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IT Outsourcing E
Past, Present, and
By Jae-Nam Lee, Minh Q. Huynh,
Ron Chi-Wai Kwok, and Shih-Ming Pi
To achieve complex solutions in
the rapidly changing world of
e-commerce, it is impossible to
go it alone. This explains
the latest trend in IT outsourcing—
global and partner-based alliances.
But where do we go from here?
Year
Outsourcing Focus
1960s
Hardware
1970s
Software
1980s
Hardware and Software
Standardization
1990s
Total Solution
60s
Hardware
84
May 2003/Vol. 46, No. 5 COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM
70s
Software
In recent years, headlines have touted successful
partnerships like that between CD-Max Enterprises and NetCreations, Inc., which helped turn
email list sales into a lucrative business, and
blazed the trail for the coming of email list advertising. CD-Max Enterprises was a two-person
business specializing in CD-ROM development
when it spotted the gold mine in email lists and
teamed up with NetCreations, Inc., an email
direct marketing company, to capitalize on this
opportunity. This new form of tightly coupled
partnership, which combines innovative ideas
with know-how expertise through outsourcing, is
upping the ante of
e-commerce competiOutsourcing Approach
tiveness. IT outsourcServices and Facility Management
ing has long played an
Facility or Operation Management
important role in the
Customization Management
field, yet outsourcing
trends are little underAsset Management
stood. In this article, we
80s
90s
attempt to sort through
Standardization
Total Solution the rich volume of outsourcing research literaFigure 1. Timeline of the ture for patterns and
outsourcing trend. relationships that help
make sense of past, present, and future trends of IT outsourcing.
As the timeline in Figure 1 illustrates, IT outsourcing is not a new phenomenon; it originated
from the professional services and facility management services in the financial and operation support areas during the 1960s and 1970s [7]. In the
1960s, the use of external vendors was confined to
time-sharing or processing services. Since computers were large and expensive, most companies
volution—
Future
relied on service bureaus, sysThe choice between internally
tems houses, and other profesdeveloped technology and
its external acquisition
sional firms to provide facilities
The impact of outsourcing;
The benefit and risk of
Make
management services. The
outsourcing
or
Degree of outsourcing;
1970s marked the beginning of
Buy
Period of outsourcing;
the standard application packNumber of vendors;
Motivation
Outsourcing types
age concept. To overcome the
increasing demand for IT
User and business satisfaction;
Scope
Service quality; Cost reduction
applications and the inadequate
Kodak's
Trade-off between
Effects
supply of IT personnel, mancontingent factors
Performance
in outsourcing
agers began to rely on contract
Well-designed contract
Kodak Outsourcing
Insurance
to reduce unexpected
programming, which became
Decision in 1989
or
contingencies
Outsource
the predominant form of outsourcing during the 1970s.
Contracts
(formal)
Then came the rapid decline of
Partnership
some processing services from
Key factors for outsourcing (Informal)
partnership; Effective way
the end of the 1970s, which
for building partnership
can be seen in historical
perspective as an early manifesInterest in outsourcing resurfaced in the early
Figure 2. The
evolution
of
tation of technological down1990s, not for contract programming and specific
outsourcing issues. processing services, but for network and telecomsizing. The arrival of low-cost
minicomputers and then PCs
munication management, distributed systems
also hit the processing services business at the integration, application development, and sysbeginning of the 1980s.
tems operations. While the data processing service
By the time the focus shifted to IT-supported bureaus of the 1960s provided service from an offvertical integration in the 1980s [7], the out- site location, the outsourcing vendors of the
sourcing trend of the 1970s had lost steam. Con- 1990s aggressively targeted onsite facilities mantrolling the product-development cycle from raw agement. IT personnel were shifted from the cusmaterials through product delivery grew in tomer to the vendor, with some vendors
importance, and IT was now considered a valued purchasing customers’ mainframe hardware and
in-house function. Organizations generally oper- managing client services onsite. System integraated their information systems environment on a tion was another popular outsourcing segment in
custom basis, buying standard equipment, system the 1990s and involved highly complex technoland application software, and communications, ogy, including network management and
and assembling them into an infrastructure telecommunications, along with associated educaunique to each organization.
tion and training.
COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM May 2003/Vol. 46, No. 5
85
Keeping Up With Changes in Practice
When tracing the outsourcing issues over the past
three decades, we noted that, like moving targets,
research issues had shifted over time [7]. These shifts
were not random but reflected changes in practice. By
synthesizing past outsourcing research according to
issues, we attempt to establish a critical link between
the literature and the evolution of IT outsourcing, as
illustrated in Figure 2.
Early outsourcing research
centered on acquisition [1].
Organizations considered outsourcing a commodity and
focused on the make-or-buy decision between internally and
externally developed technology.
<Step 3>
However, with Kodak’s 1989 outPartnership
Performance
sourcing decision, the number of
outsourcing contracts surged,
and outsourcing emerged as a key
method of managing information
systems [9].
Diverse
solutions
The next issue concerned the
(e.g., ASP)
motivation to outsource, with
proponents claiming outsourcing
<Step 2>
resulted in significant cost reducPartnership
scope
tion, effective use of human
resources, higher capacity on
demand, and better access to
advanced technologies. Critics
noted the critical risks of outFigure 3. The
two-stage model of
sourcing, including potential loss
IT outsourcing.
of control, flexibility, qualified
personnel, and competitive
advantage in information management. These discourses focused on the impact, as well as the benefits
and risks of outsourcing [3].
As outsourcing grew in popularity, debates shifted
from whether or not to outsource to how much to
outsource [4]. Concerns during this stage of outsourcing evolution included whether outsourcing
should be total or selective, service or asset, long or
short term, and involve single or multiple vendors.
Despite its popularity, no research could determine
the exact recipe for effective outsourcing performance
[8]. Measures, such as efficiency, user and business
satisfaction, service quality, and cost reduction were
used for assessment in many studies, but a comparison of these studies revealed multiple and conflicting
results. Also, performance measures were often not
generalizable, since they depended on the specific
nature of the outsourcing projects.
The next step in outsourcing evolution involved a
backlash of sorts, in which the virtues of insourcing ver86
May 2003/Vol. 46, No. 5 COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM
sus outsourcing were debated [5]. Despite many outsourcing success stories, a number of studies reported
that outsourcing did not always yield desired outcomes,
and, moreover, insourcing sometimes yielded more
benefits. Overall, it was difficult to decisively champion
one option over the other, since past studies and actual
cases demonstrated that outsourcing decisions were a
trade-off between many contingent factors.
<Step 4>
Partnership
or Not
Make
or
Buy
Int
viewegrat
poi ive
nt
Str
Eco ategic
Soc nomi viewp
ial v c vie oin
iew wp t
poi oin
t
nt
Motivation
<Step 5>
Partnership
Contracts
Scope
Kodak's
Effects
Limited
solutions
1st
Stage
Performance
Insurance
or
Outsource
Self interest
Client-centered view
Hierarchical relationship
Win-lose strategy
Mutual interest
Partnership view
Equal relationship
Win-win strategy
2nd
Stage
Contracts
(formal)
Partnership
(Informal)
<Step 1>
Partnership
Motivation
Despite its critics, outsourcing was enmeshed into
most organizational strategic plans, and the contract
specifying the relationship between outsourcing
providers and their clients emerged as a centerpiece
issue [10]. Outsourcing contracts were often complex, with multiple clauses aimed at reducing unexpected contingencies, possible cost increases, and
opportunistic service provider behavior. But it was
impossible to spell out every possible scenario in a
contract, and client-provider interactions often went
beyond rules, agreements, and exceptions—they also
rested on trust, commitment, and mutual interest.
Because these intangible elements were not easily
captured in the contract, a closer relationship between
clients and their service providers emerged, known as
partner-based outsourcing [11]. Many organizations
sought this type of flexible partnership with their service providers after identifying the limitations of legal
contracts. Consequently, an effective partnership
became known as a key predictor of outsourcing success [6]. The table here summarizes the changes in
outsourcing issues along with theories from the literature (see [7] for a comprehensive listing of refer-
ences). This linkage lays the foundation for our proposed two-stage model presented in the next section.
Strategic
Perspective
a much greater range and depth of services than in the
past, with an increasing number of IT functions being
transferred to IT service providers. In some cases, even
The Two-Stage Model
IT personnel are part of the transaction. This reverse
Our two-stage model, illustrated in Figure 3, assigns flow of IT resources indicates a much more proactive
at all developments before the evolution of partner- role by today’s service providers, who assume more risk
ship-based outsourcing as stage one, and partnerand investment than their counterparts in the past.
ship-based outsourcing itself as stage two. This
The acceptance of strategic alliances among business partners is good evidence for
the growing popularity of partOutsourcing issue
ner-based outsourcing [6]. In the
Driving Motto
Driving Theory
From
To
early stages of outsourcing, from
Resource-based theory
Activities should be performed either
Make-or-Buy
Motivation
Core competencies theory
in house or by suppliers.
the 1960s through the early
1980s, a client normally dictated
Motivation
Scope
Resource dependency theory Achieving efficiency depends on
(options)
Transaction cost theory
balancing the risks and benefits.
projects, with control and ownerNo
one
can
assure
an
effective
ship clearly spelled out in a hierScope
Performance
performance regardless of selected
Coordination theory
(options)
archical relationship. What was
options.
best for the client might not necHow do we know an outside vendor
Performance
Insourcing/
Economic efficiency theory
essarily be best for the service
is
more
efficient
than
internal
Outsourcing Power-political theory
functions?
providers. We characterize the
Agency-cost theory
We no longer produce for ourselves
Insourcing/
Contract
first stage of IT outsourcing evoSocial contract theory
everthing we need to thrive.
Outsourcing
lution as driven by client selfThe acquisition of services or
interest, shaped by a hierarchical
products is through continuous
Contract
Partnership Social exchange theory
interactions between the parties
relationship and dictated by a
based on mutual benefit.
win-lose strategy.
During the second stage of IT
Table 1. The driving
conceptual model helps illustrate how global and
outsourcing, marking the begintheories behind
the evolution of
partner-based alliances evolved from the client-cennings of the partnership concept,
outsourcing issues.
tered view of outsourcing, and how outsourcing
organizations begin to realize the
may be transformed in the era
strategic advanof e-commerce.
tage not just in
Eco
For the sake of simplicity, our
owning IT but in
n
Per om
l
spe ic
cia ctive
o
proposed model assumes symmeusing it in specific
S
ctiv
spe
e
Per
Integrative
try between the past and future
ways. At this
View of IT
and the exclusion of the time
stage, managers
How to explain the reason
How to produce goods
Outsourcing
why organizations enter
and services in order to
dimension. The model is based
tend to be more
into closer relationship
achieve the economics
on our ideas in Figure 2 and is
interested in IT’s
with their service providers
of scale
extended to include the idea of
impact on effipartnership in Figure 3. The conciency and effecHow to get and sustain a
tinually changing nature of IT
tiveness than in
competitive advantage
outsourcing and subsequent parthe
technical
by acquiring the valued
resources from outside
adigm shifts complicate the prosuperiority
of
jection of future trends, but
their organizamany changes reflect a symmetry of sorts between the Figure 4. An integrative tional IT infrastructure [11]. As
past and future. For instance, in the past, small com- view of IT outsourcing. the extent and scope of outsourcpanies with problematic and mismanaged IT departing projects increase during this
ments were major outsourcing clients. Yet a recent stage, service providers begin to take on management
outsourcing trend involves an increasing number of responsibility and risk [6], eventually joining clients as
large firms with mature IT departments. In this case, stakeholders in the process. Mutual trust characterizes
seeing the symmetry of the past with the present the second stage, rather than the pursuit of self-interest,
enables us to make a better sense of what is emerging. as organizations recognize the mutual-exchange relaA contributing factor to the emergence of partner- tionship in the long term is a win-win for them, and
based outsourcing includes the growth of outsourcing competitive advantage is to be gained through developover time. Today’s IT outsourcing frequently involves ing and sustaining high-quality partnerships.
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A strong alliance with a capable ASP allows a firm to
leverage a key part of the value chain to create new business opportunities.
Maximizing such a tightly coupled partnership requires the integration
of the strategic, economic, and social perspectives.
Outsourcing in the second stage is no longer viewed per-user fees. Its core concept, based on providing
only as a strategic management issue, a commodity, or software as a service driven by the Internet, enables
a social relation, but rather encompasses all of these software and IT infrastructure markets to converge.
perspectives. This integrative viewpoint allows compa- Typical services provided by ASPs are packaged softnies to minimize the limitations [7] of one-dimen- ware applications developed by independent software
sional views of outsourcing. For example, the strategic vendors; systems implementation and integration
view (involving resource-dependency, core competen- offered by systems integrators; data centers and concies, and coordination theonectivity from hosting
ries) focuses on competitive
companies, hardware
Independent
Hardware Vendors
Software Vendors
Compaq,
advantage, without considvendors, and telecomDell,
i2, Logility,
ering how relationships
munication providers;
HP,
Oracle, PeopleSoft,
IBM
SAP, Siebel
between an organization
application monitorAgillion.
eALITY,
and its external environment
ing and ongoing
AristaSoft,
ebaseOne,
Pure-Play
Breakaway/Eggrock,
Qwest
Cyber.
Solutions
are managed. Similarly,
support from consultCorio
TriZetto,
ASPs
while the economic view
ing firms; and ongoCritical Path,
Usintemetworking,
(involving transaction cost,
ing support from
Network Providers
Systems Integrators
CLEOs,
Big 5,
economic efficiency, and
systems integrators or
Digex,
Ciber,
agency cost theories) stresses
independent software
Exodus,
Metamor,
ISPs, Telcos
Technology Solutions
cost efficiency, it fails to convendors.
sider other important enviFaster time to marronmental, structural, and
ket, IT expertise, ease
strategic factors that affect an organization. Although Figure 5. The classification of the of use, and lower cost
the social view (involved with political, social contract, ASP players.
make ASPs attractive,
and social exchange theories) provides meaningful
but potential drawimplications and suggests frameworks for analysis of backs also exist. ASP system failure can shut down
partnership relationship, it fails to explain why a large critical operations and result in a major loss of client
percentage of partnerships do not succeed.
productivity. Also, system incompatibility can comOperating from the integrative viewpoint in Figure plicate the integration between the client and its ASP,
4, companies benefit from the mutual trust of the and system security and trust issues can complicate
social view, the cost efficiency of the economic view, the sharing of important data between the client and
and the competitive gain of the strategic management its ASP.
view of IT outsourcing, while minimizing the limitaFigure 5 outlines a number of major service
tions of each view. The integrative view provides providers, including several ASPs. Before choosing an
deeper insight into the roles of partnerships among ASP service, one needs to recognize the ASP model is
organizations and the determinants of various part- the synthesis of several products and services, such as
nership practices. To achieve complex solutions in software, connectivity, Web hosting, hardware, systoday’s rapidly changing world, it is impossible to do tems integration, network and application monitorall alone. Partnering in the computer-solutions indus- ing, and extended support and help desk.
try is now becoming prevalent and is an integral part
A strong alliance with a capable ASP allows a firm
of new and diverse Internet solutions, such as appli- to leverage a key part of the value chain to create new
cation service providers (ASPs).
business opportunities. Maximizing such a tightly
coupled partnership requires the integration of the
ASP: The Future of Outsourcing
strategic, economic, and social perspectives. StrategiAmong the new ideas for outsourcing in the era of cally, the competitive position of an ASP partner
e-commerce is the ASP, a company that offers the depends on its ability to acquire valuable resources
deployment and management of applications via the important to production and distribution, without
Internet or a private network based on monthly or substantial investment [2]. From the economic view88
May 2003/Vol. 46, No. 5 COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM
point, ASPs achieve cost efficiency by retaining goods
and services for specialized organizations and maximizing expertise and economies of scale. From the
social perspective, since partnering with an ASP
involves exchanging valuable resources, this relationship requires mutual trust rather than the sole pursuit
of self-interest.
growth come from revision and refinement.
• Prepare for the unexpected. Try to identify potential problems by playing out what-if scenarios and
discussing options.
• Nurture the relationship. Like any relationship, a
successful partnership requires continual maintenance to increase its value. c
Conclusion
References
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values. Once the best-suited partner is identified, the
following eight pointers can help achieve a productive Jae-Nam Lee (isjnlee@cityu.edu.hk) is an assistant professor in
the Department of Information Systems at the City University of
partner relationship.
Hong Kong.
• Understand each other’s business. Strive toward a
shared understanding of important goals and
policies.
• Set short- and long-term goals. Prioritize to accomplish intermediate goals without losing the longterm focus.
• Define realistic expectations clearly. Set reasonable
expectations and anticipate a learning curve. No
partnership is perfect on the first day.
• Share benefits and risks. Establish explicit articulation and agreement upon the benefits and risks.
Good performance should be rewarded, while a
bad situation should be addressed together.
• Develop performance standards. Define, agree, and
communicate clear and measurable standards of
performance.
• Expect changes and revisions. Improvement and
Minh Q. Huynh (mqhuynh@vancouver.wsu.edu) is an assistant
professor in the Department of Business and Economics at Washington
State University in Vancouver, WA.
Ron Chi-Wai Kwok (isron@cityu.edu.hk) is an assistant professor
in the Department of Information Systems at the City University of
Hong Kong.
Shih-Ming Pi (smpi@mis.cycu.edu.tw) is an assistant professor in
the Department of Management Information Systems at the Chung
Yuan Christian University in Taiwan.
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