Reasons for outsourcing services in medium and large companies

This study identifies the reasons firms decide to outsource activities instead of performing them internally. The study is restricted to the logistics, information technology, gate-keeping and/or reception and cleaning services as well as part of the production activities. The research was carried out in two steps. The first one consisted of interviews with four executives of large companies and the second one consisted of a survey of executives of 80 industrial companies and more than 100 direct employees. From the quantitative date we prepared contingency tables, cross-referencing the frequencies of the main factors given as leading the firms to outsource services with the corresponding activities, using Pearson’s Chisquare test. The results show that the option for outsourcing is the result of a combination of factors, mainly involving the service to be contracted out and the firm’s economic segment. Specialization of services and reduction and control of operating costs were the reasons given most often for outsourcing. This study contributes to the debate over the reasons companies outsource their activities and can serve as a reference for firms involved in the outsourcing processes.