This thesis develops a conceptual framework for relating Social Capital theory to large IT outsourcing projects. It uses this to explore how social factors that arise in outsourcing situations can influence organisations’ competence in IT innovation. It finds that social capital principles provide a valuable alternative perspective to established practices in managing IT outsourcing. Social capital can be applied both in the analysis of IT outsourcing results and in planning outsourcing transitions that lead to improved longer term knowledge creation and innovation capability. Research was carried out in two large and established users of IT outsourcing, a UK government agency and a major bank. Based on this, two detailed case studies were prepared and an interpretive methodology used to understand how the respective outsourcing projects had developed. A conceptual model of the interacting organisational factors that lead to IT competence is derived from existing literature and tested against the case study data. This model sets out the new concept of an ‘outsourcing enclave’ as a unique structure in which knowledge resources of outsourcing client and vendor are combined, supported by social capital that is distinct from that in either feeding organisation. The thesis uses the model to observes how, in the cases studied, effective management of social capital in outsourcing enclaves has created situations conducive to knowledge creation and innovation and the barriers to this that were encountered. This reveals that social capital management in these organisations called for time after outsourcing transition during which social capital can stabilise in the enclave, for learning from the achievement of short term objectives and for application of relational governance alongside the outsourcing contract. The main contributions of the thesis are the conceptual framework of the outsourcing enclave and the use of this to apply social capital theory to specific situations of IT outsourcing. It also demonstrates how theorised dimensions of social capital can be used to interpret outcomes in real outsourcing situations. The cases provide further empirical support for social capital theory and their interpretation a basis for further research in the specific area of outsourcing and IT outsourcing in particular.

The trend towards Information Systems (IS) Outsourcing has become an important trend in recent years. With the prevalence of the Internet, international-based, as well as integration of, up-downstream outsourced IS is no longer independently contracted by single contractor units. This has seen relationships between contractor and customer - and between large contractors and small contractors - become increasingly complicated. This is further complicated by the dual pressures on the contractor of offering both a better customer service and controlling cost and quality issues while re-outsourcing to other end contractors. Conflicts can often occur between the members of any outsourcing project because acknowledgement diversities will result in different points of view. The purpose of this research is to identify the possible acknowledgement diversities that may occur between the three types of outsource (Customer, Contractor, End Contractor) during the four key stages of outsourcing (public bidding, contract signing, project development, checking before acceptance). The research basic of the dissertation will be structured by technology frame theories and interviewing will occur in several cases in order to obtain pointed theoretical and practical values for other researchers' reference.

The objective of this research is to construct a model of the critical success factors for the effectiveness of Information Systems (IS) outsourcing. &ldquo / Lack of in-house expertise&rdquo / and &ldquo / cost effectiveness&rdquo / are the widely accepted major factors of motivation for IS outsourcing. Although various decision models and analytical frameworks have been proposed before, the literature is not abundant on a complete qualitative model. In contrast with the decision models which are executed before an outsourcing engagement (a-priori), an effectiveness model will be an a-posteriori guide which will enable the clients to measure their outsourcing performance and re-evaluate their business and management strategies. This thesis examines the critical success factors for outsourcing effectiveness through qualitative research conducted with multiple case studies for information systems developed for public and private clients. A conceptual model consisting of various hypotheses is constructed and qualitatively evaluated.