Because of how quickly technology develops and changes, some businesses may prefer outsourcing their IT needs because having to constantly maintain, retrain, and rehire in-house IT teams can get quite difficult and expensive. IT outsourcing providers exist to help companies fill these niches.
IT outsourcing service providers can offer a wide range of technology-related services. This can span from supplying hardware like desktops, laptops, and servers and integrating them with an internal office network, implementing and managing corporate software like Microsoft/Apple packages and SAP/Oracle, to helping clients build and deploy new apps or software. They may also offer training services and other supplementary technology to round out their offerings.
Career overview
Numerous IT outsourcing businesses typically provide training programmes that let new hires experience various job functions in order to determine their preferences and skills.
Graduate employees will then be placed in a dedicated service team depending on their skills. These teams work with clients on specific tasks or technical functions, such as programming, network support, security, or systems integration.
Career advancement usually occurs in one of two ways: by specialising in a certain technical area, or by transitioning into project or service management. While them the former requires staff to develop sufficient in-depth expertise, the latter will require you to hone your customer-facing skills as you will be put in closer contact with clients and customers.
Trends and developments
Many major international corporations have outsourced IT functions to Malaysia over the years, including IBM, Apple, HSBC, and Shell. Malaysia’s IT outsourcing industry has an advantage over other Southeast Asian nations due to a few significant factors, such as higher cost savings, skilled talent, business-friendly policies, and solid local digital infrastructure.
In Malaysia, the IT outsourcing client base is typically split between large corporations’ internal IT operations, or helping fill skills gaps for other regional third-party IT service providers. Some of the most common IT outsourcing services provided locally include:
- Software development
- Applications upkeep
- IT advisory services
- Cloud server migration
- Infrastructure management (including in-house networks, data centre setup, and other aspects like data security)
- Technical helpdesk assistance
With that said, IT outsourcing is not just the domain of large organisations. With an increasing crunch of tech talent both locally and worldwide, an increasing number of local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are now outsourcing more and more IT functions to external vendors as well. This is one business area that is expected to continue growing as companies in Malaysia digitise more and more of their functions and operations.
Pros and cons
Growth and opportunities
Due to its rapid expansion and vibrant environment, this industry offers plenty of excitement for those who want to work there. You may have lots of opportunities for learning and building your professional network because clients come from a diverse range of industries.
Exciting but taxing
Rapid technological advancements are both exhilarating and demanding. It's not unusual to finish researching a new tech trend or updating a system according to client requirements only to discover that it is already out of date. Working hours can get long too, since you may have to work around clients’ own office hours or according to their desired deployment deadlines.
Required skills
- Enthusiasm
- Ability to learn quickly
- Strong interpersonal skills
- Patience
- Organisational skills
- Ability to prioritise work effectively
