Outsourcing is basically a company-wide
initiative. As outsourcing decisions become increasingly
regarded as business as usual, many Outsourcing
decisions, resultantly, made today are based largely
on economics and not treated as strategic by executives,
even though the long-term business implications can
be colossal.
Outsourcing IT services allows
a cost-effective access to a range of IT skills, through
a dedicated team of specialized software professionals,
without having to manage IT resources in-house.
The initial drivers of outsourcing
were lowering costs and gaining efficiencies, companies,
however, today are looking for improved quality and
reduced time to market, in addition to bottom line results.
In today's global economy, the growing presence of offshore
service providers necessitates decision-makers to mull
over a number of strategically important factors such
as long-term productivity and cost projections, physical
and data security, long-term business and employment
stability, political agenda and cultural differences,
and business continuity capability.
Companies first started Outsourcing
with IT infrastructure, website hosting, business process
application development and help desk support, and have
expanded the list of IT services that are outsourced
to include networking and communications and data center
operations. However in today’s highly competitive
business environment, many service providers in the
IT services outsourcing are increasingly being utilized
as a mainstream strategic weapon for firms across the
globe.
Keys to Successful Outsourcing
- Reliability of the Outsourcing
provider.
- Need for a partnership that is equitable to both parties
and that is based on trust.
- Clearly communicated objectives, expectations and
performance measurements.
- Up-front communication and contracts that clearly
spell out service level agreements. Solid project management
and partnership management.
Risks of Outsourcing
- Potential loss of control – control of the project,
scope creep, the technologies, the costs, and of their
company’s IT direction.
- An inability to retain knowledge and expertise in-house
as well as being dependent on an external provider.
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