Ukraine and Success Criteria for the Software Exports Industry

Due to the success achieved by India in the software exports market, $8 billion for 2002 and an expected $10 billion for 2003 according to Sibabrata Das (2003), many countries are interested in grabbing a piece of the offshore outsourcing pie. According to the UkrainianAssociation of Software Developers (UASWD, 2002), Ukraine’s software exports market for 2002 will be approximately $65 -$70 million. That represents .8% of the entire offshore outsourcing market.

In comparison to the big offshore powerhouse of India and more traditional locations such as Ireland and Israel, Ukraine is not even a blip on the screen.

This paper focuses on the broader term of the software exports market which refers to both the export of services (both IT services and IT enabled 1) and products. The intent of this paper is to answer the question, why isn’t Ukraine stronger in the software exports market? Ukraine is measured against an accepted model of success factors required for the development of a software exports industry. First an overview is presented of the success factors.

Then Ukraine’s current position in each factor is defined. The paper ends with conclusions on where Ukraine has been successful and suggestions for change.

Ukraine and Success Criteria for the Software Exports Industry