Leveraging Information Systems Outsourcing for Innovation

This study is motivated by the apparent shortage of research on information systems (IS) outsourcing engagements that are leveraged for innovation on the client firm's behalf. Building on existing insights related to this managerial problem, we explore factors located within and outside the boundaries of an outsourcing engagement that shape the dynamics of the underlying innovation initiative. We are in the process of conducting a qualitative case study investigating four innovation through IS outsourcing engagements at an Austrian care home. Our preliminary findings indicate that an effective organization of IS outsourcing for innovation necessitates consideration of how engagement-specific factors and factors outside of the project may affect an initiative's innovation potential. With the framework of innovation through outsourcing, we propose an approach to capture these factors holistically.