Information Technology Outsourcing—Part I

Increasing numbers of Canadian businesses and other institutions are outsourcing their information technology requirements: 1) to reduce costs and internal staffing commitments; 2) to release capital to more productive uses; 3) to gain access to specialized expertise; and, in some cases, 4) to establish or strengthen strategic business relationships. Business arrangements which fall under the broad rubric of IT outsourcing include the outsourcing of specific activities such as web site hosting or applications development, the outsourcing of responsibility for the operation of information technology systems, either as a single service offering or a part of a broader combined outsourcing of business and IT functions, and the transfer of IT systems, which may include the transfer of ownership of physical assets, real estate and employees, in connection with the outsourcing of IT functions to the service