IS
6846 HYBRID COURSE:
Delivered in-class and
online!
Fall 2012
Management of Global Sourcing of Business and IT Services
This is a hybrid course that requires
students to come to six class sessions.
Please do not sign up for the course unless you can attend all six class
sessions:
|
1. Sa 11:00AM - 12:00PM |
Express Scripts Hall-00005 |
8/25/2012 |
|
2. Sa 10:00AM - 12:30PM |
Express Scripts Hall-00005 |
9/29/2012 |
|
3. Sa 10:00AM - 12:30PM |
Express Scripts Hall-00005 |
10/20/2012 |
|
4. Sa 10:00AM - 12:30PM |
Express Scripts Hall-00005 |
11/17/2012 |
|
5. Sa 8:30AM - 12:30PM |
Express Scripts Hall-00005 |
12/1/2012 |
|
6. Sa 8:30AM - 12:30PM |
Express Scripts Hall-00005 |
12/8/2012 |
Prerequisites: Graduate students: IS 5800
Course Description:
Largely fostered by
the globalization of organizations and spread of the Internet, processing
standards, and common software packages, organizations now regularly source
business and IT services globally. This course covers topics to help managers source business and IT services from the initiation
of a sourcing decision and evaluation process through supplier selection and
transition to outsourcing. The
course also covers the client and supplier capabilities and contractual and
relational governance that are needed to ensure good outsourcing outcomes for
both parties. Although the course
focuses on global sourcing of IT work because this is the most mature market,
the global sourcing of other back office functions including finance, HR,
procurement, real estate, legal, and other functions are also covered. Students
will also investigate insourcing options such as shared services and captive
centers and other emerging sourcing topics such as cloud computing, freelance
outsourcing, and rural sourcing.
Course Instructor:
Dr. Mary C.
Lacity
233 Express Scripts Hall
(314) 516-6127
(314) 516-6827 (fax)
Email: Mary.Lacity@umsl.edu
Homepage: http://www.umsl.edu/~lacitym
Course Instructor:
Dr. Mary Lacity is a Professor of Information Systems and an
International Business Fellow at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She is also Co-Chair of the IAOP Midwest
Chapter, Industry Advisor for the Outsourcing Angels, Associate
Researcher at The
Outsourcing Unit, London School of Economics, Senior Editor of the Journal of Information Technology,
Co-editor of the Palgrave
Series: Work, Technology, and Globalization, and on the
Editorial Boards for MIS Quarterly Executive, Journal of Strategic
Information Systems, Strategic Outsourcing: An International Journal, and Journal
of the Association for Information Systems (JAIS). Her research
focuses on global outsourcing of business and IT services. She has conducted
case studies and surveys of hundreds of organizations on their outsourcing and
management practices. She has given executive seminars world-wide and has
served as an expert witness for the US Congress. She was the recipient of the
2008 Gateway to Innovation Award sponsored by the IT Coalition, Society for Information Management, and St.
Louis RCGA and
the 2000 World Outsourcing Achievement Award sponsored by
PricewaterhouseCoopers and Michael Corbett and Associates. She has published 12 books, most recently China’s
Emerging Outsourcing Capabilities (Palgrave, 2010; co-editors
Leslie Willcocks and Yingquin Zheng); Information
Systems Outsourcing: Theory and Practice (Palgrave, 2009;
coauthor: Leslie P. Willcocks) and Offshore
Outsourcing of IT Work, (Palgrave, 2008; coauthor Joe Rottman).
More than 50 of her publications have appeared in the Harvard Business
Review, Sloan Management Review, MIS Quarterly, IEEE Computer,
Communications of the ACM, and many other academic and practitioner
outlets. She was Program Co-chair for ICIS 2010. Before earning her
Ph.D. at the University of Houston, she worked as a consultant for Technology
Partners International and as a systems analyst for Exxon Company, USA.
This course
is cross-listed in the Outsourcing Professional Course Catalog (OPCC)
This course is worth 25 of the 150
points required to become a Certified Outsourcing Professional (COP).
The International Association of Outsourcing
Professionals (IAOP) offers a number of certifications, including the
COP-Certified Outsourcing Professional.
To become a Certified Outsourcing Professional (COP), an individual must
be able to demonstrate both the experience and knowledge needed to design,
implement, and manage outsourcing initiatives with a high probability of
achieving the organization's intended outcomes. The experience and knowledge
areas addressed by the certification cover the non-domain specific activities
common to outsourcing as a management practice irrespective of the individual's
role as a customer, provider, or advisor. In so doing, the certification
creates an experience and knowledge set common to and shared by all
professionals in the field.
What is the process for becoming a COP? Applicants will be asked to successfully demonstrate that they possess the necessary knowledge and experience to be considered a COP. This knowledge and experience can be demonstrated through a combination of the following:
Comprehensive Work
Experience in the field of outsourcing as demonstrated by
employment on one or more projects across one or more firms.
Knowledge Assessment through passing the multiple choice COP
Examination developed by the Standards Committee. The exam is taken online and
consists of 200 multiple choice questions. You must answer 70% of the questions
correctly to pass.
Education including successful completion of the COP Master Class and/or holding a
relevant post-graduate degree.
http://www.iaop.org/content/23/193/1706/
Required Course Materials:
|
|
Outsourcing Professional Body of Knowledge, by International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (2010),
Van Haren Publishing |
|
|
The Outsourcing Enterprise: From Cost
Management to Collaborative Innovation (2011), by Leslie Willcocks, Sara Cullen, and Andrew Craig, Palgrave,
UK |
|
|
Additional
assigned readings and pre-recorded lectures as posted on my gateway |
Course Assessment Items:
|
Assessment Item |
Percentage of Grade |
Due Date |
|
Exam I |
20% |
Saturday Sept 24,
12:30pm |
|
Exam II |
20% |
Saturday Oct 15,
12:30pm |
|
Exam III |
20% |
Saturday,
Nov 12 |
|
Group Presentation |
40% |
See Schedule; Dec
3, 10 |
Ideal
Student Profile:
Students
have different learning styles.
This course is most suited for:
§ students who enjoy self-directed learning
§ students who are mature (accountable and responsible
for their own work)
§ students who welcome the challenge of reading
advanced scholarship
§ students who follow written instructions well
§ students who do not mind listening to prerecorded lectures
§ students who are organized, and
§ students who have the self-discipline and time to spend on
this course.
§ students who enjoy working in groups
Although
certainly not a requirement, I would most welcome students who have had me for
IS 5800 because we’ve already developed a relationship.
I
will be able to monitor your daily progress, as I can see exactly when you
accessed module materials and how long you spent on certain tasks (such as
listening to lectures). Of
course some students may choose to work heavily on the weekends and lightly
during the work week. Each student
needs to make good progress each week; each student should be fully prepared
for exams.
Students will take 3
exams, but may drop the lowest exam score.
If students are satisfied with their first two exams, they do not have
to take the third exam. Because students may drop an exam, the final average is
calculated using the following formula:
(Best Exam Score *.20) + (Second Best
Exam Score *.20) + (Group Oral Presentation Grade *.40)
.80
The exams will cover
material from the assigned readings and professor’s lectures. Exams are NOT cumulative.
The exams comprise multiple choice questions
and will be delivered online.
Please note, ONCE YOU OPEN THE MULTIPLE CHOICE EXAM YOU ONLY HAVE 4
HOURS TO COMPLETE IT!
Do not open the test until after you have
read the required materials and you have studied. You may use your notes, readings, power
point slides to answer questions.
You may not speak with other students about the exam.
There are 50 multiple choice questions on
each exam.
COURSE SEQUENCE AND LEARNING MODULES
Oral
Group Presentation:
The class will be divided into six groups.
Each group is responsible for presenting a 60 minute presentation to the class.
Each group will be assigned a different ITO/BPO topic:
Group 1: BPO: Outsourcing Human Resources OR Financial & Accounting
Services
Group 3: ITO and BPO in Central/South America
Group 4: ITO and BPO in Europe
Group 5: ITO and BPO in Africa
Group 6: Emerging ITO/BPO Trend:
Crowdsourcing!
RESEARCH
BASE:
Secondary Resources. Each
group should research at least 20
external references such as journal articles, newspapers, short videos, or
relevant websites. Some excellent
sources that cover the ITO and BPO markets are:
Outsourcing Research & Professional Sites:
IAOP homepage: http://www.iaop.org/
IAOP Midwest Chapter:
http://www.outsourcingprofessional.org/content/23/162/1947/
Everest Research Institute http://www.everestresearchinstitute.com/
Technology Partners International: http://www.tpi.net/
LSE Outsourcing Unit: www.outsourcingunit.org
Horses for Sources: http://www.horsesforsources.com/
Journals devoted to outsourcing:
Academic Journal: Strategic
Outsourcing: An International Journal
Globalization Today: http://www.globalizationtoday.com/
HRO Today Journal: http://www.hrotoday.com/
FAO Today Journal: http://www.faotoday.com/
Outsource Magazine http://www.outsourcemagazine.co.uk/
At least 10 of these references must be from refereed journals or academic journals for
practitioners, such as Sloan Management Review, Harvard Business Review,
Academy of Management Perspectives. Refereed
journals assure some level of validation.
The academic articles don’t have to be limited to just your narrow
topic (such as Egypt), but can include academic articles on outsourcing in
general, surveys of outsourcing, theories or outsourcing, literature reviews on
outsourcing, etc.
The best source to find refereed journal
articles is ABI-INFORM, available online to UMSL students. To find refereed articles, simply tick
the box for “Scholarly journals,
including peer-reviewed ” while in ABI inform. I
will show you how to conduct a search if you need help.
Many students liven up their presentations by including short video
clips about their topic (such as a youtube
video).
Primary Resources. Students should conduct at least two original
interviews for their group projects.
Another potential source of primary data is an
original survey. For example, a
past group surveyed 35 lawyers to see if they would outsource any legal
work.
PRESENTATION TIMING:
Each group should only plan 50 minutes of content to
allow 10 minutes of audience interaction during the presentation. Think
of yourselves not as formal speakers, but as teachers. You should incorporate
the audience during the entire presentation. In the past, students have done very
creative things for audience participation including a short Jeopardy game, a
bingo game, a short survey, a guess the supplier logo game, etc.
PRESENTATION
MATERIALS:
Each group will develop power point slides.
On the day of your presentation, please provide a hardcopy of the slides for your
instructor. Please print only 2 slides per page and staple your slides for your
instructor.
Please load your final power point slides in CLASS Group Pages under
FILE EXCHANGE.
Please name the final version of your power point slides exactly as
indicated below:
|
Group |
Oral
Presentation File Name File names are case sensitive |
|
G1fall11.pptx |
|
|
Group 2: |
G2fall11.pptx |
|
Group 3: |
G3fall11.pptx |
|
Group 4: |
G4fall11.pptx |
|
Group 5: |
G5fall11.pptx |
|
Group 6: |
G6fall11.pptx |
CITATIONS:
Make sure
that every slide appropriately credits sources, be it an interview,
printed material, or web site. Printed material should be referenced with
Author, Year, Title, Journal (if appropriate), Volume, Number, and page
numbers. For example:
Book:
Lacity, M., and Willcocks, L. (2001), Global Information Technology
Outsourcing: Search For Business Advantage, John
Wiley & Sons,
Journal Article:
Rottman,
J., and Lacity, M. (2008), “A US Client’s Learning from Outsourcing
IT Work Offshore,” Information
Systems Frontiers, Vol. 10, No. 2, pp. 259-275.
If your slides get too busy, then simply use end notes,
such as embedding (1) on actual slide and attaching a list with numbers:
(1) Lacity, M., and
Willcocks, L. (2001), Global Information Technology Outsourcing: Search For Business Advantage, John Wiley & Sons,
(2) Rottman, J., and Lacity, M. (2008), “A US Client’s Learning from Outsourcing IT Work Offshore,”
Information Systems Frontiers, Vol.
10, No. 2, pp. 259-275.
(3) Ibid, p. 184.
Websites:
Please indicate full URL for web site references,
and date viewed. For example:
www.umsl.edu/~lacity/ms480sum.htm, viewed January 1,
2009.
Interviews:
Please indicate name (if not anonymous), title of
interviewee, type of interview (in person, phone, videoconference), name of
students at the interview, and date of interview. For example:
John Smith, CIO of BigCompany,
interviewed in person by Jane Doe and Fred Davis, January 6, 2009.
Ian Jones, Director of Applications, BigCompany, interviewed by phone by Jane Doe and Fred
Davis, February 8, 2009.
DO
NOT PLAGERIZE!!!!
You may not copy directly from sources unless you indent
the text and put it in quotes. This
would normally be reserved for a few sentences of specific quotations.
You must RE-WORD sources! You are using external references as
INPUT to your originally created OUTPUT.
I take this very seriously and any student who copies
directly from the web or printed sources will be turned over to Academic
Affairs.
I am very happy to work with groups on their specific
topic. I strongly suggest that I meet with your groups several
times. At a MINIMUM, I want to review your power point slides at least a week
before your presentation. Please feel free to email me to make an
appointment in person, or we can do it over the phone or online as well.
Oral Group Presentation Grades:
Oral presentations
are graded as a group grade rather than as individual grades.
GROUPS 1, 2, and 6:
Oral group presentations will be graded using the following form: oral group
grade form
GROUPS 3, 4, and 5:
Oral group presentations will be graded using the following form: oral group
grade form
Individuals in a
group never contribute the exact equal amounts of time, content, and value.
This often leads to some people feeling they worked more than others, and some
people feeling left out. Usually a leader emerges, one who will hopefully help
find the gifts of each individual. Unfortunately, I cannot effectively
intervene in these matters, and rely on you as adults to ensure that all
members of your group meaningfully contribute to the data gathering,
interviewing, analysis, slide design, and presenting the final project.
All group members will receive the same grade for the
oral presentation, provided that all members agree that each individual made a
significant contribution. If a group member has not meaningfully or fully
participated, I will assume that group member was legitimately distracted by
other life issues such as illness or heavy work travel. I do expect that
members who do not fully participate show their integrity by willingly reducing their percentage of contribution.
It is no shame to not fully participate because of legitimate reasons. It is a great shame to expect other
group members to falsely report contribution percentages.
In order to provide some accountability, albeit
imperfect, I will ask that each group fill in the following form and each group
member must sign it. This form is due on the day of presentation.
Please print, fill
in, and have every member sign a copy of: group contribution form .
The letter grades use
the following scale:
|
92.00 or above |
A |
|
90.00 to 91.99 |
A- |
|
88.00 to 89.99 |
B+ |
|
82.00 to 87.99 |
B |
|
80.00 to 81.99 |
B- |
|
78.00 to 79.99 |
C+ |
|
72.00 to 77.99 |
C |
|
70.00 to 71.99 |
C- |
|
Below 70.00 |
F |
Course
Schedule:
|
DATE: |
Time |
Activity/Module |
Learning Objectives |
Required Readings |
|
CLASS Saturday, August 27 |
10:00am to 12:30pm |
Overview of Global Outsourcing |
Understand
definition of global sourcing; Understand
challenges facing back office managers; Understand
the major transformation approaches; Understand
size of global outsourcing markets; Understand
outsourcing success rates; Understand
why outsourcing is so challenging to client organizations; Learn what
clients need to master to achieve global sourcing objectives |
|
|
Do on your own |
|
What Suppliers Would Tell Customers if They
Could |
Understand that most of what BPO suppliers
say is supported by research and will ultimately benefit the customer. |
Listen to the Webinar recording |
|
Do on your own |
|
20 Years of Outsourcing Research Summarized |
Understand the determinants of outsourcing decisions; Understand the determinants of outsourcing outcomes |
Read: Lacity, M., Khan, S., and Willcocks, L.
(2009), “A Review of the IT Outsourcing Literature: Insights for
Practice,” Journal of Strategic
Information Systems, Vol 18, pp.130-146. listen to the Webinar recording |
|
Do on your own |
|
Motivations to Outsource: Moving to the
Strategic Agenda |
Understand most common motives driving ITO and BPO decisions; Understand five reasons why CEOs should pay attention to ITO and BPO |
Read: Outsourcing
Professional Body of Knowledge, IAOP, Van Haren
Publishing, CHAPTER 1 Read: The Outsourcing
Enterprise: From Cost Management to Collaborative Innovation (2011), CHAPTER 1 Listen to the Webinar recording |
|
Do on your own |
|
Decision Process |
Understand importance of a detailed
evaluation process Understand nine building blocks of the
outsourcing life cycle. Ability to
identify top global ITO and BPO suppliers; |
Read: Outsourcing Professional Body of
Knowledge, IAOP, Van Haren Publishing, CHAPTERS 5
and 6. (Also from previous Reading: The Outsourcing Enterprise: From Cost Management to
Collaborative Innovation (2011),
CHAPTER 1 IAOP
Lists of top suppliers, providers listed in mygateway. Listen to the Webinar recording |
|
Due Saturday Sept 24 12:30pm |
|
EXAM I |
|
|
|
Do on your own |
|
Sourcing Destinations: Offshore Outsourcing |
Ability to
identify major countries competing in ITO and BPO; Understand how offshore outsourcing is different than onshore
outsourcing in terms of risks and additional costs; Best practices associated with engaging offshore suppliers. |
Read: Rottman, J., and Lacity, M. (2006),
“Proven Practices for Effectively Offshoring IT Work,” Sloan Management Review, Vol. 47, 3,
pp. 56-63 Read: Rottman, J., and Lacity, M. (2008),
“A US Client’s Learning from Outsourcing IT Work Offshore,”
Information Systems Frontiers,
Special Issue on Outsourcing of IT Services, Vol. 10, 2, pp. 259-275. Listen to Webinar Recording |
|
IN-CLASS Saturday Oct 8 |
10:00am To 12:30pm |
Transaction Cost Economics and other Theories
of Outsourcing as they relate to practice; Work with Groups |
Understand
how well TCE explains ITO; Understand
other outsourcing theories and how these relate to ITO and BPO |
|
|
Do on your own |
|
Transaction Attributes |
Understand three main transaction
attributes—Asset Specificity, Frequency, and Uncertainty—and how
these relate to outsourcing choices. Understand two behavioral assumptions of TCE—bounded rationality
and vendor opportunism. Understand main benefits and limitations of three governance choices:
hierarchy, hybrid, and market. |
Read: Practitioner Friendly Version of Transaction Cost Economics: “Oliver’s Twist” in
Globalization Today (2010) Read: Williamson, O.
(1991), “Comparative Economic Organization: The Analysis of Discrete
Structural Alternatives,” Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol.
36, 2, pp. 269-296. |
|
Do on your own |
|
Rural Outsourcing |
Understand how rural suppliers select locations, attract, develop and
retain human capital, and create value; |
Read: Lacity, M., Rottman, J., and Khan, S.
(2010), “Field of Dreams: Building IT Capabilities in Rural
America,” Strategic Outsourcing: An International
Journal, Vol. 3, 3. pp. 169-191. Listen to the Webinar recording |
|
Due Saturday Oct 15 12:30pm |
|
EXAM II |
|
|
|
IN-CLASS Saturday Oct 22 |
10:00am to 12:30pm |
Client
and Supplier Firm Capabilities; Work with Groups |
||
|
Do on your own |
|
Client Firm Capabilities |
Identify the most studied and most frequently reported important client
capabilities Understand nine core client capabilities model Understand evolution of back office functions |
Read: The Outsourcing Enterprise:
From Cost Management to Collaborative Innovation (2011), CHAPTER 4 Listen to the Webinar recording |
|
Do on your own |
|
Supplier Firm Capabilities |
Identify the most studied and most frequently reported important
supplier capabilities Understand twelve core
supplier capabilities model Understand emerging supplier capabilities |
Read: The Outsourcing Enterprise: From Cost
Management to Collaborative Innovation (2011),
CHAPTER 3 Listen to the Webinar recording |
|
Do on your own |
|
Contractual Governance |
Understand how to develop the financial case and pricing; Understand the governance charter; Understand contract management |
Read: Outsourcing Professional Body of Knowledge, IAOP, Van Haren Publishing, CHAPTERS 7 and 8 Read: The Outsourcing Enterprise: From Cost
Management to Collaborative Innovation (2011), CHAPTER on Governance 6. |
|
Do on your own |
|
Relational Governance |
Understand what is meant by relational governance; Understand Social Capital Theory and how it relates to ITO |
Read: Lacity, M. and Rottman, J. (2008), Offshore
Outsourcing of IT Work, Palgrave, United Kingdom, Chapter 4. Listen to the Webinar recording |
|
Due Saturday Nov 12 12:30pm |
|
EXAM III |
|
|
|
IN-CLASS Saturday Nov 19 |
10:00am to 12:30pm |
Meet with each group! |
||
|
CLASS: Saturday Dec 3 |
9:45am to 10:45pm |
Group
2 Presentation |
||
|
11:00am to 12:00pm |
Group
3 Presentation |
|||
|
CLASS: Saturday, Dec 10 |
8:30am to 9:30pm |
Group
4 Presentation |
||
|
9:45am to 10:45pm |
Group
5 Presentation |
|||
|
11:00am to 12:00pm |
Group
6 Presentation |
|||