Challenges of Outsourcing IT to China : A literature review

Abstract: IT outsourcing has been studied by many scholars throughout the world in much detail. The People’s Republic of China, as one of the leading IT outsourcing markets in the world, nonetheless, is still considered as a developing market. Not many IT outsourcing studies have set their focus on China. Although there are summary overviews, few studies have sought to answer why China should be studied or what should foreign companies be aware of before searching for any Chinese service providers. Through a literature review of conducted research, this study aims to provide an overview of the challenges of IT outsourcing to China by answering the following research question: How does extant research portray the fundamental challenges of outsourcing IT to China? In sum, this study concludes that there are three main challenges including guanxi/relationship, legal risks, workforce/professional skills in outsourcing IT to China, offering insights as to why and how foreign companies need to understand and face these challenges before outsourcing IT to China.