Factors Determining Outsourcing Decision for American Companies Since 2010
BACHELOR THESIS ORGANIZATION & STRATEGYWhat are the main factors driving the insourcing decision for previously outsourced manufacturing activities by American companies since 2010? FLORIS JAN KEIZERInternational Business Administration ANR: 843648Year of Graduation: 2015Organization and strategyInternational Supply Chain ManagementA.W.C. AppelsWordcount: 6508[pic 1][pic 2]AbstractThe aim of this thesis is to investigate the factors that significantly drive the insourcing decision of American companies for previously outsourced manufacturing activities. This thesis will first examine what insourcing and outsourcing are, before it investigates what the factors that affect the decision to in- or outsource are and what recent events influence these factors. These factors will be utilized in two cases, where companies made the decision to insource again. Finally, this thesis will investigate which of the factors, that influence the in- or outsourcing decision, affect the decision most significantly.
The outcome of the cases show that the difference in operational costs between in- and outsourcing are significant as well as the change in time to market. These two factors are most significant, whereas companies did not show substantial interest to the other factors. For future research in this area, this thesis recommends the consulting of executives who are dealing with this decision, to cover all aspects of the decision making. Keywords: Insourcing, Outsourcing, Make vs. buy decision Table of ContentsChapter 1 – Introduction Page 3 1.1 Problem Indication Page 3 1.2 Problem Statement Page 4 1.3 Research Questions Page 4 1.4 Research Design and Data Collection Page 5Chapter 2 – What are outsourcing and insourcing Page 6 2.1 Outsourcing Page 6