7 main 2015 trends: where is it outsourcing moving?

What will happen to IT outsourcing market in 2015? How will it change, where is it moving and what awaits its customers? These issues become the most vital given today’s difficult geopolitical situation and high economic risks.We have analyzed the opinions of experts and came up with some interesting results:

1. The world market of IT outsourcing is on the rise

The world market of IT outsourcing, despite the difficult economic situation, continues to grow. Its dynamics is based on active development of technology and growing expectations of customers. According to Gartner research firm, expenses on IT outsourcing will grow until 2018, the growth will slow down in 2015 but it will still amount to an average of 4.5%. The expense focus will shift from the world market traditional IT outsourcing services, such as data center and enterprise information system support, towards new ones — standardized and industry offers, including cloud services.

2. IT outsourcing market in Russia will grow

As for the Russian indicators, they follow the world trends. By the end of the 4th quarter of 2014 the growth of IT outsourcing market in our country amounted to 4% (according to IDC). Although Russian consumers have started to use IT outsourcing only recently, customers will continue to take an active interest in such services. IT infrastructure outsource support will show a particularly large increase. Having started with simple technical functions, market customers are now becoming more experienced, they are slowly but surely moving to more difficult and complex tasks. Service Level Agreement (SLA) that meets the business requirements is becoming a key factor while concluding a contract.

3. Development rates of the Russian IT outsourcing will outpace the world ones

Russian IT outsourcing market in 2015 will be in its infancy. However, there is a belief that we will pass this stage faster than the United States and Europe. Oddly enough, crisis in the country’s economy, which forces companies to optimize expenses, including IT ones, can contribute to this. In turn, one of the possibilities that IT outsourcing provides is the saving of resources, both financial and human. Besides, today IT outsourcing companies can rely on the best international practices and processes. All of this will not only allow raising the level of maturity of customers and outsourcing companies much faster and more efficient but will also contribute to the end of the crisis by reducing expenses and ensuring a stable pace of company development.

4. Outsourcing can assist in import substitution

The possibility that difficult geopolitical situation in Russia will remain, the associated risks of information system security or management incidents and the refusal of foreign producers to provide or support their products will force Russian companies to think about ways to reduce the dependence on intellectual and product private property and minimize the risks. Outsourcing and import substitution aimed at replacing proprietary products with Russian alternatives can help overcome such challenges.

As the director of ICL Services Sergei Solovyov notes, the implementation of import substitution programs will surely increase the share of Russian solutions and services in the field information technology, though currently, however, not nearly all types of information products and systems can be effectively replaced by Russian products. «Open source products can fill this gap without creating new risks for business. Here the role of a professional outsourcer and consultant experienced in implementation, configuration and maintenance of a wide variety of products becomes decisive for the success of import substitution with open technologies,» — says Sergei Solovyov.

5. Customers will become more experienced and confident in complex projects

IT outsourcing is a two-way street and effective transfer to it is largely a question of maturity of a company, which, of course, will discover new practices and gain experience in outsourcing projects in 2015. At the same time, customers also continuously develop their competence in management, including outsourcing relationships, they become more experienced and try to achieve the maximum benefit from working with an outsourcer.

6. IT outsourcing will become more specialized

Cloud computing that distracts customers from traditional outsourcing companies, uncertainty of new IT outsourcing companies in the economical state of the countries they operate in, as well as conclusion and extension of only the most profitable contracts — all of this will inhibit the growth of IT outsourcing market in 2015. In this context, IT outsourcing will choose a sectoral, specialized way and the services offered will mainly transform into low-cost service and digital technology support (social, mobile and cloud.)

7. Benefits of outsource performers are becoming more evident

Despite many economic and geopolitical difficulties Russian IT outsourcing market will continue to grow. It will allow companies to find new opportunities and implement structural and strategic business transformation.

«The segment of IT outsourcing is one of the most promising areas of Russian IT market. We assume that the interest in basic standard IT outsourcing services will rise in 2015, — says Sergey Solovyov. — In connection with this we expect system integrators to enter IT outsourcing market, the range of services offered and the flexibility of contracts will increase. As for the difficulties, the main one will be to keep highly qualified maintenance personnel for non-core company functions.»