The supply‐side of IT outsourcing: the trend towards mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures

Explores the supply‐side of the global IT outsourcing marketplace. Argues that companies should seek to understand the strategic positioning of IT suppliers. In recent years, the large IT service providers have made inroads into new vertical markets from health care to e‐commerce. They have also expanded their service offerings to include business process outsourcing (BPO), customer relationship management (CRM) and e‐business. Explores some of these changes and presents a conceptual framework which captures some of the dynamic changes in the software and computing services industry. These involve mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures and partnering.