Lancet Worldwide Outsourcing News

Selection of the Right Vendor and Establishment of Point of Accountability in Software Outsourcing

It makes good sense for any corporation, outsourcing a software development assignment, to have their specially selected “stay back team” monitoring closely the outsourced project. The team or an individual, in certain cases, usually based on project size, are then the pivotal points of accountability for the outcomes of outsourcing when it comes to assessing the progress of the software development cycle. This strategy eliminates the cumbersome process of evaluating the project and measuring its progress by relying on disparate groups for their assessment. It becomes the responsibility of the “stay back team” or individual to give the honest report—good or bad-- as the project moves on. When any lapses and potential problem areas are visible they can then be corrected before they grow into insurmountable problems.

But such a model, while both effective and efficient, is not practical for many corporations, especially the smaller ones. This could be because of lack of resources, finances and availability of appropriately trained staff members to design such a model.

So what does a corporation do when a “stay back team” or a specially assigned and qualified person is too much of a luxury to afford?

The answer lies in finding a vendor through a qualified business entity that has experience in handling outsourcing projects and making sure it offers the services of their in-house representative to dedicate her to the project. The key is to have a qualified individual assigned to this job who acts as a conduit between the vendor and your business. You will need to make sure that this person will be responsible for the accountability of the project and will be ready to freely communicate with your business. In addition, you should arrange for this person to apprise you of the progress of the project at crucial intervals and help you assess the progress at pre-set milestones outlined in the methodology of the scope of the project.

Lancet Worldwide, Akbar Burney - Technical Outsourcing Consultant

Published Sun, 28 Oct 2007 20:57:10 -0400

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