The Sales- and Purchase Process of IT-related services

Background: Companies and organizations of today spend large amounts of money on IT-based business solutions. Such business solutions normally include business- consulting and software-creation (IT-related services). Due to the rapid development of the technology within this field of business the IT-customers find it difficult to select among potential suppliers on objective grounds. Purpose: To increase the understanding for the professionl approach of the people involved in the sales- and purchase process of IT-related services in a business-to-business context. The study is taking the buyers'as well as the sellers'perspective into account when analyzing the process. Method: The empirical findings were collected from eight companies in Linköping and Stockholm. The method used was a qualitative interview survey. Delimitation: The study treats business-to-business relationships. The study focuses on IT-services aimed at business development. The study do not include the influence of purely technical apects of IT-related services. Conclusions: It appears to exist a"knowledge gap"between the IT-suppliers and the IT-customers concerning how to make use of the opportunities stemming from the newest IT-applications. The customers find it difficult to select among potential IT-suppliers on objective grounds. Trust in the supplier becomes very important. Trust can be achieved by means of personal contacts, the ability to speak the same language, reference projects and general knowledge about the customer's field of business