Abstract

Past research on information systems development outsourcing (ISD-outsourcing) has found control theory to be a useful perspective for examining the co-ordination between the client and the vendor. Research on ISD-outsourcing has uncovered two distinct control mechanisms: structural and process control mechanisms. The structural control mechanism describes “what”, that is, the structure of the control mode, whereas the process control mechanism explains “how”, that is the process through which the control mode is enacted. Although the control literature discusses structural and process control mechanisms, it does not describe the ways in which control mechanisms can be combined for ensuring project success. Grounded in case study data from fifteen interviews in eight ISD-outsourcing projects, we conceptualise five control configurations describing the different combinative patterns of control mechanisms within and across control modes. Then, we identify the relationship between control configuration types and ISD-outsourcing project success.

Share

COinS