Most of the outsourcing contracts are in
troubled waters right from the start of the contract. In spite of lengthy
vendor selection, contract negotiation process, and abundant contract agreement
clauses, they don’t achieve the expected business objectives both from the
client and vendor side. What makes these outsourcing contracts fail? Some of
the main problems facing failed relationships are:
Unclear
Expectations on Client front
Client lacks a clear picture in mind as to
what are the business objectives that are to be achieved through this contract.
The contract outcome is measured in terms of service level agreements which are
quantitative and rigid and does not consider the qualitative aspects. They
leave other important parameters for measuring the real value such as business process
optimization, risk mitigation, change management plan, innovation etc. In
addition, processes followed for contract implementation are not clearly
defined and mapped out.
Poor
Cultural Fit
Cultural incompatibility between the vendor
and the client is another major factor for the relationship failure. The
corporate culture of both the client and the vendor might not be similar in
aspects related to decision making, risk appetite, and way of communicating.
One company may be risk-minded and a slow decision maker while the other can be
agile and accustomed to making proactive decisions. The cultural differences
are escalated to contract implementation differences due to different
approaches followed by each of these companies.
Information
Exchange Barrier
Vendor and the client do not proactively
share necessary information with each other. Client does not disclose all
relevant information to enable the vendor to accurately assess the business
requirements at the start. Both parties share information reactively and not
openly, proactively.
Communication
Barrier
Multiple official and unofficial communications
drive any kind of work. The end result does not depend as much on the official
communications than on the unofficial ones. The unofficial communications help
assure that the task requirements are accurately conveyed to the concerned
people. In failed outsourcing contracts, all of these unofficial relationships
are given an afterthought. People don’t communicate very well and all
communication flows through relatively few authorized channels. Hence rather
than people constantly interacting with others who better understand the work,
directions are passed down a chain of people who don’t understand them. The end
result is costly mistakes. The more complicated the web of unofficial
communications, the bigger the adverse impact on outsourcing will be.
Poor
Working Relationship
The partners do not have a trusting working
relationship where they understand each other's expectations and motivations,
and can engage in good dialogue.
Deal
Inflexibility
Vendor lacks flexibility and is unable to
meet client's changing needs. The parties' interests were aligned at the
beginning of the contract but became misaligned as the client's business
environment or needs changed. Vendor is not committed to the ongoing change
management effort necessary for success and wants the client to adjust the
solution rather than incorporating requisite changes.
Poor
Governance Structure
Governance problems are cited as the reason
for failure for 80 per cent of outsourcing contracts. Most relationships fail
because they lack “effective vendor governance structure” for managing the
ongoing relationship and ensuring that the outsourcing efforts meet both the
vendor’s and client’s goals. The reporting structures followed are ineffective
with “information overload” and "frequently missed" performance items.
Senior management spends most time reading reports without giving attention to
items that matter most.
Poor
Vendor Performance
The vendor fairs poorly against the agreed
service level agreements. Certain services/solutions that the vendor initially committed
didn't actually happen; or the vendor in one or more instances did not treat
some of the important aspects of the contract in an honest, up-front manner.
The
bottom line is
An outsourcing relationship should be built
on mutually beneficial goals and with a highly effective vendor management and vendor
governance structure that facilitates collaboration, visibility, and realigned
interests. Otherwise, the relationship health will suffer and the relationship
will ultimately fail. The partners should establish a structure for open
communication and should create rules for having regular discussions
about the relationship, its progress, issues faced and resolution procedures.
By dealing with issues before they become problems, the likelihood of relationship
success rises dramatically.