IT outsourcing could be one of the processes secure businesses turn to during the credit crunch, an expert asserts.

Mark Thomas, the head of strategy and marketing practice at PA Consulting Group, tells the Times this is among the streamlining processes companies will examine due to the downturn.

He claims IT outsourcing can increase efficiency, alongside restructuring in response to the financial crisis.

Mr Thomas writes: “There are huge opportunities for the well-positioned, but companies will need to act fast.”

In addition, he says businesses should examine the dynamics operating in their sector to allow them to identify winning and losing businesses.

He says this will allow firms to establish an end-game scenario in which they emerge strengthened by the transformations.

Bruce Culbert, chief executive officer of iSymmetry, writes in TechJournalSouth that the market conditions have “all the right ingredients to launch the next wave of IT outsourcing”.

He says now, more than ever, it is beneficial for companies to undertake IT outsourcing.