Managers don’t all look for the same thing from an IT services company that they hire, but many fundamental needs remain relatively uniform. Krishnamohan “Kris” Nayak of Lucent Technologies says that the two most important factors he takes into account when hiring an IT services firm are the quality of the people they will use to work on his project, and the firm’s ability to complete projects on schedule. This is a vision echoed by almost any customer of a services firm.
But there are specific motivations. Nayak’s use of an Indian IT services company, in this case TCS, seems to be primarily an attempt to leverage Indian IT in the most efficient way possible. For Nayak, doing work in India needs to be well-planned because outsourcing raises concerns such as intellectual property issues. He explains that Lucent researched half a dozen companies doing business offshore to determine what the best approach would be. In the end, they chose to partner with IT services firms.

“There is no need to have a presence in India if you can get it all done by someone who is stable and capable of delivering quality solutions at a competitive price,” says Nayak.

So how is a given project executed? “The consultants we hire are not here to fill jobs,” Nayak insists, pointing out that the reasons are much more strategic. He highlights the importance of having an ongoing relationship with a services firm, given the initial costs and risks associated with committing to outsourcing work, particularly in India.