Negotiating IT and Outsourcing Contracts - Tapa blanda

All too often outsourcing projects spawn horror stories where insufficient attention to the contract results in severe financial losses, failure of the project and the risk of large-scale litigation. What begins as a streamlining, cost-cutting exercise can quickly become a massive drain on resources in an already difficult economic climate. Kit Burden's Negotiating IT Contracts report provides you with a wealth of practical expertise and real-life examples from one of the most respected practitioners in this complex area. The report is a step-by-step guide to: Identifying the key risks likely to arise in an IT project and how to cater for them in the contract; Negotiating the allocation of risk between the supplier and the customer, minimising risks without paying excessively for the privilege; Different types of contract, their advantages and disadvantages and explanations of which projects they are most suitable for; Pricing models and the associated risks - again taking into account different project types - including an understanding of their long-term value; Warranties, indemnities, service credits, liquidated damages and liability claims, observing the advantages and pitfalls, and addressing common errors that you must be aware of in negotiations; Key legal concepts, in particular relevant regulations (such as TUPE) and commonly misunderstood terminology, explained in easy to understand terms and in the context of negotiating a contract. Negotiating IT Contracts also examines where disputes are likely to occur and how governance can ensure they are swiftly managed and - hopefully - resolved. In the event that more informal governance measures fail to resolve the issue, the report details possible next steps, including expert determination, mediation, arbitration and litigation. Finally the author looks at how to build termination and ongoing rights into a contract, to ensure you can take back or retender for any services at the end of the term, ideally with the full co-operation of the supplier. This report acts as a comprehensive guide through the negotiation process from start to finish and will continue to be a valuable resource once your contract is in place. Ensure your organisation gets maximum value from your IT project and that in a difficult economic climate you can continue to cut costs and maximise efficiency.

Kit Burden specialises in the areas of outsourcing and complex technology transactions, advising both users and suppliers of IT, and outsourcing services and in relation to all aspects of the procurement process. His work ordinarily involves him on business critical projects frequently valued in the hundreds of millions of pounds. Major clients he works for include UBS, Dixons, RBS, Lloyds TSB, CMC Markets, TUI, Birds Eye Iglo, HCL Technologies, the British Council, Red Hat and PricewaterhouseCoopers, as well as various major insurers and retail banks and other large corporates and providers of IT and outsourcing services. He is identified as a leading IT and outsourcing lawyer by all of the leading legal directories, including the Legal 500, Legal Experts and Chambers, who variously describe him as "a brilliant IT lawyer" with "a grand reputation", and who "really does add value" to a deal.