Pursuing competitive advantage through integrated global sourcing

Executive Summary As organizations search for new ways to gain competitive advantage, the development of progressive global strategies and approaches becomes an increasingly attractive option. Perhaps more than any other area in business today, integrated global sourcing strategies offer the potential for major performance gains. Since most organizations do not have well-developed global sourcing processes or strategies in place, improvement opportunities are indeed attractive and largely unrealized. This article enhances our understanding of global sourcing by identifying the differences between international purchasing and global sourcing within a five-level framework that highlights the progression from domestic purchasing only to the coordination and integration of global requirements. The primary focus of this article is a presentation of the factors that differentiate successful from less successful global sourcing efforts. The article concludes with a brief discussion of lessons learned and future ...