Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-5b777bbd6c-gtgcz Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-06-18T06:45:11.415Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

3 - A theory of the outsourcing firm

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 January 2011

By
Dave Luvison  and
Mike Bendixen
Edited by
Farok J. Contractor ,
Vikas Kumar ,
Sumit K. Kundu  and
Torben Pedersen
Dave Luvison
Affiliation:
Nova Southeastern University
Mike Bendixen
Affiliation:
Nova Southeastern University
Farok J. Contractor
Affiliation:
Rutgers University, New Jersey
Vikas Kumar
Affiliation:
University of Sydney
Sumit K. Kundu
Affiliation:
Florida International University
Torben Pedersen
Affiliation:
Copenhagen Business School
Get access

Summary

Introduction

Outsourcing has evolved into a significant organizational practice over the last decade (Hoecht and Trott, 2006). However, as firms expand the practice by outsourcing increasingly key and core functions, new management challenges can be anticipated. The organizational changes that accompany these challenges are likely to be sweeping, suggesting that it is now appropriate to consider the need for a comprehensive behavioral theory of the outsourcing firm.

Both transaction cost economics (TCE) and the resource-based view of the firm (RBV) have been useful perspectives to investigate the determinants and conditions under which firms can best leverage outsourcing (Holcomb and Hitt, 2007; McIvor, 2009). Transaction cost economics provides clear direction as to economic trade-offs and contracting styles that a firm can use to evaluate the consequences of a potential outsourcing decision (Williamson, 2008). Similarly, the resource-based view highlights how unique capabilities of the firm can offer advantage when appropriately matched to environmental conditions (Peteraf, 1993); this has made it an effective measure to determine the extent to which a firm's competencies can and should be outsourced (Jennings, 2002; McIvor, 2003).

While TCE and RBV offer helpful vehicles for measuring the efficiencies gained through outsourcing, they offer a less helpful look into the organizational changes that occur within the firm as it outsources an increasingly larger percentage of its functionality to external contract providers.

Type
Chapter
Information
Global Outsourcing and Offshoring
An Integrated Approach to Theory and Corporate Strategy
 , pp. 73 - 104
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Book purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Adler, P.S. 2003. “Making the HR outsourcing decision,” MIT Sloan Management Review 45: 53–60.Google Scholar
Aldrich, H. and Herker, D. 1977. “Boundary spanning roles and organization structure,” The Academy of Management Review 2: 217–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Alexander, M. and Young, D. 1996. “Outsourcing: where's the value?” Long Range Planning 29: 728–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ambrose, E., Lynch, D., Fynes, B., and Marshall, D. 2008. “Communication media selection in buyer-supplier relationships,” International Journal of Operations & Production Management 28: 360–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Amitay, M., Popper, M., and Lipshitz, R. 2005. “Leadership styles and organizational learning in community clinics,” The Learning Organization 12: 57–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Argote, L. and Ingram, P. 2000. “Knowledge transfer: a basis for competitive advantage in firms,” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 82: 150–69.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Argyris, C. 1998. “Empowerment: the emperor's new clothes,” Harvard Business Review 76: 98–105.Google ScholarPubMed
Bailey, W., Masson, R., and Raeside, R. 2002. “Outsourcing in Edinburgh and the Lothians,” European Journal of Purchasing & Supply Management 8: 83–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barney, J.B. 1999. “How a firm's capabilities affect boundary decisions,” MIT Sloan Management Review 40: 137–45.Google Scholar
Barney, J.B. 2001. “Resource-based theories of competitive advantage: a ten-year retrospective on the resource-based view,” Journal of Management 27: 643–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barthelemy, J. 2001. “The hidden costs of IT outsourcing,” MIT Sloan Management Review 42: 60–69.Google Scholar
Barthelemy, J. 2003. “The seven deadly sins of outsourcing: executive commentary,” The Academy of Management Executive 17: 87–98.Google Scholar
Bass, B.M. and Avolio, B.J. 1994. Improving Organizational Effectiveness Through Transformational Leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.Google Scholar
Bell, B.S. and Kozlowski, S.W.J. 2002. “A typology of virtual teams: implications for effective leadership,” Group & Organization Management 27: 14–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bergiel, B.J., Bergiel, E.B., and Balsmeier, P.W. 2008. “Nature of virtual teams: a summary of their advantages and disadvantages,” Management Research News 31: 99–110.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bosch-Sijtsema, P. 2007. “The impact of individual expectations and expectation conflicts on virtual teams,” Group & Organization Management 32: 358–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Burnes, B. and James, H. 1995. “Culture, cognitive dissonance and the management of change,” International Journal of Operations & Production Management 15: 14–33.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Burt, R.S. 1992. Structural Holes: The Social Structure of Competition. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Byron, K. 2008. “Carrying too heavy a load? The communication and miscommunication of emotion by email,” Academy of Management Review 33: 309–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cameron, K.S. 1986. “Effectiveness as paradox: consensus and conflict in conceptions of organizational effectiveness,” Management Science 32: 539–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, M.-J. 2002. “Transcending paradox: the Chinese ‘middle way’ perspective,” Asia Pacific Journal of Management 19: 179–99.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chopra, S. and Sodhi, M.S. 2004. “Managing risk to avoid supply-chain breakdown,” MIT Sloan Management Review 46: 53–61.Google Scholar
Clegg, S.R., Cunha, J.V., and Cunha, M.P. 2002. “Management paradoxes: a relational view,” Human Relations 55: 483–503.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cohen, W.M. and Levinthal, D.A. 1990. “Absorptive capacity: a new perspective on learning and innovation,” Administrative Science Quarterly 35: 128–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cox, A. 1999. “Power, value and supply chain management,” Supply Chain Management 4: 167–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cox, A. 2001. “The power perspective in procurement and supply management,” Journal of Supply Chain Management 37: 4–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
DeLuca, D. and Valacich, J.S. 2006. “Virtual teams in and out of synchronicity,” Information Technology & People 19: 323–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Man, A.-P. 2004. The Network Economy. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.Google Scholar
Dodgson, M. 1993. “Learning, trust and technological collaboration,” Human Relations 46: 77–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dorfman, P.W. and House, R.J. 2004. “Cultural influences on organizational leadership: literature review, theoretical rationale, and GLOBE Project goals,” in House, R.J., Hanges, P.J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P.W., and Gupta, V. (eds.), Culture, Leadership and Organizations: The GLOBE Study of 62 Societies. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.Google Scholar
Driskell, J.E., Goodwin, G.F., Salas, E., and O'Shea, P.G. 2006. “What makes a good team player? Personality and team effectiveness,” Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice 10: 249–71.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dwyer, F.R., Schurr, P.H., and Oh, S. 1987. “Developing buyer-seller relationships,” Journal of Marketing 51: 11–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dyer, J.H. and Singh, H. 1998. “The relational view: cooperative strategy and sources of interorganizational competitive advantage,” The Academy of Management Review 23: 660–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Easterby-Smith, M., Lyles, M.A., and Tsang, E.W.K. 2008. “Inter-organizational knowledge transfer: current themes and future prospects,” Journal of Management Studies 45: 677–90.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ellram, L.M., Tate, W.L., and Billington, C. 2008. “Offshore outsourcing of professional services: a transaction cost economics perspective,” Journal of Operations Management 26: 148–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eriksson, K. and Hohenthal, J. 2001. “The transferability of knowledge in business network relationships,” in Hakansson, H. and Johanson, J. (eds.), Business Network Learning. Oxford: Elsevier Science, pp. 91–106.Google Scholar
Espino-Rodríguez, T.F. and Padrón-Robaina, V. 2006. “A review of outsourcing from the resource-based view of the firm,” International Journal of Management Reviews 8: 49–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fawcett, S.E., Ogden, J.A., Magnan, G.M., and Cooper, M.B. 2006. “Organizational commitment and governance for supply chain success,” International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management 36: 22–35.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fennell, M.L. and Alexander, J. 1987. “Organizational boundary spanning in institutionalized environments,” Academy of Management Journal 30: 456–76.Google Scholar
Furst, S.A., Reeves, M., Rosen, B., and Blackburn, R.S. 2004. “Managing the life cycle of virtual teams,” Academy of Management Executive 18: 6–20.Google Scholar
Gibson, C.B. and Gibbs, J.L. 2006. “Unpacking the concept of virtuality: the effects of geographic dispersion, electronic dependence, dynamic structure, and national diversity on team innovation,” Administrative Science Quarterly 51: 451–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Granovetter, M. 1985. “Economic action and social structure: the problem of embeddedness,” American Journal of Sociology 91: 481–510.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grant, R.M. 1996a. “Prospering in dynamically-competitive environments: organizational capability as knowledge integration,” Organization Science 7: 375–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grant, R.M. 1996b. “Toward a knowledge-based theory of the firm,” Strategic Management Journal 17: 109–22.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grant, R.M. and Baden-Fuller, C. 2004. “A knowledge accessing theory of strategic alliances,” Journal of Management Studies 41: 61–84.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greaver, M.F. 1999. Strategic Outsourcing: A Structured Approach to Outsourcing Decisions and Initiatives. New York: Amacon.Google Scholar
Gulati, R. 1995. “Does familiarity breed trust? The implications of repeated ties for contractual choice in alliances,” Academy of Management Journal 38: 85–112.Google Scholar
Hall, R.H. 1999. Organizations. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.Google Scholar
Harland, C., Knight, L., Lamming, R., and Walker, H. 2005. “Outsourcing: assessing the risks and benefits for organisations, sectors and nations,” International Journal of Operations & Production Management 25: 831–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heimeriks, K.H. and Duysters, G. 2007. “Alliance capability as a mediator between experience and alliance performance: an empirical investigation into the alliance capability development process,” Journal of Management Studies 44: 25–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Helfat, C.E. and Peteraf, M.A. 2003. “The dynamic resource-based view: capability lifecycles,” Strategic Management Journal 24: 997–1010.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hertel, G., Konradt, U., and Orlikowski, B. 2004. “Managing distance by interdependence: goal setting, task interdependence, and team-based rewards in virtual teams,” European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology 13: 1–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hewitt, P. 2006. “Electronic mail and internal communication: a three-factor model,” Corporate Communications 11: 78–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoecht, A. and Trott, P. 2006. “Outsourcing, information leakage and the risk of losing technology-based competencies,” European Business Review 18: 395–412.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hofstede, G. 2001. Culture's Consequences: Comparing Values, Behaviors, Institutions, and Organizations Across Nations, 2nd edn. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Holcomb, T.R. and Hitt, M.A. 2007. “Toward a model of strategic outsourcing,” Journal of Operations Management 25: 464–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hormozi, A., Hostetler, E., and Middleton, C. 2003. “Outsourcing information technology: assessing your options,” SAM Advanced Management Journal 68: 18–23.Google Scholar
Inkpen, A.C. and Tsang, E.W.K. 2005. “Social capital, networks, and knowledge transfer,” Academy of Management Review 30: 146–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Inkpen, A.C. and Tsang, E.W.K. 2007. “Learning and strategic alliances,” The Academy of Management Annals 1: 479–511.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ipe, M. 2003. “Knowledge sharing in organizations,” Human Resource Development Review 2: 337–59.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jemison, D.B. 1984. “The importance of boundary spanning roles in strategic decision-making,” Journal of Management Studies 21: 131–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jennings, D. 2002. “Strategic sourcing: benefits, problems and a contextual model,” Management Decisions 40: 26–34.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jensen, M.C. and Meckling, W.F. 1976. “Theory of the firm: managerial behavior, agency costs, and ownership structure,” Journal of Financial Economics 3: 305–69.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jiang, B., Frazier, G.V., and Prater, E.L. 2006. “Outsourcing effects on firms' operational performance,” International Journal of Operations & Production Management 26: 1280–300.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Johnson, M. 1997. Outsourcing…in brief. London: Butterworth-Heinemann.Google Scholar
Kakumanu, P. and Portanova, A. 2006. “Outsourcing: its benefits, drawbacks and other related issues,” Journal of American Academy of Business, Cambridge 9: 1–7.Google Scholar
Kale, P., Dyer, J.H., and Singh, H. 2001. “Value creation and success in strategic alliances: alliancing skills and the role of alliance structure and systems,” European Management Journal 19: 463–71.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kale, P. and Singh, H. 2007. “Building firm capabilities through learning: the role of the alliance learning process in alliance capability and firm-level alliance success,” Strategic Management Journal 28: 981–1000.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Katz, D. and Kahn, R.L. 1966. The Social Psychology of Organizations. New York: John Wiley & Sons.Google Scholar
Katz, R. and Tushman, M.L. 1983. “A longitudinal study of the effects of boundary spanning supervision on turnover and promotion in research and development,” Academy of Management Journal 26: 437–56.Google Scholar
Klein, K.J., Palmer, S.L., and Conn, A.B. 2000. “Interorganizational relationships: a multilevel perspective,” in Klein, K.J. and Kozlowski, S.W.J. (eds.), Multilevel Theory, Research and Methods in Organizations: Foundations, Extensions and New Directions. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, pp. 267–307.Google Scholar
Lado, A.A., Boyd, N.G., Wright, P., and Kroll, M. 2006. “Paradox and theorizing within the resource-based view,” The Academy of Management Review 31: 115–31.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lane, P.J. and Lubatkin, M. 1998. “Relative absorptive capacity and interorganizational learning,” Strategic Management Journal 19: 461–77.3.0.CO;2-L>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Larsson, R., Bengtsson, L., Henriksson, K., and Sparks, J. 1998. “The interorganizational learning dilemma: collective knowledge development in strategic alliances,” Organization Science 9: 285–305.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Latapie, H.M. and Tran, V.N. 2007. “Subculture formation, evolution, and conflict between regional teams in virtual organizations – lessons learned and recommendations,” The Business Review, Cambridge 7: 189–93.Google Scholar
Lawrence, P.R. and Lorsch, J.W. 1967. Organization and Environment. Boston: Graduate School of Business Administration, Harvard University.Google Scholar
Lewis, M.W. 2000. “Exploring paradox: toward a more comprehensive guide,” The Academy of Management Review 25: 760–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lonsdale, C. 1999. “Effectively managing vertical supply relationships: a risk management model for outsourcing,” Supply Chain Management 4: 176–83.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lonsdale, C. and Cox, A. 1997. “Outsourcing: risks and rewards,” Supply Management 3: 32–34.Google Scholar
Mahnke, V. 2001. “The process of vertical dis-integration: an evolutionary perspective on outsourcing,” Journal of Management & Governance 5: 353–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mahnke, V., Özcan, S., and Overby, M.L. 2006. “Outsourcing innovative capabilities for IT-enabled services,” Industry and Innovation 13: 189–207.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marsh, S. and Macalpine, M. 1999. “The search for reconciling insights: a ‘really useful’ tool for managing paradox,” The Journal of Management Development 18: 642.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McCarthy, I. and Anagnostou, A. 2004. “The impact of outsourcing on the transaction costs and boundaries of manufacturing,” International Journal of Production Economics 88: 61–71.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McIvor, R. 2000. “A practical framework for understanding the outsourcing process,” Supply Chain Management 5: 22–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McIvor, R. 2003. “Outsourcing: insights from the telecommunications industry,” Supply Chain Management 8: 380–94.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McIvor, R. 2009. “How the transaction cost and resource-based theories of the firm inform outsourcing evaluating,” Journal of Operations Management 27: 45–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miller, D. and Chen, M.-J. 1996. “The simplicity of competitive repertoires: an empirical analysis,” Strategic Management Journal 17: 419–39.3.0.CO;2-Z>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mohr, J.J. and Sengupta, S. 2002. “Managing the paradox of inter-firm learning: the role of governance mechanisms,” The Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing 17: 282–301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Momme, J. 2002. “Framework for outsourcing manufacturing: strategic and operational implications,” Computers in Industry 49: 59–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mudambi, R. and Helper, S. 1998. “The ‘close but adversarial’ model of supplier relations in the US auto industry,” Strategic Management Journal 19: 775–92.3.0.CO;2-V>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Muehlberger, U. 2007. “Hierarchical forms of outsourcing and the creation of dependency,” Organization Studies 28: 709–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mullen, T.P. and Lyles, M.A. 1993. “Toward improving management development's contribution to organizational learning,” Human Resource Planning 16: 35–49.Google Scholar
Nelson, R.R. and Winter, S.G. 1982. An Evolutionary Theory of Economic Change. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Nooteboom, B. 2000. “Learning by interaction: absorptive capacity, cognitive distance and governance,” Journal of Management & Governance 4: 69–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Norrman, A. and Jansson, U. 2004. “Ericsson's proactive supply chain risk management approach after a serious sub-supplier accident,” International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management 34: 434–56.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pahlberg, C. 2001. “Creation and diffusion of knowledge in subsidiary business networks,” in Hakansson, H. and Johanson, J. (eds.), Business Network Learning. Oxford: Elsevier Science, pp. 169–81.Google Scholar
Pedersen, T. and Thomsen, S. 1999. “Business systems and corporate governance,” International Studies of Management & Organization 29: 43–59.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peteraf, M.A. 1993. “The cornerstones of competitive advantage: a resource-based view,” Strategic Management Journal 14: 179–91.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peters, L.M. and Manz, C.C. 2007. “Identifying antecedents of virtual team collaboration,” Team Performance Management 13: 117–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Poppo, L. and Zenger, T. 2002. “Do formal contracts and relational governance function as substitutes or complements?” Strategic Management Journal 23: 707–25.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Porter, M.E. 1996. “What is strategy?” Harvard Business Review 74: 61–78.Google Scholar
Porter, M.E. 2001. “Strategy and the internet,” Harvard Business Review 79: 62–78.Google ScholarPubMed
Powell, W.W., Koput, K.W., and Smith-Doerr, L. 1996. “Interorganizational collaboration and the locus of innovation: networks of learning in biotechnology,” Administrative Science Quarterly 41: 116–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Quelin, B. and Duhamel, F. 2003. “Bringing together strategic outsourcing and corporate strategy: outsourcing motives and risks,” European Management Journal 21: 647–61.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Quinn, R.E. and Cameron, K.S. 1988. Paradox and Transformation: Toward a Theory of Change in Organization and Management. Cambridge, MA: Ballinger.Google Scholar
Rhinesmith, S.H. 2001. “How can you manage global paradox?” Journal of Corporate Accounting & Finance 12: 3–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rosen, S.M. 1994. Science, Paradox, and the Moebius Principle. Albany: State University of New York Press.Google Scholar
Rosen, B., Furst, S., and Blackburn, R. 2007. “Overcoming barriers to knowledge sharing in virtual teams,” Organizational Dynamics 36: 259–73.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rothaermel, F.T., Hitt, M.A., and Jobe, L.A. 2006. “Balancing vertical integration and strategic outsourcing: effects on product portfolio, product success, and firm performance,” Strategic Management Journal 27: 1033–56.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sadowski, B.M., Dittrich, K., and Duysters, G.M. 2003. “Collaborative strategies in the event of technological discontinuities: the case of Nokia in the mobile telecommunication industry,” Small Business Economics 21: 173–86.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scarso, E. and Bolisani, E. 2008. “Communities of practice as structures for managing knowledge in networked corporations,” Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management 19: 374–90.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sheard, A.G. and Kakabadse, A.P. 2002. “From loose groups to effective teams: the nine key factors of the team landscape,” The Journal of Management Development 21: 133–51.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Simonin, B. 1999. “Ambiguity and the process of knowledge transfer in strategic alliances,” Strategic Management Journal 20: 595–623.3.0.CO;2-5>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Snow, C.C., Miles, R.E., and Coleman, Jr., H.J. 1992. “Managing 21st century network organizations,” Organizational Dynamics 20: 5–20.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spekman, R.E., Spear, J., and Kamauff, J. 2002. “Supply chain competency: learning as a key component,” Supply Chain Management 7: 41–55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stata, R. 1989. “Organizational learning – the key to management innovation,” MIT Sloan Management Review 30: 63–74.Google Scholar
Stratman, J.K. 2008. “Facilitating offshoring with enterprise technologies: reducing operational friction in the governance and production of services,” Journal of Operations Management 26: 275–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Szulanski, G. 1995. “Unpacking stickiness: an empirical investigation of the barriers to transfer best practice inside the firm,” Academy of Management Journal: 437–41.Google Scholar
Szulanski, G. 1996. “Exploring internal stickiness: impediments to the transfer of best practice within the firm,” Strategic Management Journal 17: 27–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tadelis, S. 2007. “The innovative organization: creating value through outsourcing,” California Management Review 50: 261–77.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Takeishi, A. 2001. “Bridging inter- and intra-firm boundaries: management of supplier involvement in automobile product development,” Strategic Management Journal 22: 403–33.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Teece, D.J. 2000. “Strategies for managing knowledge assets: the role of firm structure and industrial context,” Long Range Planning 33: 34–54.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, J.D. 1967. Organizations in Action: Social Science Bases of Administrative Theory. New York: McGraw-Hill.Google Scholar
Townsend, A.M., DeMarie, S.M., and Hendrickson, A.R. 1998. “Virtual teams: technology and the workplace of the future,” Academy of Management Executive 12: 17–29.Google Scholar
Tushman, M.L. and Scanlan, T.J. 1981a. “Boundary spanning individuals: their role in information transfer and their antecedents,” Academy of Management Journal 24: 289–305.Google Scholar
Tushman, M.L. and Scanlan, T.J. 1981b. “Characteristics and external orientations of boundary spanning individuals,” Academy of Management Journal 24: 83–98.Google Scholar
Uzzi, B. 1997. “Social structure and competition in interfirm networks: the paradox of embeddedness,” Administrative Science Quarterly 42: 35–67.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vanhaverbeke, W., Beerkens, B., and Duysters, G. 2004. “Explorative and exploitative learning strategies in technology-based alliance networks,” paper presented at the Academy of Management.
Wang, E.T.G. and Wei, H.-L. 2007. “Interorganizational governance value creation: coordinating for information visibility and flexibility in supply chains,” Decision Sciences 38: 647–74.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wenger, E., McDermott, R., and Snyder, V.M. 2002. Cultivating Communities of Practice: A Guide to Managing Knowledge. Boston: Harvard Business School.Google Scholar
Willcocks, L.P. and Feeny, D. 2006. “IT outsourcing and core IS capabilities: challenges and lessons at Dupont,” Information Systems Management 23: 49–56.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williamson, O.E. 1985. The Economic Institutions of Capitalism. New York: Free Press.Google Scholar
Williamson, O.E. 2008. “Outsourcing: transaction cost economics and supply chain management,” Journal of Supply Chain Management 44: 5–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williamson, O.E. and Craswell, R. 1993. “Calculativeness, trust, and economic organization,” Journal of Law and Economics 36: 453–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Winkler, I. 2006. “Network governance between individual and collective goals: qualitative evidence from six networks,” Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies 12: 119–34.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wu, T., Blackhurst, J., and Chidambaram, V. 2006. “A model for inbound supply risk analysis,” Computers in Industry 57: 350–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yu, C.-M.J., Liao, T.-J., and Lin, Z.-D. 2006. “Formal governance mechanisms, relational governance mechanisms, and transaction-specific investments in supplier-manufacturer relationships,” Industrial Marketing Management 35: 128–39.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zboralski, K. and Gemünden, H.G. 2006. “The impact of communities of practice,” in Coakes, E. and Clarke, S. (eds.), Encyclopedia of Communities of Practice in Information and Knowledge Management. Hershey, PA: Idea Group, pp. 218–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×