Factors Affecting Outsourcing Decisions in Iranian Industries

Dedicated to my lovely mum and dad… Without your warm support, guidance and love, I wouldn’t have been able to come this far… iii This study identifies factors affecting outsourcing decisions in Iranian industries. It explores how outsourcing decisions (type of outsourcing, level of outsourcing, reasons for outsourcing, and factors in outsourcing success) in firms from diverse industries, and of varying size, affect eventual outsourcing processes. In this study, data was gathered from 74 Iranian companies involved in outsourcing. A quantitative approach was taken, in which questionnaires self-administered in Iran were used to collect data on outsourcing decisions and the factors involved in them. Respondents were mostly high-level senior managers and CEOs of Iranian companies. This study has found that organisations often decide to outsource their business processes to harness a wider pool of knowledge and experience and operationa