ABSTRACT
Access to new technology is one of the desirable outcomes of outsourcing, and came sixth in a KPMG survey of Australian IT outsource contracts. Many of the customers of National Rail Enquiries use the latest technology, so they need to meet their needs and have access to that technology at the customer-facing end of the business. A large IT outsourcer may well have specialist programmers and people with specific software skills that the client may not be able to support. A client organisation with in-house IT facilities can of course buy in contract skills, but this can be more expensive and there is a greater risk of a loss of continuity in the use of contract staff. Access to new technology come the issue of obsolescence. There is also a concern with outsourcing technology that it is difficult to keep technology up to date.
