Company context
Company A, which I work for, has decided to outsource some of its operations to companies B, C, and D. These are currently run by mixed teams of ~ 50% employees of A and 50% onsite contractors from companies D and E.
Companies C and D have lots of employees seasoned with these operations. Company B, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of A, has no experience regarding these, and no office at that location. Information regarding the outsourcing is well known within C or D, but has not been officially disclosed inside A yet.
Company A is also in the process of reducing its workforce by about 15% over a couple years. Local labor laws does not allow dismissing employees at will, so HR are getting creative : early retirements, reassign/relocate people so they will quit. I reckon that moving people to subsidiaries might be another of their options.
Recent events
I was contacted by internal HR and offered a position in company B, where I would be in charge of gathering a team and running those operations.
While this new position could be a great challenge and a step up for my career, it could also be a desastrous move. I smell something fishy with the way the project is setup, yet cannot pinpoint it exactly. The devil might be in the details.
Question :
I am trying to gather solid clues before making any decision regarding this opportunity. What should I specifically be looking for (i.e. red flags) to anticipate whether the project is actually a planned failure or not ?
Edit :
The sinking ship question has similarities, but a different timing. Here the ship is still at a safe harbor, and I can have a glance at is design an make before deciding to embark. And as I have limited knowledge on how boats are built, I am asking you expert shipbuilders how to recognize beforehand that it has a chance to stay afloat.
Why is B involved as they have no relevant knowledge ?
Sounds like they want you to create a team at B that has that knowledge... Anyway, voting to close, as your question is really kind of asking us to gauge what your employers are thinking... – HorusKol Feb 15 '16 at 0:26