Romanian IT and Outsourcing Contracts

Make hay while the sun shines…

Mr. John Blau (IDG News Service, Düsseldorf Bureau) is the author of a documented study in which he brings to the reader’s attention the current state of affairs in Romanian economy market as far as IT services are concerned. He is of the opinion that:

“For industrialized countries in Western Europe, Romania is emerging as a promising alternative supplier of IT outsourcing services in addition to India, China and Russia, according to a study published Friday by Pierre Audoin Consultants (PAC) GmbH. The study, Offshore Romania 2003 - Analysis of the Offshore Industry for Software Development and IT services in Romania, claims that the Romanian market for offshore IT services increased 43 percent in 2002, compared to the year before, PAC said in a statement.”

He then underlines some interesting facts that might make investors ponder a while before rushing in towards other remote locations:

“The country, located at the crossroads of Eastern and Western Europe, is experiencing strong demand for software development and IT services after numerous software developers and programmers, who left the country after the fall of the Iron Curtain between 1989 and 2001, have since returned as experienced project managers, according to the statement. They join some 4,500 IT professionals who are graduating from Romania universities every year. The consultancy estimates that over 460 companies have outsourced parts or all of their IT operations to Romanian service providers, which, on average, employee between 15 and 20 IT professionals.”

There are some concrete advantages to be taken into account, such as cost effectiveness due to really low wages, favourable time zone, high skills in IT, common cultural tradition and so on:

”PAC reckons that, altogether, more than 7,700 Romanians are earning their livelihood through IT outsourcing jobs, including those in call and Web centres. Romania has several selling points as an offshore IT hub, according to the study. The country is only about two hours from Germany or France, and its citizens don't need visas to visit the European Union (EU). Moreover, the Romanian culture is much closer to European and North American culture than are its main competitors India, China and Russia. Having a closer cultural link, the PAC study claims, helps reduce some of the problems that result from teams working together with differing cultural backgrounds. Consequently, Romanians can better understand the subtle cultural and ethical issues in software human interface design for a western market.”

Source: www.idg.com.sg