Minefield? Or Greenfield? Challenges and Opportunities for Mid-Tier Sourcing Clients

ISG research shows that mid-size organizations are increasingly turning to outsourcing IT systems and business processes to reduce costs, increase organizational agility and focus on core competencies. In other words, they outsource for the same reasons that their larger, global business counterparts do. 

As relative newcomers to the sourcing marketplace, mid-tier businesses can potentially benefit from the experiences of more mature sourcing organizations – by adopting established best practices, by leapfrogging to new technologies, and by avoiding mistakes of the past. That said, businesses with limited outsourcing experience often don’t know what they don’t know, and remain vulnerable to the pitfalls inherent in negotiating sourcing contracts and managing relationships.

This ISG white paper, coauthored by my colleague Stanton Jones, assesses recent trends in the mid-tier sourcing marketplace, and basic considerations faced by buyer organizations with differing levels of outsourcing experience. Risks and opportunities are discussed, and potential sourcing strategy options and key success factors are outlined.