Bals Sourcing of Services

International Aspects and Complex Categories
2008
ISBN: 978-3-8349-8146-2
Verlag: Betriebswirtschaftlicher Verlag Gabler
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 119 Seiten, eBook

Reihe: Einkauf, Logistik und Supply Chain Management

Lydia Bals identifies different types of offshoring, concluding that the buy option of offshore outsourcing versus hybrid or make options is directly related to purchasing. Her in-depth analysis specifically focuses on the sourcing of marketing services. In this context, the investigations of purchasing/marketing integration provide a conceptual model of barriers to purchasing involvement in sourcing of services. Moreover, she seeks to shed light on issues of providing incentives for advertising agencies from an agency theory perspective.

Dr. Lydia Bals promovierte bei Prof. Dr. Christopher Jahns am SVI-Stiftungslehrstuhl für Einkauf, Logistik und Supply Chain Management der European Business School Schloß Reichartshausen. Sie ist heute als Post-Doc Visiting Scholar an der Columbia Business School, Columbia University (New York, U.S.A.), tätig.

Zielgruppe

Research

Autoren/Hrsg.

Bals, Lydia

Weitere Mitwirkende

Jahns, Prof. Dr. Christopher

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Foreword;6
2;Acknowledgements;7
3;Table of Contents;8
4;List of Figures;10
5;List of Tables;11
6;Table of Abbreviations;12
7;1 Introduction;13
8;2 Offshoring: Dimensions and Diffusion of a New Business Concept;19
8.1;Abstract;19
8.2;2.1 Introduction;20
8.3;2.2 The offshoring concept in practice;25
8.4;2.3 The offshoring concept in theory;27
8.5;2.4 Environmental driving forces for the offshoring phenomenon;32
8.6;2.5 The offshoring concept on the company level – exploring aspects of transaction cost economics, the resource - based view and the market-based view ;36
8.7;2.6 Conclusion, managerial implications and further research needs;44
9;3 Barriers of Purchasing Involvement in Marketing Service Procurement;51
9.1;Abstract;51
9.2;3.1 Introduction;52
9.3;3.2 Theoretical considerations;54
9.4;3.3 Case study;63
9.5;3.4 Results;68
9.6;3.5 Conclusion;77
10;4 A Theoretical Approach to Problems in Buying Agency Services;81
10.1;Abstract;81
10.2;4.1 Introduction;82
10.3;4.2 Issues in purchasing agency services;85
10.4;4.3 Theoretical solution mechanisms for the issues identified;89
10.5;4.4 Research methodology;93
10.6;4.5 Case analysis and results;96
10.7;4.6 Conclusion and discussion;107
11;References;113

Offshoring: Dimensions and Diffusion of a New Business Concept.- Barriers of Purchasing Involvement in Marketing Service Procurement.- A Theoretical Approach to Problems in Buying Agency Services.

Leseproben

2 Offshoring: Dimensions and Diffusion of a New Business Concept (S. 7-8)

Abstract

In order to leverage global cost differentials, companies are increasingly turning to offshoring. Nevertheless, discussions in research and practice on offshoring are characterized by the lack of a common definition as well as a theoretically grounded explanation for this phenomenon. This article presents an explicit definition in order to provide a stringent understanding of the term offshoring along the dimensions of contractual/legal arrangement and geographic location. Further, the driving forces of offshoring are analyzed on the environmental and company levels. The article closes with a discussion of managerial implications and an outlook on aspects for further research. Keywords: Offshoring, Offshore Outsourcing, Offshore Buying, Make or Buy Decision

2.1 Introduction

The continuous search for efficiency gains and the goal of attaining a sustainable competitive advantage have steadily increased the volume of goods and services procured globally from third party vendors (Kotabe and Murray, 1990). Nevertheless, research on how the purchasing function of a company could and should adapt to these developments is still scarce (Quintens, Matthyssens and Faes, 2005). In this hardly researched context of international purchasing, especially when focusing on the services sector, offshoring has become a more frequently mentioned concept, also in combination with terms such as "offshore buying" (Giunipero and Monczka, 1997). In order to be aware of and able to effectively implement innovative approaches for better leveraging global cost differentials, a clear understanding of offshoring and its implications is as important for supply management practice as it is for academia.

2.1.1 Offshoring: widely discussed, hardly defined

It should be noted that the topic of offshoring is deeply interrelated with the make-or-buy decision, as sourcing decisions in general have their origins in make/buy alternatives (Culliton, 1942). The question, which processes of a company can be supplied by external providers or should be maintained inhouse, is in turn related to the core competencies concept (Prahalad and Hamel, 1990, Quinn and Hilmer, 1994). This approach should be particularly useful when the question of "what" to offshore lies at the centre of interest. As this article focuses on the terminological issues and the diffusion of the phenomenon in general, the concept of core competencies is not treated in detail.

The term offshoring is in fact used to describe a multitude of scenarios (compare table 1), as it is seldom explicitly defined in literature. Furthermore, academic research on offshoring often lacks a theoretical framework based on economic theories for argumentation or testing. While the work of Arnold (2000) on outsourcing as well as the paper of Mol et al. (2004) on international purchasing are notable exceptions, many articles show a focus on the practical implications and the actual handling of an international sourcing or offshoring decision (e.g. Robinson and Kalakota, 2004, Smith, Mitra and Narasimhan, 1996, Sathyanarayan, 2003, von Campenhausen, 2005).

As table 1 illustrates, other topics currently addressed include the implications offshoring has on organizations’ innovativeness as well as productivity (Mol et al., 2004, Kotabe, 1990). Considering the empirical investigation of various aspects of offshoring, a literature review reveals that offshoring has so far undergone only limited quantitative investigation. No more than three studies with a sample size exceeding 30 respondents could be identified (Kotabe, 1990, Lowson, 2001, Mol et al., 2004). Next, the research questions addressed in these articles as well as their key findings will be summarized.

Über Autor(innen)

Dr. Lydia Bals promovierte bei Prof. Dr. Christopher Jahns am SVI-Stiftungslehrstuhl für Einkauf, Logistik und Supply Chain Management der European Business School Schloß Reichartshausen. Sie ist heute als Post-Doc Visiting Scholar an der Columbia Business School, Columbia University (New York, U.S.A.), tätig.