A continuing business trend towards outsourcing has created a greater dependence on vendors. Less control over IT-related functions represents increased risk as even essential activities such as data backup or storage, Web site and application support, and helpdesk are now commonly performed externally. When a vendor's performance slips, the enterprise has little choice but to step in and mitigate potential damage, but contract termination, as a rule, should be a last resort.
Escalate, Renegotiate Before Terminating
Both the vendor and enterprise can each make gains without the other party suffering a loss. If problems arise, the enterprise must first go through the following steps.
