Feb. 6 – As the economic crisis takes its toll on Asia, companies are altering the way they do business.

Thinking out of the box, CEO’s are using creative cost cutting measures to stay afloat including seeking out new, efficient, low attrition, high turnover outsourcing hot spots.

While many see emerging cities within BRIC nations as the next outsourcing destinations, India as a traditional outsourcing hub is loosing her sheen.

Outsourcing advisory firm Tholons has listed the top 50 emerging cities for outsourcing (see box below) to highlight the shifting trend from traditional outsourcing destinations. The list was compiled using such criteria as the size and quality of the workforce, the cost of doing business locally, and the quality of infrastructure.

While India’s outsourcing industry continues to grow albeit at a slower pace throughout 2009, other countries have been aggressively marketing to get a larger share of the outsourcing pie. China’s state council for example recently approved tax breaks and subsidies to boost the growth of China’s service outsourcing industry.

India simultaneously hasn’t done much to improve its outsourcing image. Hit by a series of blows to its image – the slowdown in the west, the Mumbai terrorist attacks and the Satyam scandal India’s outsourcing industry slowed to 15 percent in 2008 from a scorching 35 percent growth in 2007. Growth is further expected to taper below 10 percent in 2009.

Correction
An updated chart has been inserted to reflect 2007 and 2008 data.