Foundations for measuring IT-outsourcing success and failure
Abstract We implemented five easy-to-complete questionnaires in Excel, which could serve as early warning signals for practitioners interested in the odds of their IT-outsourcing deals and could serve to redirect their course when still possible. The questionnaires are based on our earlier published longitudinal, observational study on 30 representative ITO-deals in the Netherlands, of which we know whether they failed or not. Our questionnaires predicted their outcome correctly. To help redirect the course of a dubious deal, we developed a questionnaire estimating the odds in relation to boosting strongly significant critical success determinants. Another questionnaire guides practitioners how to further improve on less critical factors. There are no specific reasons that limit our results to the Dutch situation, which makes it promising, therefore, to apply the Excel as an aid in improving ITO deals in other contexts.