Reema Khurana

Need for sustainable global business model in software outsourcing: The Indian perspective

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study sustainability of the global business model of software outsourcing with perspective of Indian vendors.Design/methodology/approach – In order to obtain results as per the stated purpose, the authors have done an extensive literature review search in the e‐journals databases: ABI/INFORM Complete, EBSCO Business Source Complete, Emerald Management Xtra and Science Direct. Over and above these databases and journals, NASSCOM reports, survey and some books were also referred for literature review. Finally 59 references listed at the end of the paper were used for the stated purpose.Findings – The paper studies trends in software industry and outsourcing models, which Indian vendors are offering to their global clients. Each model is evaluated analytically for its advantages and shortcomings subsequently the paper concludes by stating the need for a sustainable global business model in software outsourcing from Indian perspective.Research limitations/implications...

Business process modeling with information integrity

Purpose – This paper aims to discuss the idea that businesses, for survival in the market, need a competitive edge. This edge can be achieved by focusing on business processes as informational work (IW) systems rather than physical work systems and then to focus on achieving information integrity. In order to achieve this aim the strategy should be to model a business process to achieve both operational and goal integrity. An analytical framework for the same is to be described.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses an analytical approach. First a literature survey is conducted to find out whether the business process models being followed currently are sufficient to give a competitive edge to business. Subsequently, the information integrity approach is introduced and a framework is suggested to model the business processes.Findings – The main findings of the paper are that the current business processes which are physical in nature need to be perceived as information oriented processes. Moreover, ...

An empirical comparison of pricing models in information technology service outsourcing in Indian context

Purpose – The information technology (IT) outsourcing has been inexorably growing in spite of its downsides. The main reasons are financial gains and cost reductions, as well as it allows companies to focus on their core selling areas. Within IT outsourcing, offshoring has become a big success because it greatly reduces costs. Countries like India, China and Philippines are attracting a lot of IT outsourcing work. In order to save costs, companies have to work out the best pricing models with the vendors so enable profitability at both ends. The main pricing models prevalent in the industry are Time and Material (TnM) and Fixed Time Fixed Price (FTFP) alternately also referred as Fixed Price. There are various other pricing models now, which are mainly variations of these. The purpose of this paper is to show an empirical comparison between these models from the vendor’s perspective to see which of them has greater acceptability. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is an empirical paper in which liter...

Business models in digital form in India: the government contribution and the road ahead

Information communication technology (ICT) has huge business potential in India. It is also one of the most important markets to be explored for internet business models because of its large customer base. But for the ICT and internet business to thrive in India, government contribution is imperative. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore the government initiatives for the promotion of ICT in India. This paper highlights the Indian governments significant contribution in promoting ICT. The government initiatives have been systematically analysed and the gaps have been identified. Based on the comparison and gaps identified, further initiatives for promoting digital business model in India have been identified and stated. This paper adds value because it lists the Indian government initiatives exhaustively, in promoting digital business models as a vehicle for developing Indian economy.

A framework to study vendors’ contribution in a client vendor relationship in information technology service outsourcing in India

Purpose – The information technology (IT) industry has been continuously expanding. This has resulted in promoting outsourcing of work by clients to vendors. Most of the published research has focussed on when clients should start outsourcing, what to outsource, criteria for vendor selection, etc., however the vendor side of the relationship has been mostly ignored. The purpose of this paper is to delve deep into the vendors’ side and what aspects a vendor needs to consider in order to maintain a good relationship with the clients. Design/methodology/approach – The research design of the paper is to use literature survey to define the components of the client vendor relationship (CVR), identify the parameters impacting the relationship, establish correlation between the independent variables and the dependent variable; subsequently to propose a framework for the CVR. Findings – The findings have been that – communication, technical value addition, knowledge sharing and client vendor adaptability are vital...

Impact of pricing and outsourcing models on Indian information technology service outsourcing

Purpose – The information technology (IT) industry has grown owing to the increase in IT outsourcing prompted by the need for cost reductions in organizations. The IT industry contracts are based on pricing models, which establish the terms and conditions of payment to be made to vendors by clients. The pricing models followed in the industry are mainly Fixed Time Fixed Price (FTFP) and Time and Material (TnM) and the remaining are mostly variations of these. Using the information collected from vendors, the purpose of this paper is to draw a comparison between these pricing models to see which one is more acceptable to vendors along with researching on the reasons behind that. The outsourcing engagement is also based on a set of processes to be used during the contract time and that is known as the Outsourcing Model (OM) being used. This research also derives how pricing models, OMs and Client Vendor Relationship (CVR) being developed are related. Design/methodology/approach – Hypothesis have been formul...

Applying structural equation model to study the critical risks in ERP implementation in Indian retail

Purpose In order to reduce the high failure rate of enterprise resource planning system (ERP) projects in Indian retail, project managers need to analyze and understand the impact of risk factor on ERP implementation. The purpose of this paper is to identify the key risk factors solely or primarily for the Indian retail sector. Furthermore, this study also analyzes the impact of risk factors in ERP implementation using the structural equation model (SEM) approach. “User risk,” “project management risk,” “technological risk,” “team risk,” “organizational risk,” and “project performance risk” are the examined factors. Design/methodology/approach A theoretical model is created that explains the risk factors which may impact the success of ERP implementation. Hypotheses were also developed to evaluate the interrelationship between risk factors and success of ERP implementation. Empirical data are collected through survey questionnaire from practitioners such as project sponsors, project managers, implementation consultants, and team members who are involved in ERP implementation in the retail sector to test the theoretical model. Findings Using the SEM, it is found that 40 percent of the variations in ERP implementation success can be explained with the help of the model suggested in the research study. The results of the study has empirically verified that “user risk,” “project management risk,” “technological risk,” “team risk,” “organizational risk,” and “project performance risk” factors are positively impacting ERP implementation success. All six hypotheses were supported by the results of the study. Research limitations/implications The findings from this paper can provide greater understanding of ERP implementations. Researchers, practicing managers, and those seeking to implement ERP in retail organization can also use the findings of this study as a vehicle for improving ERP implementation success in the retail sector. Originality/value The study integrates the impact of risk factor on ERP implementation. Very few studies have been performed to investigate and understand this issue. Therefore, the research can make a useful contribution.

E-governance initiatives in India - critique and challenges

With the tremendous growth of information communication technology in India, the government has introduced several information technology-based reforms in processes and at times in policies. These reforms are driven mostly with a view to allow the governmental services to be widely realised in a populous country like India. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the categorisation of digitisation of governmental services in India, to explain one service from each category and provide a critical analysis of the same. The paper systematically studies the growth of ICT and e-governance initiatives in India subsequently it explains one exemplar initiative from each category and offers a primary critique on the same. The paper reports that though the vision of e-governance initiatives offered by the Indian Government is appreciable but the implementation has several challenges, the same are stated in the critique. The paper adds original value as it studies in detail the growth of ICT and e-governance initiatives in India and offers a primary critique on the same.

An Indian practitioner's view on cloud-based business opportunities

Cloud is one of the most important contemporary technologies which are expected to change the way services are being delivered. The objective of this paper is to study the business opportunities based on cloud from the perspective of an Indian practitioner and to propose theories on the same. Grounded theory research methodology has been adopted in the following paper wherein the practitioners have been interviewed and subsequently their responses have been classified leading to emergence of the proposed theory. Findings of the paper are in the form of propositions, which highlight the pros and cons of business possibilities on cloud from an Indian perspective. The paper is original as the responses of the sample targeted here have never been recorded or categorised in this manner. The categorisation has given rise to propositions pertaining to Indian perspective about business opportunities on cloud, which are emerging from the ground.

Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Business Convergence, Computing, and Legality

Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Business Convergence, Computing, and Legality investigates the development of convergent and interoperable systems in business environments, with a particular focus on potential legal implications that emerge when a company begins branching out into domains traditionally occupied by suppliers and consumers. Business and law professionals—both in academia and in practice—will use this book to gain a greater understanding of the growth of convergence in the field of information technologies and how such transformations affect business practices around the world.