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The aim of this paper is to present a framework model for outsourcing asset management services in municipalities.

The authors have analysed the outsourcing of asset management services in the municipal sector. A survey document containing a series of questions was developed and issued to administrative (policy‐making) staff members at senior management level. These staff members are concerned with the strategic planning of facilities beyond the five‐year horizon.

The survey indicated that outsourcing is being utilized in almost all functions relating to the management of municipal infrastructure, and that the criterion for selecting a specific contractor for a service is lowest price. The findings section in the paper also presents a list of the advantages of outsourcing along with the rated priority of each, the disadvantages of outsourcing along with the rated severity of each, and the strategies that could be followed to achieve a successful outcome from the outsourcing process, along with the rated importance of each.

Development of the model was motivated by the desire to develop a standard methodology that senior managers in the municipalities can adopt as a reference policy guideline for the conduct of outsourcing of asset management services. The model builds on knowledge from the published literature and professional practice documented in the municipality of the City of Dammam, one of the largest cities in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. The model serves to standardize process descriptions, the activities that need to be undertaken, and the methodology of how and what information needs to be communicated between activities. The framework also may provide a useful focus for others wishing to enter the outsourcing area.

In recent years a large number of studies have appeared on information systems (IS)/information technology (IT) outsourcing related issues but scattered in a number of distantly related publishing outlets which may hamper the use of such published resources and repetition of research conducted by various researchers. The purpose of this paper is to conduct a systematic survey of the literature pertaining to research on IS/IT outsourcing.

The research aim was accomplished by extracting information on a number of relevant variables by conducting a review of 315 articles on IS/IT outsourcing published between 1992 and 2008.

The analysis is presented by listing and illustrating subject category, journals, year of publications and country, frequently published authors, productive institutions, the trend of collaborative nature (co‐author analysis) of research, the impact/influence of published research; topics/research issues and utilised methods, and the challenges and limitations of existing research.

Results of this research may have implications for both private and public sector organizations interested in outsourcing IS/IT services and applications, and various stakeholders of academic publishing (namely, researchers, journal editors, reviewers and universities) research on IS/IT outsourcing.

The primary value of this paper lies in extending the understanding of evolution and patterns of outsourcing research.

Examines outsourcing various functions such as internal audit and suggest caution should be the watchword. Proposes that certain businesses can be improved by outsourcing, in that they may support the overall business. Warns that outsourcing’s objective should be to free up management and instil confidence in it. Looks at the evolution of outsourcing and how it has reached today’s popular climate. Concludes that the impact on risk may, unless managed properly, be much higher.

The paper aims to examine the role of management accounting and accounting information in decisions to outsource and manage outsourcing relationships.

The paper uses a case study method. Data are collected through semi-structured interviews and informal discussions with executives of the participating companies. Official documents and secondary materials were analysed.

The findings of these cases present evidence of some roles given to accounting information and varying tasks assumed by accountants and finance staff in the outsourcing projects undertaken. These roles and tasks range from financial evaluation of new outsourcing proposals and alternatives, consultation and price negotiations in the planning and feasibility stages to the management of outsourcing relationships including monitoring, cost analysis, performance measurement, internal audit, design and implementation of risk-reward payment schemes. Managing the outsourced functions in one case involved in the use of informal control mechanisms such as trust, knowledge sharing, mutual understanding and cooperation between partners.

The paper highlights the role of management accounting and information in outsourcing relationship management and evaluation. The case findings provide the opportunity for management practitioners to understand the strategic role of management accountants in the management of inter-firm relationships.

The case study presents new empirical evidence of the role of management accounting and accounting information in the management control of outsourcing relationships.

This paper addresses the question as to what extent the outsourcing degrees of property management influence the operating costs of owner‐operated real estate. For this purpose, the outsourcing degrees of technical, infrastructural and commercial property management of over 100 Swiss office buildings were reviewed. In terms of costs, the administrative costs as well as the costs of utilities, waste disposal, cleaning, upkeep and maintenance were included. As the analysis of the data revealed, commercial property management primarily impacts on the administrative costs. The office buildings of the four project partners that were examined incurred higher costs when commercial property management was outsourced. Similarly, the costs of utilities and waste disposal are higher for real estate with outsourced infrastructural property management. An inverse relationship was identified in respect of the cleaning costs, where the costs are lower when outsourcing infrastructural property management. The impact of technical property management becomes apparent with regard to the maintenance costs, which are lower for real estate with outsourced technical property management. On balance, the situation appears to be rather heterogeneous, as outsourcing results in higher costs for some cost groups and in lower costs for others. The reasons offered for these differences go far beyond the actual functions being outsourced. For instance, the project partners involved believe that it is, in particular, low service levels and reduced maintenance strategies that go hand in hand with high degrees of outsourcing. Therefore, the interviews with real estate owners, and also the data collected, give rise to the assumption that outsourcing is a measure for the implementation of cost reduction strategies. However, this assumption requires verification by way of further exploration.

The purpose of this paper is to present a case study on the use of performance-based contracting in the outsourcing of a reliability-centered maintenance program of a Gulf oil refinery.

A case study method is used whereby data are collected through semi-structured interviews, informal discussions with executives from the participant companies, in addition to official documents and secondary materials.

The case analysis reveals the use of a risk–reward payment scheme and key performance indicators (KPIs) deployed to support the management of the outsourced maintenance function. The financial incentive scheme was clearly designed to motivate the outsourcing contractor to achieve more financial benefits when meeting a defined set of KPIs while also delivering operating cost savings and other qualitative benefits to the outsourcing company. Managing the outsourced function also involved the use of routine budgetary control systems, in addition to other informal control mechanisms such as trust, knowledge sharing, mutual understanding and co-operation between the two collaborative partners.

The evidence presented in the case description and analysis may assist in increasing the understanding of how outsourcing relationships in maintenance business are managed and evaluated. The case findings may also provide the opportunity for further research investigating the use of performance measurement systems and incentive-based schemes in a variety of maintenance contracts.

The case study presents new empirical evidence on the use of performance risk–reward payment schemes in the management of an outsourcing relationship. Findings reported in the study will add to the existing literature on maintenance performance measurement and management practices in outsourcing relationships.

The purpose of this study is to analyse the risk factors associated with outsourcing of facilities management (FM) services.

The study administered questionnaires on 146 registered members of International Facilities Management Association (IFMA), Nigeria chapter, who carry out their professional practice in Lagos, Nigeria. The survey, conducted in February, 2011 targeted facilities managers, property managers, maintenance officers and procurement officers cutting across the three levels of management. A total of 61 of them returned valid questionnaires, giving a response rate of 41.8 percent.

Findings reveal that “poor quality of services” was rated the most critical risk factor associated with facilities management outsourcing, while “security” and “inexperience” closely followed in that order. Also, there was no significant difference in the rankings of the stakeholders on more than 75 percent of the factors.

Most practitioners would have been left out of the survey due to non‐registration with IFMA due to the seeming novelty of facilities management practice in Nigeria.

This paper provides an unambiguous empirical‐based analysis of outsourcing risks from the perspective of facilities management practice in Nigeria.

In this present globalised era, outsourcing has become a very popular and much sought after procurement strategy for facilities management (FM). Generally, a sustainable procurement system should be capable enough to deliver the services free of disruptions. However, outsourcing can bring about changes in working patterns, organisational culture and management styles which can possibly disrupt the activities of an organisation. In order to avoid such disruptions, organisations need to adopt a measured approach towards this change. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the importance of change management to enable sustainable outsourcing of FM services.

Within commercial building context, the questions of “why change is not managed during outsourcing of FM services” and “how can it be managed” are investigated through case studies.

Organisations encountered various disagreements due to inadequate management of change during outsourcing. If the changes emanating from outsourcing are not managed satisfactorily, it would result in possible disruptions. However, to make changes happen successfully is one of the most challenging tasks faced by the leadership and corporate management of the organisations.

In order to facilitate the practitioners in the industry, this paper finally offers a framework for change management during outsourcing based on the findings.

This paper aims to examine contracts in public jurisdictions to compare academic theories related to outsourcing risks and risk management strategies to current practice in order to extend and refine theory concerning what risk management strategies can, or should, be included in outsourcing contracts.

An automated content analysis tool is used to rigorously compare contract documents in two public jurisdictions to a comprehensive outsourcing risk framework from previous research.

The findings indicate that although IS outsourcing risk factors are widely acknowledged in the literature, they are not fully specified in the outsourcing contracts that are implemented in some public organizations. This research surfaces some of the differences in the techniques implemented through actual contracts to manage the risks inherent in IS outsourcing, including some strategies not previously identified in the literature. Also, not all risks need to be addressed in the contract to have a successful outsourcing engagement.

The improved framework for thinking about risk management strategies in the contracting process shown within the paper can provide important ideas and insights for managers contemplating or renewing outsourcing engagements.

This paper uses content analysis to rigorously compare academic theory to actual practice to extend theory. Specifically, it discovers several risk management strategies that have not been presented in previous research.

Presents a practical and systematic overview of some key IT outsourcing contractual issues, exploring and highlighting management implications where appropriate. Discusses issues such as service level, transfer of assets, staffing, pricing and payment, warranty and liability, dispute resolution mechanism, termination, intellectual property matters, and information security. Gives practical advice on pre‐contractual negotiation and post‐contractual management. By discussing these issues systematically from a management and practical perspective, contributes to bridging the gap between theory and practice and seeks to offer useful information to management considering IT outsourcing.