"The alternative to constantly hiring just for the needs of the moment is to outsource those projects or business processes that require skills or resources that the organization cannot or will not be able to muster. But most organizations lack much visibility into their future project pipeline, much less what skills and resources they will need to meet the demands of these projects," Polachi says.

In doing their sums on the build, buy or rent equation, CIOs need to review closely internal as well as external core competencies, says Jim Lanzalotto, vice president at Yoh, one of the largest providers of talent and outsourcing services in the US for the IT, scientific, engineering, health-care and telecommunications communities.

They should be looking at what their current talent does best, what experience partners in their vertical industries may be able to offer and the expertise of their recruiting teams in key skill areas. "The biggest mistake that organizations make is not having a plan in place before beginning to look for new talent," Lanzalotto says. "One way to avoid this is to meet before hiring and create a plan. Additionally, hiring managers should try to effectively pipeline key and often reused skills when managing their current talent or looking for new talent."