Offshoring: secure or open to the praying mantis?

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate and gain knowledge into the reasons why a UK‐based wholesaling company outsourced its information technology and call centre services, and what security measures were put in place to protect the sensitive information they hold in and transmit via their information system to prevent misuse of sensitive information, and to highlight any challenges the company faced connected with offshore outsourcing.Design/methodology/approachThe research in this paper is exploratory and draws on prior research following a company's journey of outsourcing its network security and contact/call centre services to two offshore Indian companies, and subsequently discusses the issues surrounding maintaining the security and control of the systems.FindingsThe paper shows that offshore outsourcing of security management and contact/call centre services can be managed and organised successfully.Research limitations/implicationsThe one case study limits the findings – they may not be generalisable.Originality/valueFor researchers and academia, the paper adds to the literature on outsourcing and call centre work and may be of interest to companies who are considering offshore outsourcing.