Outsourcing HR shouldn't be a huge difference because the local HR did absolutely nothing. All HR functions were already outsourced - payroll, health benefit questions, etc. The only function that HR in St. Louis has is to axe employees. Clearly they have the best agent of death - Don Z. He seems to get off on that.
I am surprised that Sigma is going through with the offshoring/shared services model. They are only about ten years late. Other companies did it and learned that it wasn't effective and are trying to bring these functions back stateside.
I am not trying to be elitist, but it is a good time for the Indian worker (in India and stateside). They are rising through the corporate ranks - look at the IT department and the recent reorg.