or offshoring? Explain your rationale.
• What ethical issues must be considered?
• What are the critical factors in making the decision to use crowdsourcing?
• What are the risks associated with using both employees and non-employees?
• What cultural barriers exist related to your chosen option, particularly for IT development? Can these barriers be overcome? If so, how?

Be sure to support your work with a minimum of two specific citations from this week’s Learning Resources and one or more additional scholarly sources.