The Handbook of Global Outsourcing

By <link people ilan-oshri _blank>Ilan Oshri, Julia Kotlarsky and Leslie P. Willcocks

The global offshore outsourcing market for IT and business services exceeded $55 billion in 2008 and some estimates suggest an annual growth rate of 20% over the next five years. Furthermore, over 200 firms from the Forbes 2000 companies and 50 per cent of the Fortune Global 500 had offshored IT and business process activities through captive centres, making a total of about $9bn of business. The phenomenon of offshoring and offshore-outsourcing is certainly expanding. It has become increasingly important to understand the phenomenon, not least as a basis for suggesting what directions it will take, its impacts, how it has been conducted, and how its management can be better facilitated.

This book offers a broad perspective on various issues relating to the sourcing of systems and business processes in a national and global context. The authors examine both the client's and the vendor's involvement in sourcing relationships by putting the emphasis on the capabilities that each side should develop prior to entering a relationship but also that they should develop as a result of their interactions with each other.

Reviews:
'Written by outstanding academics well-recognized for their expertise on the

topic, this long-awaited book is a must have to anybody embarking on the process of global sourcing or seeking to enhance their existing knowledge. It provides a comprehensive conceptual overview of three crucial aspects of global sourcing - strategy, governance, and daily management - supplemented by well-researched case studies and lively examples.' - Professor Natalia Levina, NYU Stern School of Business

'In a truly globalized world, customers are looking not just at delivery excellence from service providers, but also global execution capabilities. Outsourcing providers need to look beyond standardized services to include innovation and transformation capabilities, embedded into their offering. This requires providers to focus on the customer's business, understand the issues and then provide solutions. This book provides a very good customer-centric view of how providers need to approach the market.' - Girish Ramachandran, Corporate Director - Strategic Business, Tata Consultancy Services

'Outsourcing and offshoring are commonplace terms, but they're often poorly understood and inexpertly practiced. Yet there is much 'out' left in 'sourcing,' and even more 'off' ahead of us in 'shoring.' The Handbook of Global Outsourcing and Offshoring is an intelligent user's manual – essential reading for those starting out as well as those who find they may have strayed off course.' - Dr. John Hindle, Senior Manager, Global Marketing, Accenture

'Out of sight but not out of mind' could well be the motto of this book. It is a 'must read' for those studying the global phenomenon and in managing outsourcing relationships. The frustrations and rising costs experienced by many can and need to be avoided. The Handbook of Global Outsourcing and Offshoring goes a long way in providing insights drawn from real-world experience in reducing the risks.' - Professor Robert D. Galliers, Provost, Bentley College.

'Sourcing optimization is a key strategic lever being deployed by global corporations as they adapt to the challenging business and economic climate. Sourcing practitioners will find this book a useful guide in terms of avoiding the common pitfalls that impact the success of such initiatives. The examples used in the book are free of jargon, drawn from real-life situations and easy to relate to.' - Srikanth Iyengar, Associate Vice President,Global Head of Business Development - SGS, Infosys Technologies Limited

'The Handbook of Global Outsourcing and Offshoring is outstanding. It is both insightful and practical. It is useful for companies that are considering outsourcing as a growth strategy as well as those that set out to provide high quality outsourcing services to its clients globally.' - John Peng, Sr. Vice President, Global Strategic Account iSoftStone Information Service Corp

'The Handbook of Global Outsourcing and Offshoring provides a broad and in-depth understanding of outsourcing from the client perspective. From the early days of outsourcing, client and provider companies alike have made innumerable mistakes. This handbook provides valuable guidance about what it takes to avoid the pitfalls and outsource successfully. This should be a required reference for any company considering outsourcing.' - Wendell O. Jones, Outsourcing pioneer and thought leader

Table of Contents:
Overview Of The Global Sourcing Marketplace
Sourcing Models: What And When To Outsource/Offshore
Country Attractiveness For Sourcing
Supplier Core Capabilities And Strategies For Sustainability And Growth
Leveraging Knowledge And Expertise
Client Perspective: Vendor Selection Strategy, Retained Management Capabilities And Legal Issue
The IT Outsourcing Life Cycle And The Transition Phase
Governance Of Outsourcing Projects
Managing Distributed Teams
Emerging Issues In Sourcing Strategy

About the Authors:
Ilan Oshri is an Associate Professor of Strategic Management, Rotterdam School of Management Erasmus, the Netherlands. He holds a PhD in Strategic Management and Technological Innovations from Warwick Business School, UK. His main research interest lies in the area of learning, knowledge management and innovation in global teams. His work has been widely published in books and journals.

Julia Kotlarsky is Associate Professor of Information Systems, Information Systems and Management Group, Warwick Business School, UK. She holds a PhD in Information Systems and Management from Rotterdam School of Management Erasmus, the Netherlands. Her research interests revolve around managing knowledge, social and technical aspects of globally distributed software development teams, and IT outsourcing. Kotlarsky has written on this subject and her work has been widely published in books and journals.

Leslie Willcocks is Professor of Technology Work and Globalization and Director of the Outsourcing Unit at the London School of Economics and Political Science, UK. He has co-authored 29 books and over 150 refereed journal papers on the management of information and communications technologies, and their impact on organizations. He is Editor of the Journal of Information Technology and is internationally recognized for his academic research and his advisory work for major corporations and government agencies.

Palgrave Macmillan, 11/10/2009
ISBN: 978-0-230-23550-2, ISBN10: 0-230-23550-6, 256 pages

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