August 26th, 2004
No 'leaders' in outsourcing says Forrester
Forrester Research says it has cut through the offshore hype in a report, "Low-Cost Global Delivery Model Showdown," which defines the low-cost global delivery model and its requirements, and then evaluates how well the top three U.S. vendors (Accenture, EDS, and IBM) and three largest Indian suppliers (Infosys, TCS, and Wipro) stack up. The verdict? All six vendors scored in the strong contender category but not in the top leaders segment, reflecting the challenges each camp faces in building out its low-cost delivery capabilities. For the Indian suppliers, the challenges focus on areas like improving account management and moving away from technology-centric messages that often alienate business buyers and becoming more multicultural organizations. For the U.S. suppliers, the hurdles include motivating local sales people to sell their capabilities, further investing in consistent global processes, and expanding their offshore technical and quality skill sets. According to Forrester, "What used to be a simple "one-hop" from the U.S. to India, for example, has evolved into a global network of multiple offshore locations that deliver services at even lower costs."
