Future Of Outsourcing Research Articles

Strategic Medical Affairs Outsourcing: Pragmatic Solution In A Fast-Changing And Resource-Constrained World

This review explores the advantages of strategic medical affairs outsourcing and introduces 'Medical Affairs Consultation' as a pivotal concept. The pharmaceutical industry grapples with challenges such as regulatory complexity, cost pressures, and limited internal resources, requiring expertise in various domains. Medical affairs consultation empowers companies to navigate these hurdles, optimize costs, and expand geographically. The global market for medical affairs outsourcing is growing rapidly, presenting significant opportunities, particularly in the pharmaceutical sector. Outsourcing promotes agility and adaptability in this evolving healthcare landscape, while digital platforms enhance collaboration and information sharing on a global scale. However, careful risk evaluation and proactive management are essential for successful medical affairs outsourcing. Various outsourcing models cater to diverse organizational needs, allowing efficiency and effectiveness in specific functional areas. The future of outsourcing in India holds promise, driven by its skilled workforce, internet accessibility, and cost-efficiency.

Make, buy, borrow or crowdsource? The evolution and future of outsourcing

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide a conceptual and historical overview of the evolution of outsourcing. The authors then focus and prognosticate on the future of outsourcing and develop several compelling ideas based on extant insights and the rule of three axioms.Design/methodology/approachThe insights are developed based on a review of the extant literature and evolution of trends.FindingsThe paper generates several insights. First, there is a need to carefully differentiate between core and non-core functions when deciding on whether/what to outsource. Some outsourcing options may boost financial performance in the short run but undermine the long-term viability of the firm. Public firms outsource more than private firms after controlling for size. In many cases, the optimal number of primary suppliers for a critical function/process/stock keeping unit (SKU) is three (while also allowing for a number of secondary suppliers). The optimal share distribution between the suppliers for the same SKU is rank ordinal (i.e. not equal). The complexity and the maturity of the supply chain as well as industry life cycle, regulation and technology influence the optimal number of primary suppliers.Research limitations/implicationsThe insights have significant implications for outsourcing decisions and for improving their impact on firm performance. The emergence of the shared economy, subscription-based business models and crowdsourcing will lead to consumers, business and society that increasingly borrows rather than one that makes or buys.Originality/valueThe paper represents the first attempt to integrate the axioms of the rule of three with the outsourcing literature and the theory of the firm. It emphasizes the need to align (long-term) performance objectives with managerial incentives as businesses manage their outsourcing efforts.

The future of outsourcing and perspectives for the corporate real estate and facility management industries

The future of outsourcing is less about driving cost reductions and more about generating positive outcomes in support of organisations’ strategic objectives. Organisations will seek to leverage outsourcing in new ways that offer them advantages such as innovation, growth, brand protection and access to both talent and new markets, in addition to cost flexibility and cost-savings. It is here that relationships become increasingly important, especially with corporate real estate (CRE) and facility management (FM) service providers. According to this research, the relationships between sourcing firms and outsourcing providers are evolving from being transactional towards a spectrum of relationships based on various degrees of interdependence. Outsourcing is growing more complex to accommodate new market needs. This paper highlights several of the key trends and major shifts in the outsourcing landscape, and outlines five emerging sourcing approaches that capture the changing nature of outsourcing relationships towards 2020 and beyond, with implications for CRE and FM. The five emerging sourcing approaches are: crowd sourcing, solution sourcing, network sourcing, co-sourcing and mesh sourcing.

Managing the risk of outsourcing the IT function at companies

The main objective for this secondary research is to determine whether the risk of outsourcing the IT function can be managed. Driven by political and economic dynamic changes, facilities management was borne to enable reacting to change. Doing business in today’s global economy requires exceptional skills from management in order to be competitive and to have a specific competitive advantage over competitors are getting even more demanding. One of the widest used methods of facilities management deployed by organisations is that of outsourcing in various forms (i.e. I.T., H.R., Distribution, Warehousing, etc.) for various different reasons (i.e. reduce costs, improve quality, focus on core business, etc.). In order for outsourcing to be successful, it needs to add benefits to profits, efficiency or effectiveness ethic. Outsourcing assists management to gain a competitive advantage over competitors within their specific industries as part of their organizational strategies and developing or strengthening core competencies at the same time. Global outsourcing on the other hand leads to controversy inasmuch as it reduces home-country economic activity and employment. The consulted secondary resources confirm that if outsourcing delivers managers can take calculated decisions to use it in their businesses. The future of outsourcing is promising as non-core functions of businesses may rather be outsourced to save on costs. A broad set of new and alternative IT delivery models are already main stream. These models receive attention because of benign economic market conditions.

Outsourcing in the German Hospital Sector

Being under pressure both from demographic changes in most industrialised countries and increasingly scarce financial resources in social security, in the last decade the German hospital sector tried to find some relief in outsourcing of services not belonging to its core competences like IT services, catering and cleaning. However, not all the hopes connected with this strategy have been fulfilled. This paper takes stock of the current situation of outsourcing in the German hospital sector mainly by the size of the institution. It describes the patterns of outsourcing in the sector, looks at the reasons for outsourcing, and describes the experiences with it of the hospitals on the one hand and the service providers on the other. We conclude by expressing our expectations concerning the foreseeable future of outsourcing in the German hospital sector.

Outsourcing: A Guide to Selecting the Correct Business Unit; Negotiating the Contract; Maintaining Control of the Process

The Strategy of Outsourcing. Outsourcing a Function. Accounting for the Outsourced Company. Outsourcing the Accounting Function. Outsourcing Computer Services. Outsourcing the Customer Service Function. Outsourcing the Engineering Function. Outsourcing the Human Resources Function. Outsourcing the Maintenance and Janitorial Functions. Outsourcing the Manufacturing Function. Outsourcing the Materials--Management Function. Outsourcing the Sales and Marketing Functions. Outsourcing the Administration Function. Summary of the Functional Areas. The Future of Outsourcing. Appendices. Index.

Sourcing: new face to economies of scale and the emergence of new organizational forms

This paper provides an overview of the thinking behind strategic sourcing and highlights an emerging trend development, namely the centralization of shared services. In so doing, a model highlighting the likely future developments of sourcing is proposed, emphasizing why sourcing should be viewed from a strategic perspective. The paper invokes conceptual knowledge, practical case studies and research in its pursuit to shed light on the increasingly complex and sophisticated forms of sourcing to be found in today's organizations. It draws on both management theory concepts in understanding new organizational forms, exemplified by ‘sourced service consortia’ organizations and economic analysis in understanding contracting, markets and the nature of corporations. The benefits and costs of outsourcing are also explored, as well as the conditions for effective new sourcing arrangements. In the concluding section, a scenario for the future of outsourcing is presented. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.