The Blurring Boundary of the Organisation Outsourcing Comes of Age

From the Inside Flap The parameters of business as we have come to know it are transforming. Outsourcing is simultaneously a symptom and a cause of many of these transformations. What constitutes being “in” or “out” of an organisation is less and less definitive. The boundary of an organisation is becoming amorphous. The boundaries of people's commitments and capabilities are of increasing interest. The blurring boundary of the organisation: Outsourcing comes of age is the result of the Nolan Norton Institute and KPMG Consulting’s multi-company research project. The book includes recommendations for all parties that are currently involved in outsourcing arrangements and those that intend to enter such arrangements, making it a must for those that want to be at the forefront of sourcing decisions. The book contains nine Australasian outsourcing case studies, covering the outsourcing of IT; payroll and human resources administration; mail services; facilities maintenance; applications services; and fulfilment. Vendors in the case studies are ADP Employer Services; Aspect Information Technology Solutions; Atos Origin; Australia Post Mailroom Solutions; Hansen Corporation; Hewlett Packard; POST groceriesonline DELIVERY; Programmed Maintenance Services Limited; and T-Systems. Product Description The practice of outsourcing business functions is now common rather than exceptional. This book looks at ways to make this common practice best practice. Through presentation of management frameworks, skill retention strategies, relationship management approaches and nine Australasian case studies, the book concludes with recommendations for both outsourcing buyers and outsourcing vendors. From the Author The research program underlying this book gave us a unique opportunity to analyze the dynamics of outsourcing from many perspectives. Both customers and vendors gave their views of what works and what doesn't -- with a surprising degree of consistency across a range of services that runs from building maintenance to high-tech services. All service providers allowed scrutiny of their key asset -- their employees -- in order to better understand the status of the key outsourcing concerns of loyalties, skills and retention. The revelations from this group were profoundly insctructive for all group participants. The findings of the group's major research activities were too useful to keep to ourselves - hence the tying together of the major findings in this book. About the Author Margaret Hurley is the Director of Research for the Nolan Norton Institute, the international research arm of KPMG Consulting in Melbourne, Australia. Based in Toronto, Canada, she is an international speaker and researcher on a wide variety of management topics. Christina Costa is a researcher and consultant. She has recently completed a thesis on "The values and incidence of IT outsourcing in Australia.