Dubbed "rightsourcing" by Forrester, enterprise customers can mix and match internal resources with external providers. That means IT executives aren't just sending all the work out or tackling it all in-house, he says. Now customers can choose from cloud computing models, software-as-a-service and pay-as-you-go platforms. IT groups today are also learning to extend outsourced IT services with their own internal development and projects.

"In this new world of outsourcing you don't hand over services but wherever possible build them as hybrids that tie together critical components you continue to own and operate with lower-cost Web-based components," a March Forrester report reads.

Staten recommends IT departments begin analyzing what they do well internally and begin partnering with external sourcing providers that can fill in the gaps at a reasonable price. Yet Staten warns that choosing to send work to outsourcers shouldn't be done as purely a -- because in many cases costs aren't reduced significantly.

"Oftentimes it is not cheaper to outsource, but the cost of focus and prioritization of your internal people is where you get the most savings. For instance, if you have 60 full-time people and need 20 new services, that isn't going to happen," Staten says. "Outsourcing should be used to focus people on the internal projects that contribute to transforming the business."

In response, outsourcers are revamping their pricing models. For instance, Staten says outsourcers are embracing the rollover minutes model of the cell phone market. If a customer pays US$50 per month for a service, but in any given month only uses $10 worth of services, then the remaining $40 could be applied to a month when more services are consumed.