In business, outsourcing involves the contracting out of a business process to another party (compare business process outsourcing). The concept "outsourcing" came from American Glossary 'outside resourcing' and it dates back to at least 1981. Outsourcing sometimes involves transferring employees and assets from one firm to another, but not always. Outsourcing is also the practice of handing over control of public services to for-profit corporations.