A model of logistics outsourcing strategy

Abstract

Previous research points to an apparent gap between the prescriptive models designed to guide companies in making systematic outsourcing decisions and the practices some companies actually use. While prescriptive models would suggest the predominance of outsourcing decisions are made using top-down, proactive, systematic- and strategic-competence-driven processes, prior researchers observed that actual decisions are often made using local, reactive, ad-hoc, and seemingly limited-strategy-driven processes. This article addresses this inconsistency by presenting a data-driven descriptive model of logistics outsourcing strategy, based on grounded theory research methods, that explores the experiences of logistics professionals. Our findings support the idea that while prescriptive models providing cognitive approaches to logistics outsourcing exist in the literature, in practice both cognitive and experiential search and evaluation are used to make outsourcing decisions. Additionally, we extend the work of de Boer, Gaytan, and Arroyo (2006) by adding personal factors, such as experience and self-interest, and cultural factors, such as organizational values and norms, as inputs to the process.