On 1-2 November 2007 International Exhibition Center (15, Brovarskiy ave., pavilion 2, Kiev) hosted the fourth annual Ukrainian Outsourcing Forum 2007. The Forum objectives are boosting software development and outsourcing services market, discussion of global trends in IT markets, and addressing current issues in the outsourcing area.

 

Ukrainian Outsourcing Forum is the major event of Ukrainian software development industry. Participation in the Forum provides a possibility for Ukrainian and Eastern European companies to present their potential to the clients, establish business relations and sign advantageous contracts. 

 

During the Forum opening, both Forum organizers and partners noted growing significance of outsourcing as a separate market segment. Nikolay Katerinchuk, the People’s deputee of Ukraine, who was present at the official Forum Opening Ceremony, noted the importance of governmental support of the decision made at the Forum in order to grant development of Ukrainian IT as well as economics as a whole.

 

According to Victor Maznyuk, the Ukrainian Hi-Tech Initiative President, one of the main Forum achievements is discussion and approval of “Ukraine, the IT-First Nation” – the government programme aimed at development of Ukrainian software industry. The programme will be forwarded to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine in the nearest future. This programme ratification will facilitate solution of the problems that hinder intensive development of competitive IT industry in Ukraine.

 

Ukrainian Outsourcing Forum 2007 exposed a real potential of outsourcing in Ukraine and Eastern European countries. Business Process Outsourcing was presented on a qualitatively new level. A whole seminar, organized by the Forum partner – Baltic Outsourcing Association – was dedicated to the future BPO development in Ukraine. 

 

Another positive factor worth mentioning is the increasing attractiveness of the Forum among similar events in the Eastern European region. The evidence of this is geographical expansion of the industrial partners. For example, in 2007 Baltic Outsourcing Association together with Hungarian Outsourcing Association joined traditional by now partners of the UOF – “Infopark” from Belarus and “Silicon Taiga” from Russia.

 

During Ukrainian Outsourcing Forum 2007 significant attention was paid to presentation of potential of Ukraine and Eastern European countries in outsourcing and IT services, attraction of the new clients as well as addressing current issues of IT outsourcing industry. More than 100 companies from 12 countries of the world participated in the conference and Forum exhibition.

  

Information. First Ukrainian Outsourcing Forum was held in 2003 with less that 100 people participating. In 2007 more than 150 participants were registered. Among the Forum participants there were noted experts in outsourcing, representatives of the leading Ukrainian and foreign software development and IT outsourcing companies, investment companies as well as representatives of the national IT Associations and local state authorities. Overall more than 100 organizations from Belarus, Belgium, Great Britain, Hungary, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, the USA, Ukraine, France, Check Republic, and the Republic of South Africa participated in the Forum.