IT vendor management as a measure for ensuring the performance of business critical software and services

IT sourcing becomes more important due to the increasing IT complexity in a company and the importance of purchasing and supply chain is already recognised by top managers as a key business driver. Software and IT service vendors have their own characteristics and require a different sourcing approach to other vendors. The existing complexity in the spend volume and quality of services must be transparent in order to ensure profits in the short and long term. Without transparency, the purchasing department could make decisions based on incorrect information, not use synergy effects, negotiate non-relevant agreements and not bundle all requirements. This raises the question as to how it is possible for a company to achieve transparency in IT sourcing of software and services for increasing profit and quality?