RISK AND EXPOSURE IN SOFTWARE and IT PROJECTS

About the Book

IT industry is facing intricate dilemma represented by the high rate of failure of IT projects. The phenomenon is proven by authenticated statistics and, indeed, by personal professional experience. Surprisingly, the average rate of failure ranges around 60 percent. This book is a punch of deep insights on how to use the contract to deal with perils and caveats embedded in software and IT projects. The underlying approach of the book to overcome such dilemma is based on the premise of the “coherent and fair” contract being the general framework and appropriate venue that should contain and accurately record elements for project success. The contract is where the scope of works are specified, the deliverables are detailed, the realistic timeframe for implementation are set out, the methodology for sound project management is put forth, the testing criteria is identified, the mechanism for changes and modifications are determined, the dispute resolution procedures are stated, etc. It is the contract that grants the parties ample opportunity and time to contemplate—as long as everything will be recorded and documented—the effectiveness of success elements and factors. As a specimen, the ME legal system has been used to apply the underlying concept of the book.

About the Author

Farouq is an expert legal counsel with an extensive international and regional exposure. Overall, he has more than forty years of experience in the legal field. In the last twenty years, Farouq has gained a profound practical experience being a group legal counsel, providing legal consultancy to higher-level management officials and managing in-house legal department in an IT multinational organization. During his career, he has negotiated and concluded multimillion software and IT contracts in different industries. In 2001 and 2002, he was honored to produce three books (in Arabic language) titled “Software Law,” “Software Contracts,” and “IT Contracts.” Farouq now is a member of ME legal team of Huawei Technologies, one of the largest telecommunication equipment manufacturer and service provider in the world. Farouq is now based in Dubai.