Why Should I Outsource?

Because you don't have the time to do it yourself.
You've got a product or service to develop and you've got to get it into the market before your competitor does.

Because you don't have the money to do it yourself.
Your business is growing exponentially but your resources can't cope with the growth.

Because you'd rather focus on mission-critical issues.
You're not interested in frittering away time and energy on non-core functions.

Because you don't have the skills to do it yourself.
You need the best talent in the world, but it's scarce/out of reach/ just not available in your country.

In today's globalized and networked economy, outsourcing has never been so easy or made so much business sense. The question is not "Why outsource?" but rather, "Why not?"

“Companies around the world have realised that to remain ahead, they need to reduce costs, provide the best quality, use the latest high-tech skills, and most importantly, be reliable and innovative,” writes Nandan Nilekani, Deputy Managing Director Infosys Technologies Ltd., One of India's foremost software development companies.

The convergent economy
The convergence of Telecommunication, Information Technology and media have redefined the way we do business, with electronic commerce and enterprise systems becoming a way of life. Correspondingly, there has been a sharp increase in the need for qualified software professionals to manage these functions. Demand exceeds supply, and the dearth of human resources has resulted in increased personnel costs, longer time to market and longer product development cycles.

Chances are, you won't find these highly skilled people in your own backyard. Yet you need them more than ever, now that competition is swooping down faster than business opportunities are taking off. And you realize that without them, your big dreams for a flourishing enterprise could rapidly go up in smoke.
But you don't have to manage all business functions in-house. Outsourcing provides a neat solution to several of your business problems.

25 Reasons Why Outsourcing Makes Business Sense
When you consider the advantages of outsourcing, you'll realize there's a lot to gain by using it as an intrinsic part of your business strategy.

By outsourcing, you can:

1. Reduce overheads, free up resources
2. Avoid capital expenditure
3. Improve efficiency
4. Offload non-core functions
5. Get access to specialized skills
6. Save on manpower and training costs
7. Reduce operating costs
8. Improve speed and service
9. Establish long-term, strategic relationships with world-class service providers to gain a competitive edge
10. Enhance tactical and strategic advantages
11. Focus on strategic thinking, process reengineering and managing trading partner relationships
12. Spread your risks
13. Provide the best quality services, products and people
14. Be reliable and innovative
15. Provide value-added services
16. Increase customer satisfaction
17. Avoid the cost of chasing technology
18. Leverage the provider's extensive investments in technology, methodologies and people
19. Benefit from the provider's expertise in solving problems for a variety of clients with similar requirements.
20. Focus scarce resources on time-critical projects such as application reengineering
21. Obtain needed project management and implementation consulting expertise, along with access to best practices and proven methodologies
22. Reduce the risk of technological obsolescence and increase efficiency by consolidating and centralizing functions
23. Keep pace and minimize the impact of rapid changes in applications and standards
24. Extend the reach to more trading partners quickly and efficiently
25. Reduce the overall IT management burden while retaining control of strategic decision making.

The Outsourcing Institute finds, "Outsourcing is rapidly becoming an accepted management tool for redefining and reenergizing the corporation. It challenges today's executives to rethink the traditional, vertically integrated firm in favor of a more flexible organization structured around core competencies and long-term, outside relationships."

Priorities:

Acquire technology skills	49%
Gain industry expertise	48%
Increase application expertise	38%
Add flexibility/reliability	25%
Improve IT performance	22%
Improve competitive position	13%
Link IT and business strategy	12%
Share risk	10%
Reduce costs	10%

Data: Dataquest survey of 250 IS executives. Source: Information Week
Note: Numbers don't add to 100% because multiple responses were allowed.

Highlights:

• Global giants such as IBM, Microsoft, Novell, Oracle, AT&T, Fujitsu, Motorola, Digital, Hewlett-Packard Philips, General Electric, IBM, Reebok, Fujitsu, British Aerospace, General Motors and Sears are keeping ahead of their rivals thanks to the competitive advantage conferred on them by some of the best software companies in India. You too can benefit immensely from a successful outsourcing strategy.
  
  
• Convergent forces including the increase of technology in the workplace, electronic commerce, enterprise systems and a sharp increase in internet related new entities are resulting in an exponential increased demand for software professionals. The need is further compounded by the lack of trained programmers in developed countries, especially the United States, Western Europe and Japan.
  
  
• Demand exceeds supply, which has led to increased labor costs, longer product development and even longer time to market. A recent Wall Street Journal article related a greater willingness on the part of CIOs to outsource software Development that is not mission critical.
  

• Reduce your marketing and software delivery costs
  
  
• Gain access to global buyer base needing software development
  
  
• Manage your projects online with buyer participation
  
  
• Neutral marketplace with global choices
  
  
• Economies of 24 hour X 7 days a week low-cost software development with access to global consulting firms. For instance, technology today allows global software teams to become commonplace. Numerous software companies today have organized global software development teams to employ the best talent in the world.