Netsourcing: Renting Business Applications and Services Over a Network [Hardcover]

Thomas Kern (Author), Mary Cecelia Lacity (Author), Leslie P. Willcocks (Author), Leslie Willcocks (Author), Mary Lacity (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 18, 2002 | Series: Financial Times (Prentice Hall)

Effective ASP decision-making has never been more crucial, as companies increasingly prepare to explore outsourcing mission critical operations into a rapidly-changing ASP marketplace. Now, the world's leading ASP research team shares its up-to-the-minute, provocative findings -- offering practical advice for every aspect of the outsourcing decision, and every phase of the outsourcing project lifecycle. You'll learn which ASP applications have proven most and least successful; who the leading market players are and how their services have evolved; how to manage technology infrastructure in an outsourced environment; and much more. This book includes detailed guidance on defining an ASP strategy and mitigating its attendant risks; evaluating and selecting ASPs; and managing ASP partnerships. It also previews new trends that will shape the future of ASPs -- and your relationships with them.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

The definitive decision-maker's guide to renting business applications over a network.

Netsourcing: The market, the players, the services

A guide to the fast-changing netsourcing playing field

Integrating netsourcing options within a total IT sourcing portfolio

Even large-size customers can benefit from selective netsourcing

Best practices for evaluating and selecting providers

Choosing partners that fit your approach to business—and have real staying power

Minimizing the risks of netsourcing partnerships

Realistic best practices for managing technical, contractual, operational, and managerial risk

Previewing new strategic options in netsourcing

What you need to know about "next-generation" netsourcing services—and service providers

Managing the netsourcing relationship successfully

Achieving the "holy grail": the "win-win" outsourcing relationship

Enterprise case studies: key outsourcing successes and failures

What works, and what doesn't: the experiences of today's leading global companies

Netsourcing is the practice of renting or "paying as you use" access to supplier-managed business applications, made available to multiple customers over the Internet or other networks. The concept of delivering business applications as a service—or "apps on tap"—was initially called application service provision (ASP). But that term has proved too narrow. Today customers are using netsourcing to hand over entire business processes to service providers, such as human resource management or accounting, and to remotely host and manage customer-grown applications.

The netsourcing value proposition to customers is compelling: no upfront infrastructure costs or costly software licenses, business applications delivered in days/weeks, scalable solutions that grow or contract with the customer's business, flexible solutions with minimal switching costs, and minimal expensive in-house support staff—to name a few. Given these benefits, who wouldn't want to netsource? On the downside, there are significant netsourcing risks that must be mitigated. The netsourcing of business applications is still seen as an immature option primarily offered by unstable dot.com start-ups. Business managers worry about the reliability and security of the Internet, feel that their business requirements are too idiosyncratic for canned, "one-to-many" solutions, and do not trust outsiders to supply mission-critical systems.

So how can businesses leverage the value offered by netsourcing while reducing its risks? How can businesses compare and integrate netsourcing with other sourcing options? Every business is asking questions like these. Netsourcing delivers the answers.

Based on unparalleled research at the world's leading enterprises, this book identifies the key factors associated with successful outsourcing—from planning through ongoing relationship management, and beyond. The authors show you how to take full advantage of the dramatic changes roiling the outsourcing marketplace, helping you realistically assess the promise of next-generation outsourced services—and the capabilities of the service providers who offer them.

"In the early phase of the evolution of the ASP market, few pioneers were willing to acknowledge the importance of understanding the concepts of outsourcing as they launched their offerings. The strongest survive, and will benefit from reading this comprehensive analysis of the third wave of outsourcing. The authors have shown insight and wisdom that makes this a must read for any company that is on the periphery or in the thick of delivering application services."

—Paula M. Hunter,
Chairman, ASP Industry Consortium

"The sourcing neophyte, expert, and supplier can all benefit from the wisdom of these pages."

Dennis McGuire,
Chairman and CEO,
Technology Partners International, Inc.

"An important book. It provides an insightful, in-depth analysis of exciting new markets in their embryonic stage. The authors spare no punches, but also show how fundamentally different modes of delivering infrastructure, services and applications are taking shape....If you want to understand the IT future, this is essential reading."

—Ghobad Broumand,
Chairman, MainPass Technologies

"Netsourcing...makes essential reading for those wanting to understand the new marketspace."

Sara Cullen,
Managing Director, Cullen Associates

About the Author

THOMAS KERN is CIO of KERN AG and part-time Assistant Professor for Information Management at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, and European Editor of The Journal of Information Technology. He has spoken and written widely on outsourcing and application service provision.

MARY CECELIA LACITY is Associate Professor of Information Systems at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, and Research Affiliate at Templeton College, Oxford University. She has published 5 books and 25 papers on information technology sourcing. Lacity earned the 2000 PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Michael Corbett & Associates Global Information Outsourcing Achievement Award for her contributions to this field.

LESLIE P. WILLCOCKS is Anderson Professor of Information Management and e-Business at Warwick Business School, UK, and has been Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of Information Technology for 12 years. He has co-authored 19 books, including Global IT Outsourcing: In Search of Business Advantage and Strategic Sourcing of Information Systems. Willcocks earned the 2001 PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Michael Corbett & Associates Global Information Outsourcing Achievement Award for his contributions to this field.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Pearson Education; 1st edition (April 18, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0130923559
• ISBN-13: 978-0130923554
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,514,776 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)