Even as the economy improves, the reality of IT service delivery is less positive: We're not willing to fight to hire talent, opting instead to outsource more and more, yet not investing in vital management tools and skills.

Worse, quality is too often an afterthought.

Our second annual InformationWeek Analytics State of IT Outsourcing Survey shows an increase in the number of respondents using service providers, and the vast majority plan to increase their outsourcing activities across all categories--hardware, telco, data center, software development, and public cloud and software as a service. That enthusiasm is despite ongoing concerns about value and just how much time and money we're really saving. Respondents say they're three times more likely to be able to engage a contractor than to bring on staff.

Let that settle in for a minute. In the past 32 months, we've been through brutal recession, uneasy recovery, and dramatic technology change. That's more than two and a half years of turmoil and transformation in your business. Not only have IT operations had to morph based on business realities, we've had to adapt to expanded virtualization options, data center convergence, increasing storage volumes, and the rise of mobile devices and consumerization, as well as shifting compliance standards for everything from credit card payments to Web security.

Given a whole new set of strategic variables plus fewer resources, it's no wonder IT is looking for help. But we're not figuring out how to apply outside talent as a means to deliver quality IT. We're still just chasing fast and cheap, and that's no way to excel.

Research: 2011 Outsourcing Survey

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