Abstract

Background: The rapid expansion of the service industry worldwide over the past decades has intensified competition among service providers. In response to this competition, service industries are increasingly turning to outsourcing decisions to leverage opportunities and gain a competitive edge. This includes outsourcing both core and non-core competencies to better position themselves against rivals. However, while outsourcing presents numerous opportunities within the service industry landscape, organizations also encounter significant challenges. Thus, there is a pressing need for a comprehensive framework to identify and address both the potential opportunities and challenges associated with outsourcing. This study aims to provide a thorough overview of how the opportunities and challenges of strategic outsourcing in Service Supply Chains influence the competitiveness of organizations across various service industries with a comprehensive framework and model to enhance the competitiveness within Service Supply Chains.

Purpose: Fulfil the previous research gaps related to outsourcing within SSC domain by exploring how the opportunities and challenges of strategic outsourcing in Service Supply Chains influence the competitiveness within service industries in Sweden.

Method: The research adopts inductive approaches, utilizing qualitative data collection methods, including open-ended interviews following a grounded theory approach. The empirical findings contribute to the development of a comprehensive model, offering insights into both mitigating challenges and capitalizing on opportunities in outsourcing within Service Supply Chains.

Conclusion: The study addresses the organizational focus on outsourcing within Service Supply Chains, highlighting how strategic outsourcing in Service Supply Chains influences organizations' competitiveness across various service industries in Sweden. Organizations outsource both core and non-core competencies to meet customer demands and remain competitive. While outsourcing presents opportunities for revenue generation and other benefits such as access to resources, it also brings challenges such as additional costs, quality issues, and delivery delays, impacting competitiveness negatively. To align with organizational goals, approaches are employed to mitigate these challenges and capitalize on opportunities. The research provides a comprehensive framework, considering agency theory perspectives, to navigate outsourcing opportunities and challenges. It identifies organizational and supplierlevel factors that influence competitiveness in Service Supply Chains by mitigating challenges and capitalizing on opportunities.