IT Outsourcing Risk Management Practices in Higher Educational Institutes in Ethiopia - A Qualitative Study

Using a qualitative research method, this work investigates risks associated with IT outsourcing and aspects of managing outsourcing risks in the context of Higher Learning Institutes (HLI) in Ethiopia. Primary data is collected through interviews conducted with various stakeholders in the IT outsourcing process including a select set of executives, committee members, domain experts and users. Respondents of the HLIs demonstrated adequate understanding of IT outsourcing processes, yet the HLIs were found to have no structured or documented outsourcing strategy, policy or program in place. Risk management frameworks for IT outsourcing projects were either absent or not documented. Overall, the findings reveal a general lack of appreciation for needs of structure and documentation in all aspects of outsourcing contracts. As a result, the risk management practices of the HLIs are found to depend largely on intuitions and previous experiences.