Until the global economic downturn of the new millennium, demand for information technology (IT) professionals exceeded supply mostly due to specific skill sets such as integrating legacy applications with Web development, project management, telecommunications, mobile commerce, and enterprise resource planning. More firms are turning externally not only to local vendors but also to services across the globe (Carmel, 1999). Staff supplementation from domestic contractors has evolved to a sophisticated model of partnering with offshore/nearshore software development firms. Many of these relationships evolved from a short-term project need for select skills to a long-term commitment of resources, cultural diversity efforts, and dependencies that integrate vendors as partners.
Why project size matters for contract choice in software development outsourcing
