A growing number of Australian companies which outsource software development no longer do so just to find suitably qualified or cheaper labor.
Those with market-leading information systems are outsourcing to ensure the best return on their intellectual capital according to Mike Page, Mitrais' vice president of software development.
He was commenting on the publication by Mitrais of guidelines for managing outsourcing as well as of a white paper on the benefits of collecting project metrics.
With Mitrais providing outsourced development services to Australian companies for nearly nine years outsourcers are increasingly sophisticated in their management of the services provider, says Mr. Page.
“They want to know more about how best to enjoy the cost advantages while managing a pool of appropriately skilled software engineers in an increasingly borderless world.
“Outsourcing is now more about keeping the technical visionaries who chart the next version of software motivated and leveraging their experience and skill to ensure their jobs are richer and more interesting,” he said.
There is a growing number of small to medium and even some large enterprises in Australia whose future is predicated on developing and delivering software applications that are recognised leaders in market sectors from finance to the management of large scale infrastructure in the public and private arenas.
Mr. Page says a typical example of a small company that has outsourced the development of software products and ongoing technical support to Mitrais is Incom, a provider of risk management software systems to industry leaders in Australia and internationally.
At the bigger end of town are companies like Technology One and Mincom said Mr. Page.
A 20 year veteran of the software development sector in Australia before he took up his present position in 2007 he says if the economic motivation for outsourcing has changed from ‘let’s replace my guys with your guys and save some money’ so too have the management processes and practices which select and oversee external development resources.
“Australian management is increasingly more sophisticated in terms of its expectations of outsourced providers of software development services. It rightfully subjects potential outsourced service providers to detailed scrutiny about the skills they have, their project management processes and the reporting mechanisms.
“They are asking about the competencies of systems engineers, their communications skills and what sort of standards underpin project development and management. Growing attention is also being paid to the collection of project metrics as well as to post project reviews.”
Click here to for the copies of Mitrais ‘guidelines to managing outsourcing’ and ‘metrics and project post mortem analysis'.