A large number of significant IT projects are carried out by third parties. Many are less than stellar successes. Some take too long, cost too much or are abandoned before completion. Others are completed successfully by the vendor, but fail to deliver the expected outcome. While the rate of IT project failures is too high, outsourced projects suffer increased risks. When organizations give responsibility to a third party they too often abdicate many of the responsibilities that they should retain.
Challenges Affect a Broad Range of Initiatives
Consider the development of a new software application or the construction of a new datacenter. The organization has a need for expanded capability. But it does not have the internal expertise or capacity to carry out such a project. So IT management assigns responsibility for the project to a professional firm who is expected (and hopefully formally contracted) to do the work. Once the supplier has been selected and a contract signed, two factors will affect the likelihood of success. First, adequate attention paid to vendor management will directly improve the quality, timing and cost of the vendor's contribution. But equally important, success depends on adequate attention paid to preparing the organization for the required business and technical transformation.
