Professor Willcocks and Professor Lacity examine the economic determinants and outcomes of outsourcing and offshoring at both the firm and country levels. This comprehensive overview of the topic offers an interdisciplinary perspective, covering the empirical and theoretical research of...

Research summary We argue that interrelated processes of knowledge codification and uncertainty reduction lead to the contraction of vertical firm boundaries of new high technology ventures over time. Consistent with our arguments we show that, over time, the outsourcing of R&D is slower than...

We invoke the famous Louis XIV quote “L'État, c'est moi,” applying it to the corporate world, and introduce the novel idea that a self-serving bias, which we define as “I Am The Firm,” is infused within the culture of certain companies. We hypothesize that the owners of eponymous firms...

Which firms find it optimal to integrate their input suppliers into the firm boundaries of control (vertical integration)? Which firms choose to expand their sourcing activities across the national border (offshoring)? This letter provides novel evidence on these questions based on a Spanish...