For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Top Strategies To Ensure Continued Value From Offshore Services

by Sudin Apte, November 4, 2009

The vast majority of clients renegotiated rates in the past 12 months as a way to lower costs. However, this option isn't open to advanced offshore users that have already moved away from rate-card-based pricing, leaving these firms to ask what they can . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

European Offshoring Shows Moderate Growth

by Sudin Apte, October 28, 2009

Offshoring of IT jobs from Europe shows signs of slow growth as firms try to cut costs. While the percentage of IT services that go offshore — especially from the non-UK market — is very small, Forrester's Enterprise IT Services Survey, North America . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Why Do You Need Tier Two Providers? (And You Do Need Them!)

Understanding The Specialization Value Tier Two Providers Can Offer

by Sudin Apte, September 8, 2009

Many clients today are looking to add one or two midsize IT service providers to their current portfolios of top offshore companies. But the offshore midmarket is full of confusion — it includes a crowd of 300-plus players, and almost 90% of them look . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Evaluating Satyam's New Avatar — Mahindra Satyam

by Sudin Apte, July 31, 2009

With Tech Mahindra emerging as the winning bidder, uncertainty about Satyam's ownership ends. While investigation of financial irregularities and criminal proceedings against the founder will continue for several years to come, the company moves on to . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Trends That Will Reshape R&D Post-Recession

Sourcing Professionals Need To Prepare For Global Design Services

by Sudin Apte, July 23, 2009

Product development is poised to undergo huge changes in the next two years. From headquarters-centric R&D centers, firms will instead globally distribute their R&D structure to more effectively enter new geographic markets. To sell in local markets, . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Will Your Offshore Provider Survive The Recession?

by Sudin Apte, July 23, 2009

Most offshore players are facing rough business weather for the first time. In the 20 years since the inception of the industry, Indian players have seen only growth; even since the beginning of the recession, they are only now facing serious challenges . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Assessing Your Offshore IT Service Provider's Recession Readiness  (66 KB XLS)

by Sudin Apte, July 10, 2009

This test checks the health of your offshore IT service provider by asking a total of 20 questions on 10 topics or key issues. Some questions check for symptoms that the provider is struggling, and others look at the provider's strategy to fight the recession. . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Offshore Negotiation Toolkit: Ammunition To Help Sourcing Teams Cut Rates And Mitigate Risks  (1.2 MB PPT)

by Sudin Apte, April 8, 2009

- Top questions about offshore rates - Five reasons why your offshore providers can cut billing rates - Understanding risks of low rates and providers’ current initiatives to cut costs

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Satyam Uncertainty: Phase 2

Clients Need To Prepare For Diverse Takeover Options

by Sudin Apte, April 3, 2009

While Satyam's new management has achieved some respite by arranging a small kitty of funds to solve the firm's day-to-day problems and bring some stability, it's now clear that the firm will likely be sold in the coming weeks or months. However, this . . .

For Vendor Strategy Professionals

What The Events At Satyam Mean For IT Service Providers

by Chris Andrews, Sudin Apte, January 26, 2009

In early January, Satyam sent shock waves across the IT services industry when its founder, B. Ramalinga Raju, revealed that he was responsible for deep accounting irregularities at the company. While the full extent of the fraud is still unknown, the . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Can Your Offshore Providers Deliver Business Innovation?

Understanding IT Service Innovation Categories And Benefits

by Sudin Apte, January 23, 2009

Wide gaps exist between what clients call innovation and what their service providers are building. Most clients want their suppliers to deliver value in their customer-facing, business-impacting work. But offshore providers still focus mainly on cost-saving . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Back To Basics: Why IT Leasing Makes Sense In The Economic Meltdown

Capital Conservation And Sustainability Raise Leasing's Attractiveness

by Sudin Apte, January 13, 2009

With the conflicting issues of tightening budgets and high business demand for more technology, sourcing professionals and their finance department colleagues are looking at financing options such as leases or loans to fund their IT purchases. With limited . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Satyam's Fraud Leaves Clients In The Lurch

Chairman Admits To Massive Financial Fraud; Customers Have To Assess Options And Exposure

by Sudin Apte, John C. McCarthy, January 8, 2009

On January 7, 2009, Satyam's chairman and founder, B. Ramalinga Raju, tendered his resignation and took responsibility for years of financial fraud. The scale of the fraud in terms of the overstatement of revenue, profit, and cash on hand is significant. . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Satyam's Diversification Failure

Management And Governance Miscues Could Have Long-Term Impact

by Stephanie Moore, Sudin Apte, John C. McCarthy, December 30, 2008

Earlier in December, Satyam's management team made a major miscalculation that will likely haunt the company for years. The firm announced — and then quickly canceled after a shareholder revolt — plans to diversify its business and acquire 100% and 51% . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Evaluating An Offshore Provider's Cultural Compatibility

Mere Offshore Scale And A Few Onsite Bodies Will Not Build The Right Match

by Sudin Apte, October 30, 2008

Economic and competitive pressures are compelling many continental European firms to send work offshore — but this increased interest is not converting to growth in offshore yet. Why? Despite offshore suppliers building local presence to compliment their . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Sourcing In The Shadow Of Terrorism

Firms Need To Audit Their Suppliers' Security And Business Continuity Plans

by Sudin Apte, John C. McCarthy, October 10, 2008

Over the past six months, there has been a steady increase in the number of terrorist attacks in India. Over time, continued political turmoil may force more firms to implement an "India Plus One" offshore sourcing strategy. However, in the short term, . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Debunking The Offshore Product Innovation Illusion

High-Tech Product Firms Underuse The Indian Product Design Opportunity

by Sudin Apte, September 12, 2008

Despite the well-established trend to offshore work to India, most high-tech product companies' India development centers (IDCs) or captive facilities neither live up to global product development hype nor deliver proven offshore benefits. Most technology . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Infosys Acquires Axon To Bolster Its High-End SAP Capabilities

Onshore Resources Strengthen Infosys' Global Delivery Capability

by Sudin Apte, Stephanie Moore, September 11, 2008

Infosys Technologies recently announced that it has agreed to acquire UK-based SAP consulting and business transformation boutique, Axon Group. Infosys will pay £407.1 million — approximately $753.1 million — in a deal that should be complete by November . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Evaluating Your Service Provider's Packaged Intellectual Property

Ten Criteria To Evaluate Service Providers' Solution Accelerators

by Sudin Apte, August 11, 2008

In today's tough economic situation, most clients are looking for ways to cut costs while at the same time deploying projects faster. In an attempt to drive faster, less expensive solutions for clients, leading service providers have started building . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Surviving The Offshore Vendor Polarization Puzzle

Guidelines For Selecting Between India's Highly Divergent Service Providers

by Sudin Apte, August 5, 2008

Polarization between the offshore providers in India is tightening. Fast growing and enviably profitable, India's top three providers — Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), and Wipro — now drive almost half of India's total IT services exports by . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Vendor Polarization Survival Strategy Evaluation  (139 KB XLS)

by Sudin Apte, July 25, 2008

Forrester has designed this vendor polarization survival test for assessing evolving supplier marginalization. It covers two broad areas - corporate and operational readiness - with a list of 20 criteria to evaluate the situation of each provider. The . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Outsourced Product Development Vendor Selection Tool   (50 KB XLS)

by Sudin Apte, July 24, 2008

Forrester has received many questions about the offshore product development marketplace and vendor evaluation criteria. But, as in other markets, one size does not fit all. In order to sort through the number of outsourced product development (OPD) providers . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Understanding The Captive Life Cycle

Captive-Center Behavior Follows A Four-Stage Evolution

by Sudin Apte, April 22, 2008

Debate still rages regarding the success of offshore captive centers. But many firms that previously believed in the captive approach changed sides in the debate — having a change of heart and scouting for third-party providers and even selling off their . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Offshoring Strategies For Continental European Firms

by Sudin Apte, April 7, 2008

Recently Forrester spoke with more than 20 pan-European firms about their growing offshore activity. In addition, we interviewed a combination of Indian, pan-European, and American service providers to understand whether they can offer a blend of Europe-specific . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Selecting The Right Offshore Product Development Provider For Your Goals

Targeted Questions Help Separate Strategic Providers From The Crowd

by Sudin Apte, April 4, 2008

Forrester has received many questions about the offshore product development marketplace. But, as in other markets, one size does not fit all. First sourcing and vendor management professionals must understand what levels of value are possible. With that . . .