Lessons Learned from Global Information Technology Offshoring: Client and Vendor Perspectives

Achieving success in global information technology (IT) sourcing or offshoring projects is a significant, emerging challenge for many organizations. In following the Global Sourcing Life cycle, the ongoing management cycle of the global sourcing relationship is a critical stage for managing the project and successfully achieving the contracted results. Success in this stage requires a significant amount of detailed management, cooperation, and coordination among the client and vendor organizations. This chapter synthesizes key findings from eight dyadic case studies consisting of 56 interviews in total from both client and vendor firms detailing their IT offshoring ongoing management experiences. The case investigations lead to the discovery of 12 disparate and innovative lessons learned emerging from the experiences and challenges involved with global IT offshoring on the part of client and vendor firms. These lessons learned cover a wide assortment of personal (individual), and organizational issues encountered while offshoring. Accordingly, the lessons learned are organized into three main categories: (1) economic, (2) strategic, and (3) relational. The presented lessons learned play a key role in the ongoing management stage of the Global Sourcing Life cycle. The list of lessons learned can suitably guide client and vendor firms in their plans to engage in successful IT offshoring projects in the future.