'Trust' as a Foundation for Strategic Alliances in Global Software Outsourcing

Abstract

Indian software firms are involved in a variety of relationships with international organizations that have opted for global software outsourcing. Most firms, if not all, started as vendors on short-term contracts and many of them are at various stages of becoming strategic partners with their long-term clients. Uncertainty is inherent in these arrangements, and trust is an essential ingredient at each stage of maturity in the development of such relationships. This paper provides some guidelines for Indian software firms on how to build trust to move from short-term contractual relationships to long-term strategic alliances.