Outsourcing
In an economic downturn, as well as in a thriving economy, outsourcing can be a beneficial, cost-effective part of many organizational models. It is fast becoming a widespread business practice across industries and for smaller companies and large enterprises alike.
Outside counsel are important partners in any outsourcing venture. Holland & Knight attorneys are recognized leaders in the practice of information technology and business process outsourcing, and have been providing services to new outsourcers, outsourcing “veterans” and vendors for more than 20 years.
User and Vendor Support From Strategy Through Agreement and Beyond
The practitioners at Holland & Knight have negotiated and completed billions of dollars of outsourcing transactions. They guide clients through every stage of the process – beginning with strategic planning and evaluating the potential advantages and disadvantages of the various options. Informed by our years of experience, our counsel is specific to every client we serve.
Comprehensive Transactional Know-How
Our outsourcing practitioners have handled all aspects of the transactions involved in this area, including:
- assistance in RFP development
- vendor proposal review and selection (for user clients)
- assistance in proposal development (for vendor clients)
- developing term sheets -- which are the basis for the transaction and the technical and financial schedules which follow
- contract drafting and negotiation
- careful crafting of the agreement – including fees, services, service levels, service credits, and transitional issues
- contract administration support – including tools for evaluating the relationship once it is put in place
Proficient in Multiple Functional Areas
Our knowledge extends to all functional areas that may be involved in an outsourcing alliance:
- information technology services including data center operations
- business process outsourcing such as tax compliance, finance and accounting, purchasing and human resources
- desktop support and network services
- applications development and maintenance
- facilities and real property operations
- manufacturing, packaging and logistics
- e-commerce enterprise outsourcing
The Benefits of Collaboration
Dedicated outsourcing practitioners work in concert with other firm practice groups to advise on collateral yet critical legal issues. Our partners in the employment, corporate leasing, mergers and acquisitions, tax, real estate and other related departments routinely provide guidance for:
- asset purchase and sale involved in the migration of customer processing to vendor data centers
- intellectual property -- performing due diligence of software and software licenses involved in the outsourcing transaction
- labor and employment -- addressing and negotiating the legal issues involved in the transfer of employees from the customer to the vendor, as well as management side labor issues involved in many outsourcing initiatives
- data privacy and security protection -- including outsourcing related to cross-border transactions
Representative Transactions
- Representation of a major telecommunications company in over $1 billion of outsourcing transactions of network and technology services.
- Representation of a major international manufacturing company in a $500 million international outsourcing of equipment, help desk and maintenance services.
- Representation of a major New York City hospital in a $350 million outsourcing of equipment and services and transfer of employees.
- Representation of a major healthcare company in connection with a $200 million information technology outsourcing project.
- Representation of a major insurer in outsourcing of core and non-core functions, including, third party administrator and claims processing agreements, selective IT outsourcing (e.g., desktop support) and business process outsourcings.
- Representation of a major international bank in the outsourcing of trust department services, including transfer of employees.
- Representation of three major insurers in outsourcing of applications systems maintenance to Indian service providers.
- Representation of a major electric and gas utility in the outsourcing of operational functions and technology.
- Representation of a major Portuguese telecommunications company in outsourcing of accounting, finance and customer operations.
- Representation of a major health insurer in a full information technology outsourcing.
- Representation of a major insurer in outsourcing of recordkeeping and other administration services for retirement plans, health benefit plans, and management of employee stock options.