Examining the determinants of outsourcing partnership quality in Chinese small- and medium-sized enterprises

Abstract

Research on information technology (IT) and information systems (IS) outsourcing has been expanding in recent years and this trend is likely to continue. However, few studies have systematically examined the determinants of partnership quality in IT/IS outsourcing. In this study, we propose a research model to examine partnership quality formation factors in the pre-implementation stage in Chinese small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Based on previous partnership studies and small and medium business theories, we identify four sets of antecedents of partnership quality characteristics: perceived outsourcing benefits, outsourcing readiness, human characteristics and environmental technical uncertainty. The results of this study show that perceived benefits, outsourcing management competence, outsourcing cognisance and top management's attitude towards outsourcing are significantly related to partnership quality. The implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Keywords:

• partnership quality
• outsourcing success
• outsourcing management competence
• outsourcing cognisance
• small- and medium-sized enterprises

Acknowledgements

We are grateful for the constructive comments of two referees on an earlier version of this paper. The first author is supported in part by The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.