AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF INFORMATION CAPABILITIES DESIGN ON BUSINESS PROCESS OUTSOURCING PERFORMANCE.

Author List: Mani, Deepa; Barua, Anitesh; Whinston, Andrew;
MIS Quarterly, 2010, Volume 34, Issue 1, Page 39-62.
Organizations today outsource diverse business processes to achieve a wide variety of business objectives ranging from reduction of costs to innovation and business transformation. We build on the information processing view of the firm to theorize that performance heterogeneity across business process outsourcing (BPO) exchanges is a function of the design of information capabilities (IC) that fit the unique information requirements (IR) of the exchange. Further, we compare performance effects of the fit between IR and IC across dominant categories of BPO relationships to provide insights into the relative benefits of enacting such fit between the constructs. Empirical tests of our hypotheses using survey data on 127 active BPO relationships find a significant increase (decrease) in satisfaction as a result of the fit (misfit) between IR and IC of the relationship. The results have implications for how BPO relationships must be designed and managed to realize significant performance gains. The study also extends the IPV to identify IC that provide the incentives and means to process information in an interfirm relationship.
Keywords: Business process outsourcing; governance; information capabilities; information processing view; information requirements; performance
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#25 0.120 relationships relationship relational information interfirm level exchange relations perspective model paper interpersonal expertise theory study effects literature role social identify
#59 0.120 capabilities capability firm firms performance resources business information technology firm's resource-based competitive it-enabled view study value infrastructure results organizational model
#76 0.089 governance relational mechanisms bpo rights process coordination outsourcing contractual arrangements technology benefits view informal business formal exchange hybrid complementarity flexibility
#207 0.085 design artifacts alternative method artifact generation approaches alternatives tool science generate set promising requirements evaluation problem designed incentives components addressing
#274 0.084 outsourcing transaction cost partnership information economics relationships outsource large-scale contracts specificity perspective decisions long-term develop requirements economic association factors hypotheses
#276 0.082 satisfaction information systems study characteristics data results using user related field survey empirical quality hypotheses important success various indicate tested
#170 0.081 information processing needs based lead make exchange situation examined ownership analytical improved situations changes informational examine developed receive perceptions facilitates
#69 0.071 process business reengineering processes bpr redesign paper research suggests provide past improvements manage enable organizations regarding focal cycle creating issues
#295 0.065 task fit tasks performance cognitive theory using support type comprehension tools tool effects effect matching types theories modification working time