Strategic sourcing has gained prominence over the last few years in industry as firms have recognized the contribution that sourcing and supply management can make to the profitability of firms. Increasing competitive intensity, cost pressures and the need to rapidly expand into adjacent markets have cast sourcing and supply management into a function of considerable importance in most firms. Along with this organizational evolution, the practice of purchasing has also undergone a parallel evolution from purchasing, strategic procurement, strategic supply management to strategic sourcing. This evolution has essentially broadened the scope of the procurement function. Although there is considerable interest in strategic sourcing among practitioners and academics, there is still considerable misunderstanding and confusion regarding the content of strategic sourcing.

To better understand this assessment regarding the content and role of strategic sourcing, consider the following questions:

• Is there a single view of strategic sourcing or is it necessarily a contingent view depending on product/industry characteristics?
• Is the strategic sourcing same for General Motors and Cisco systems?
• Is the strategic sourcing same for a “Sharp S-curve” product and a “Flat S-curve”product?
• What is the relationship of strategic sourcing to product life cycle management?

The extant literature on strategic sourcing does not address these important issues adequately and fails to fully recognize the role of strategy in strategic sourcing! In this article, I will touch on these issues and offer some perspectives that are helpful in developing a complete understanding of strategic sourcing.

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