International IT transitions rarely fail because of technology – but rather because of culture, communication and expectations. Setting up tech hubs in India, Poland or Romania can address the shortage of IT specialists, but it also brings complex challenges. How can knowledge be transferred sustainably, employees avoid being overworked and intercultural teams be brought together successfully? Using specific projects, this article shows which success factors really matter – and why genuine collaboration requires more than just tools and processes.
To simplify the reading of this article mainly the term transition is used for both transition and transformation. Transition projects where IT Outsourcing (ITO) providers are switched are highly complex, resource intensive, challenging and risky. Typically, the ITO customer has outsourced the required knowledge to the incumbent provider. The new provider has not yet the required knowledge to provide IT services as needed at the beginning of the transition. Therefore, both parties, the ITO customer and the new provider rely on the support from the incumbent provider.
