From: Sheela Pandey <
stiwary@TEMPLE.EDU>
The 7th Annual International Business Research Forum
"International Outsourcing of Services: Expanding the Research Agenda"
Temple University, Philadelphia
April 1, 2006
Organizer: Arvind Parkhe
Several forces converged in recent years to generate exponential growth
in the international outsourcing of services (IOS): the Y2K scare;
worldwide spread of communications and computing technologies;
increasing competitive pressures to trim costs, improve quality, and
shorten product development cycles; tight labor markets in the west,
coupled with a talented, motivated, low-cost, highly-educated, almost
bottomless pool of labor in certain countries; and so on. This growth
was applauded by many corporate executives, business scholars, and
free-trade economists, and opposed by many unions, employees in affected
industries, and politicians. Today, IOS has grown beyond call centers
and simple software coding, to include a broad range of highly
sophisticated IT operations, medical diagnostics and treatment, legal
work, computer animation, and other advanced activities.
Despite the manifest importance of this phenomenon for the service
sector of the 21st century, the discussion largely remains mired in
anecdotal evidence and political expediency, and surprisingly little
academic research has systematically addressed the economic,
technological, financial, political, and cultural aspects of IOS. It
would be especially timely and helpful to investigate the
competitiveness implications of IOS. For the overall U.S. economy, for
particular industries, and for individual companies, is IOS beneficial,
harmful, or both? What policies must the U.S. government promote to
capture economic value through IOS, while minimizing the downside? What
IOS strategies must U.S. companies pursue in their quest for global
competitiveness?
In this research forum, we wish to foster a dialogue among scholars
studying issues related to IOS and international competitiveness, and
their implications for international business (IB) strategy and theory
development. Approximately twelve papers will be selected for
presentation at the 7th Annual IB Research Forum at Temple University,
scheduled for Saturday, April 1, 2006. Program sponsors will cover the
presenters' travel and lodging expenses for up to $500. Subsequently,
select papers from the research forum will be published in a Special
Issue of the Journal of International Management.
Manuscript Submission: All manuscripts should be submitted
electronically by December 16, 2005 to the Journal of International
Management Office, at
jim@sbm.temple.edu . Alternatively, a disk copy
may be submitted to the JIM office, Fox School of Business & Management,
Temple University, 349 Speakman Hall, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
Additional information is available on the Temple CIBER website,
http://sbm.temple.edu/ciber/ , or by contacting Kim Cahill at
215.204.3778 or
kcahill@temple.edu . Manuscripts are submitted with the
understanding that they are original, unpublished works and are not
being submitted elsewhere.