Jon Edgell, Gabriel E. Meister and Nigel Stamp
The purpose of this paper is to collate Morrison & Foerster's view on the state of the global outsourcing market and their lawyers' experience with a wide range of sourcing…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to collate Morrison & Foerster's view on the state of the global outsourcing market and their lawyers' experience with a wide range of sourcing projects in a number of geographic and sectoral markets.
Design/methodology/approach
The global sourcing trends 2008 report is co‐authored by Morrison & Foerster partners based in Europe, the USA and Asia and edited by the Chair of Morrison & Foerster's Global Sourcing Group. Initially, colleagues in the Global Sourcing Group were surveyed and this team of more than 60 lawyers in the firm's offices around the globe were asked for their observations over the last 12 months, and predictions for the coming months, based on advising on a wide range of sourcing projects in a number of geographic and sectoral markets. Soundings were taken from more than 50 clients from a client base which includes Fortune 100 companies, some of the world's largest financial institutions; public sector organizations; outsourcing service providers; and a range of corporates from diverse industry sectors including media, travel and logistics, insurance, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, and IT. Other advisors in the sector were spoken to also, including many of the leading outsourcing consultancies. Results of this informal survey were then compared with the annual sourcing reports the firm had produced at the start of 2006 and 2007.
Findings
The report finds: an economic slowdown will see a move back towards cost‐driven outsourcing – despite the fact that, over the long term, service‐driven or value‐driven deals tend to deliver more stable, successful relationships. Greater emphasis is seen on post‐signature support, governance, supplier management, and the role of the retained function. As the pharma industry sharpens its focus on the core competencies needed to sustain its pipeline of new drug candidates, increased pharmaceutical outsourcing in 2008 and thereafter is expected to be seen. As all companies seek to reduce their corporate carbon footprint, a greater take up of outsourced services that deliver “Green IT” is expected.
Originality/value
This paper provides a summary of global sourcing trends in 2008, comment on the state of the outsourcing market and some trends to watch out for in 2008.
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Leicestershire Cooperative Society is one of the top eight Coops in the country, and has a turnover in excess of £160m. It provides a range of retail outlets including…
Abstract
Leicestershire Cooperative Society is one of the top eight Coops in the country, and has a turnover in excess of £160m. It provides a range of retail outlets including superstores, supermarkets, “Home” departments, chemists, and travel bureaux. One of their most successful ventures has been the development of All Hours convenience stores, open from 8am to 8pm Monday to Saturday, offering the convenience of local shopping. The stores feature a wide selection of groceries, fresh fruit and vegetables, bread and cakes, meat, provisions, frozen foods and wines and spirits. The name “All Hours” was the idea of Leicester Society's Retail Controller, Nigel Harvey, and he describes the stores in the article which follows.
It is too often presumed that marketing research can be no more than a survey of opinion, to be seriously considered only by the larger organisation, usually a manufacturer. Nigel…
Abstract
It is too often presumed that marketing research can be no more than a survey of opinion, to be seriously considered only by the larger organisation, usually a manufacturer. Nigel Piercy questions these assumptions, pointing out a number of areas where marketing research can assist the retailer or wholesaler to make informed decisions. He also examines the relevant techniques available, and the kind of information they can be expected to produce. Although large and sophisticated retailers are already active in marketing research, other distributive organisations may find it increasingly necessary to undertake active and systematic research before making decisions in a changing and competitive market.
Alistair Brandon‐Jones, Niall Piercy and Nigel Slack
The aim of this review and of the papers in this special issue is to critically examine different approaches to teaching operations management (OM) in order to provoke and…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this review and of the papers in this special issue is to critically examine different approaches to teaching operations management (OM) in order to provoke and stimulate educators within the discipline.
Design/methodology/approach
The papers within this special issue include empirical assessments of a problem‐based learning enterprise resource planning (ERP) simulation; a computer‐based learning tool for material requirements planning (MRP); a simulation of assembly operations; an operations strategy innovation game; an extension of the production dice game; an experiential teaching method in different class settings; and problem‐based assessment methods in OM. A variety of data are used to support these empirical studies, including survey, interview, and observational data.
Findings
The papers within the special issue support the argument that OM is well‐suited to more applied methods of teaching focusing on the application of subject knowledge to real‐life situations through a variety of techniques.
Practical implications
It is hoped that this review and the papers within this special issue act to stimulate educators to re‐evaluate their approaches to teaching OM and encourage them to consider adopting experiential teaching methods, business simulations, role‐plays, group exercises, live cases, and virtual learning environments, instead of, or in addition to, the more conventional lectures that typically dominate many OM modules around the world.
Originality/value
A special issue on teaching OM appears timely given the significant changes to both the university landscape and to the nature of the discipline that we have witnessed over the last quarter of a century.
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One of the several claims that Seligman makes for Rooke is that he should be accorded priority in the discovery of the correct, that is Ricardian, doctrine of rent:there seems…
Abstract
One of the several claims that Seligman makes for Rooke is that he should be accorded priority in the discovery of the correct, that is Ricardian, doctrine of rent:there seems little doubt that the doctrine of rent was developed practically simultaneously by Malthus, West, Torrens and Rooke in 1814, but so far as the priority of actual publication is concerned, the above list should be reversed. And in the interests of historical accuracy, Rooke and Torrens must hereafter be accorded the position which they deserve. (Seligman, 1903, p. 512)1
It hardly seems possible that I have now been in the secretarial chair for six weeks. I am still busy learning the ropes, but hopefully my response time to your enquiries is…
Abstract
It hardly seems possible that I have now been in the secretarial chair for six weeks. I am still busy learning the ropes, but hopefully my response time to your enquiries is improving. We continue to have a steady stream of visitors to our office at 3 Station Parade, which I may say we much enjoy. We also get a large number of letters from overseas on a wide variety of subjects. These again we enjoy, particularly as it helps to widen our horizon from the rather narrow outlook of the office and get us out into the world beyond.
In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of…
Abstract
In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.
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This article reviews the development over the last 20 years of the section 8 powers under the Children Act 1989. In particular, it examines residence, especially shared residence…
Abstract
This article reviews the development over the last 20 years of the section 8 powers under the Children Act 1989. In particular, it examines residence, especially shared residence, contact, prohibited steps and specific issue orders. In respect of each order, the review compares the current position with what was originally intended and more generally anticipated. The article concludes that whereas prohibited steps and specific issue orders have broadly worked as expected and intended, residence orders and contact have not. Residence orders have been used to allocate parental responsibility, which was not intended, and shared care arrangements have become much more common than anticipated. Contrary to expectation, contact disputes have proved to be exceptionally problematic and there have been consequential reforms to deal with issues. Despite these developments the overall conclusion is that the section 8 orders have generally stood the test of time and should not be regarded as being beyond their ‘sell‐by’ date.