The maturation of the Russian offshore software industry

Abstract

In the decade of the 1990s, India leapt ahead of all other competitors for offshore programming business, giving the impression that Russia had not lived up to its potential. This paper uses case studies of firms and clients and available literature to investigate what Russia has achieved so far, what bottlenecks and hindrances have prevented it from going further, and how those problems are now being addressed. Based on the Heeks/Nicholson and Carmel models, it is concluded that there have been important improvements in domestic input factors, infrastructure, and software industry characteristics; some improvements in linkages with customer firms; and relatively little progress in improving national vision and strategy. The industry has achieved a “platform of maturity” from which further growth is now possible. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Keywords:

• Russia
• Russian Federation
• outsourcing
• offshore
• programming
• maturity