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The purpose of this paper is to explore sourcing strategies for facilities management services using core-competency theory of outsourcing. The aim is to develop a screening framework for deciding the suitability of outsourcing versus in-house delivery for these services based on three levels of managerial functions prevalent in a typical commercial organization.

A questionnaire survey was administered for facilities managers in Sri Lanka to investigate the relative importance of these managerial functions for facilities management services and obtain their opinions on the best delivery mode. The managerial functions were derived from a literature review and verified using three semi-structured interviews prior to the questionnaire survey design.

The findings showed that facilities management services that are aligned to strategic functions are suitable for in-house delivery, while those that are aligned to tactical and operational functions for outsourcing.

Further studies should be conducted and extended to other types of organizations beyond commercial ones. Secondly, the quantitative study employed a smaller sample (n = 40), and the survey items were based on the review of literature which was verified using a very small number of interviews (n = 3).

The proposed framework can be utilized when choosing the best facilities management approach for commercial organizations in developing countries such as Sri Lanka.

This study contributes to the body of knowledge on the subject of facilities management by exploring the context in Sri Lankan which has not previously been done.

The purpose of this paper is to study the extent to which outsourcing of human resources (HR) is used and the attitude of the library staff towards outsourcing in science and technology libraries in Delhi and Chandigarh, India.

The paper is the result of a survey conducted in 25 science and technology libraries of Delhi and Chandigarh, India. Questionnaire and interview tools of survey were used to collect the primary data.

Most of the Indian libraries have been using selective outsourcing for many years, which has had favourable impact on the activities and services of these libraries. Outsourcing seems a viable solution, as a majority of the libraries lack the required permanent HR. Normally, outsourcing is considered to be an anti‐staff and an anti‐professional activity. However, the study found the library professional staff supportive of outsourcing because it reduced their workload and improved their skills and professional competencies.

This paper explores the hidden practices of Indian libraries to fill the gaps present in required and available HR. However, they hesitate to accept openly that outsourcing is a tool for managing resources and services that are not available in‐house.

This paper aims to use a case study approach to compare the performance of traditional models and an in‐house and outsourced solution and assess the importance of adequate network bandwidth in the remote replication process.

Using the authors’ autonomous computer system, the cost/benefits of five different disaster recovery (DR) models are determined and reported in a table. Further, experimental data gleaned from a series of data updates on remote replicas connected via the internet are reported.

The results indicate that the traditional models lack performance flexibility. The virtualized replica model and the outsourced solution are similar in terms of investment cost, but the former offers attractive performance and sound reliability characteristics, and provided adequate network bandwidth. The minimum practical speed to support replication updates in the authors’ autonomous system was 10 Mbs.

The results herein are only directly applicable to a system with characteristics similar to the authors’ autonomous system. However, the results do provide a general trend one would expect to carry across a wide variety of autonomous systems.

The primary value of this paper is the evaluation of several DR models in relationship to a live data centre. Each model is evaluated with regard to its cost, complexity, recovery time capabilities, and replication characteristics. While the models themselves are not new, the data puts “a face” on them and provides the reader with the degree of difference among the models.

This study extends and refines the current knowledge on emerging supply chain designs (SCDs) for industrial additive manufacturing (AM) and manufacturing firms' rationales in selecting them.

Following an exploratory research design, a multiple-case study is conducted in the context of industrial AM. It focuses on two key dimensions of SCD, the geographic dispersion and governance structure. Four cohesive AM SCD configurations are characterized and form the basis for exploring the rationales for the SCD decision of manufacturing firms.

The findings indicate that manufacturing firms' SCD for industrial AM depends on the trade-off between economies of scale in a centralized setting and the market potential from customer proximity realized by decentral AM. Furthermore, the control of suppliers and the reevaluation of manufacturing firms' core competencies guide the governance choice. Many of the identified rationales currently drive manufacturing firms toward in-house AM at a centralized location or distributed AM in a secure, firm-owned network.

The arguments for the AM SCD choices are illustrated. They provide guidance for managers of manufacturing firms when implementing industrial AM.

The study reveals and enhances the understanding of why the extant academic expectation of decentralized and outsourced AM is not sufficiently reflected in current industry practice. Thereby, the study provides a basis for elaborative decision-support research on AM SCDs.

The purpose of this study is to examine the levels of the main hotel outsourcing activities to identify the factors that determine the use of external suppliers for these activities.

A model was developed that analyzes the relationship between competitive advantage and outsourcing and how the relationship between competitive advantage and activity performance is affected by whether an activity is outsourced or not. Moreover, the study builds a matrix called “outsourcing and competitive advantage” where each of the activities can be placed. The study was carried out with a representative sample of hotels in a tourist destination, analyzing 12 activities from different departments in the hotels.

The study results indicate that there is a positive relationship between the competitive advantage of an activity and its outcome. In addition, the findings show that the relationship between competitive advantage and activity performance is stronger when the activity is developed internally than when it is outsourced. The study supports a negative relationship between the degree of outsourcing an activity and its competitive advantage. In addition, the findings showed that a change in the way of managing the outsourcing is determined by its performance.

This study aims to help managers make decisions about outsourcing by considering the perspective of the competitive advantage. Each hotel can situate the activities in the matrix created and compare itself to the sector mean for a strategic positioning of the outsourcing.

Most studies analyze asset specificity as a key variable; however, the competitive advantage has not been used in previous studies, in spite of being a better defined variable in the literature. This study classifies the activities into core and non-core and establishes their relationship with outsourcing. It also studies how the way of managing an activity (outsourcing or in-house) moderates the relationship between competitive advantage and performance. These aspects have not been analyzed in the literature..

This paper seeks to provide taxonomy and assessment methodologies for executives of global conglomerates with a selection of variables which can help them evaluate outsourcing decisions.

A range of established theories, which addressed outsourcing decisions, are identified. The major determinants of global outsourcing were then formulated into an integrated model. Each of the variables identified was validated using multiple theories. Finally, a weighted score index was used to demonstrate how the variables can be used to evaluate outsourcing decisions.

It provides an overview of outsourcing theories about the variety of major reasons and their associated determinants as well as attributes that are relevant to decision‐makers. It showed that the individual theories can be integrated into a global taxonomy. This taxonomy can be assessed using a weighted‐index because the inputs and computation processes contain realistic qualitative and quantitative information.

It is an assessment methodology that requires input and judgment from a variety of experts. Persons having such expertise may be fairly costly and difficult to find.

A very simple, yet comprehensive, and useful taxonomy for executives making outsourcing decisions. The assessment index is a proven methodology that is used by business consultants for a variety of related applications involving decision choices.

This paper fulfills the need for a more comprehensive view and a systematic approach to the assessment of outsourcing decisions. The index of attributes identified and the evaluation technique proposed are a practical approach.

The study aims to assess the sourcing approaches used in providing facilities management (FM) services in hotels. It further explores the factors that influence hotels' choice of sourcing approach and the challenges.

The study used a case study design. Simple random, census and purposive sampling techniques were used to select the hotels and respondents. Data were collected using interviews and analysed thematically. The data were presented in narration and direct quotes from the respondents. The critical factors influencing outsourcing decisions were ranked using the relative importance index. This study is based on a single case. Therefore, further research should be conducted to expand the scope of study nationwide as a step toward making the results more robust.

Both in-house and outsourcing sourcing approaches were used to provide FM services. In-house FM services mainly focused on cleaning, security and aspects of maintenance. Internet and information technology related services and other maintenance activities were also outsourced. Outsourcing decisions in the various hotel categories were mostly guided by the cost of outsourcing, core business, lack of in-house skills and hotel size.

FM strategy can be developed to guide the management of FM activities in hotels. An approach that adds value and enhances the activities of hotels and provides convenience to customers must be adopted by hotels. Further studies should be conducted on the cost implications of the two main sourcing approaches, as well as the impact of sourcing approaches on customer satisfaction. An additional study should focus on the driving factors influencing the cost and quality of outsourced FM services in hotels. This will help provide comprehensive information on effective FM sourcing approaches and the operations of hotels.

The study focused on the sourcing approaches used by hotels to provide FM services. It also explored the influencing factors and challenges of FM practices in hotels.

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into strategic sourcing concerning facilities management (FM) and how it can contribute to a sourcing decision that combines the benefits of internal and external provision with consideration of business risk and cost.

The paper investigates a strategic sourcing and procurement process in a large public organisation in Denmark based on participating in internal meetings, a workshop, document studies and interviews. The process is compared to a new ISO standard with guidance on strategic sourcing and development of FM agreements.

A problem in the new ISO standard is that it is based on sequential model starting with detailing the demand and needs before investigating sourcing option. The case shows that the way needs are specified are depending on the chosen sourcing models. Based on a thorough analysis, the organisation decided to change the sourcing strategy with insourcing the most critical building-related activities and changing the procurement strategy from one integrated FM contract to three bundled and seven single-service contracts. The concept of right-sourcing is discussed.

The research is based on a study of one public organisation, which limits the possibility to generalise the results. However, it provides detailed insights into the strategic sourcing process in FM, which can give inspiration for practitioners and further research.

The paper throws light on a strategic sourcing process which is rarely available in public because of confidentiality considerations, and it provides the first evaluation of the new ISO standard from 2016.

The purpose of this study is to examine which factors explain the use of an in-house internal audit function (IAF) in a voluntary setting.

Based on the foundations of agency and resource-based theory, this study examines a unique data set from the New Zealand setting, which combines information obtained from The Institute of Internal Auditors of New Zealand with empirical firm data collected from publicly available sources. Multivariate analysis is performed to test the prediction that in-house IAF use is associated with factors such as strong corporate governance, firm size, risk, complexity and firm ownership structure.

There is strong evidence that larger organisations are more likely to use an in-house IAF. The authors also find that listed firms and organisations that use a Big Four auditor are less likely to use in-house-based IAF. The authors learn that the IAF investment decision is dominantly influenced by a firm’s ability to fund an in-house IAF as compared to the IAF being used as a resource to improve firm performance to achieve sustained competitive advantage. This implies that IAFs need to ensure cost efficiency and eliminate unnecessary overheads and demonstrate and make visible the benefits the function offers to the host organisation.

The unique New Zealand setting, where the establishment and use of an IAF are voluntary, provides an environment to study factors that promote demand for internal audit services. Research implications are applicable to most parts of the world, including the UK, EU nations and the Asia-Pacific region, where IAF use is voluntary.

This study aims to assess the facilities management (FM) strategies used in multi-tenanted purpose-built office buildings (Mt-POBs) in Ghana and the drivers that influence the decision to use such strategies.

This study was conducted via a survey and key informant interviews. The survey was conducted using a questionnaire targeted at 65 multi-tenanted office building owners in the Greater Accra region. The data from the survey revealed the views of building owners on FM strategy and the extent to which 20 facility management decision drivers influenced their decisions to use a particular strategy and the responses were descriptively analysed. The key informant interviews were conducted among six leaders of the property owners’ association who use in-house FM to further understand their perspectives and decisions on using such strategy. The interviews were conducted over telephone using an interview guide and analysed using thematic analysis.

The results showed that 88% of Mt-POBs in Ghana are managed in-house. The results also showed that the decision to use the in-house strategy was driven by the innovative, strategic and cost-saving advantages associated with the in-house strategy.

This study shows the factors that drive the decision of multi-tenanted office building owners in Ghana to use the in-house strategy. The findings of this study will be useful for prospective owners of office buildings in Ghana.