Overview

In this audio session, Lothar Katz, President of Leadership Crossroads, examines the key criteria for decision-making when outsourcing development projects offshore. For Katz, the level of project complexity must be mapped to the characteristics of the target culture. Some cultures, for example, have a greater aversion to uncertainty, making it difficult to perform high-risk projects in such an environment. Katz also advises that the benefits gained from global projects are far beyond cost advantages. Over time, global projects can create speed-to-market advantages as well. Katz also strongly advises companies to develop – and retain – managers with global skills and experience. Even very experienced managers can under-perform in a global context if their management experience does not include cross-border experience. Katz’s presentation lists the key factors to consider when making global project decisions and provides a country-by-country breakdown of how some of the more popular offshore outsourcing destinations perform with respect to these factors.
(10 pages)