Decision Sciences Journal
Volume 29, Number 1
Winter 1998

Managing the International Strategic Sourcing Process as a Market-Driven Organizational Learning System

G. Tomas M. Hult
College of Business, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-1110, email: thult@cob.fsu.edu

Abstract: This study examines the effects of market-driven organizational learning on a select set of strategic sourcing outcomes involving the sourcing function of a Fortune 500 multinational corporation. The focus is on the dyadic activities and relationships between the domestic and international strategic business units (SBUs) and the corporate buying center. The hypothesized relationships are tested on the overall sample and based on a two-by-two matrix framework defined by international versus domestic settings and frequent versus infrequent sourcing scenarios. Based on a sample of 179 domestic and 167 international SBUs, the results suggest that market-driven organizational learning in the strategic sourcing units influences customer satisfaction, relationship commitment, and cycle time of the sourcing process. However, while the set of learning orientations appears to be strategically robust across the four quadrant scenarios (moderator settings), the sourcing situations differ somewhat in the specific tactical learning orientations preferred.

Subject Areas: Case Study, Multivariate Statistics, Organizational Learning Systems Sourcing, and Supply Chain Management.