Key Steps In Transitioning IT Services Engagements

IT services customers are increasingly realizing that outsourcing engagements are not permanent, but are instead subject to economic, political, and relational pressures that may make them untenable over time. These pressures often result in the decision to transition existing outsourcing contracts to alternative providers. The growing tendency for customers to optimize, segment, and tier their outsourcing supplier portfolios — and either engage or disengage with them based on these evaluations — is a major factor in what Forrester sees as a rising interest in outsourcing transitions. Transitions now represent a substantial amount of the overall deal flow for providers and are a key vector for customers when optimizing their portfolio of partners. This makes the ability to transition successfully a key capability for both providers and customers. Transitioning workloads is similar to the process of the initial transition out, but with key differences, and is ultimately a governance challenge that can be managed successfully if outsourcing clients follow some key steps.