This IDC study highlights the strategies of the IT services providers who are redressing their services to address the broadening requirements of BPO opportunities. Based on IDC's analysis of the competitive strategies of the players and their alignment with the customer needs, a potential leadership grid has been presented specific to the Australian market.

Aprajita Sharma, senior analyst, IDC Asia/Pacific Outsourcing and BPO Research, says, "By entering the BPO marketplace, the IT services providers have introduced entirely new BPO engagement models, redefining the very nature of BPO services, and altering the competitive dynamics both within specific BPO markets and across the broader IT services marketplace. The success parameters for these IT service providers are higher than the traditional function-specific specialised BPO providers due to their process reengineering and consulting expertise and also the ability to enable the integration of technology from a cross-functional perspective."

She continues, "Thus, these vendors with an IT services and IT outsourcing legacy have a competitive advantage based on a sort of 'first right of refusal' over traditional function-specific BPO providers."