The global outsourcing industry could face sweeping consolidation in the next two years, mainly driven by low-cost global competition and broken business models, according to a report by Forrester Research, an independent technology and market research company. The report says that even the top-tier Indian firms will have to rely on acquisitions to compete with global giants like IBM, EDS or CSC.
The report titled "Are Barbarians at the Gates Of Outsourcing?" delves into the potential buyouts of global outsourcers by private-equity firms as well as the trend among the outsourcing industry’s long-standing leaders’ scramble to buy or be bought. It indicates that leading equity buyers believe there’s an opportunity to make money fast in the outsourcing space, and that mergers and acquisitions could dominate this space mainly due to double-digit growth in new deals, long-term contracts, and the popularity of outsourcing.
Further, given the recent hostile takeover attempts in this space globally, the report sets expectations of seeing many of the leading outsourcers making aggressive moves to protect their businesses.
These strategies will range from acquiring other competitors to acquiring their own stock. Already, there are firms (like EDS, CSC, ACS) that have made moves on these lines. For the top-tier Indian firms, the report asserts that they will likely have to acquire either BPO firms with vertical industry knowledge or infrastructure outsourcers with experience of managing servers, desktops, or networks.
The report titled "Are Barbarians at the Gates Of Outsourcing?" delves into the potential buyouts of global outsourcers by private-equity firms as well as the trend among the outsourcing industry’s long-standing leaders’ scramble to buy or be bought. It indicates that leading equity buyers believe there’s an opportunity to make money fast in the outsourcing space, and that mergers and acquisitions could dominate this space mainly due to double-digit growth in new deals, long-term contracts, and the popularity of outsourcing.
Further, given the recent hostile takeover attempts in this space globally, the report sets expectations of seeing many of the leading outsourcers making aggressive moves to protect their businesses.
These strategies will range from acquiring other competitors to acquiring their own stock. Already, there are firms (like EDS, CSC, ACS) that have made moves on these lines. For the top-tier Indian firms, the report asserts that they will likely have to acquire either BPO firms with vertical industry knowledge or infrastructure outsourcers with experience of managing servers, desktops, or networks.