Outsourcing of services in the mobile phone industry in Kenya: a case study of Nokia corporation

Abstract

Outsourcing has become a common business practice III the world especially so since the 1980s as one of competitive strategies a firm can adopt. Over the past decade, many companies have found it useful to focus more narrowly on certain value chain activities and rely on outsiders to perform the remaining value chain activities; they have begun outsourcing activities formerly performed in-house and concentrating their energies on a narrower position of the value chain. This research proposal investigated the extent of processes outsourced by Nokia Corporation in Kenya in order to gain competitive advantage in the industry. It sought to identify the factors that influenced outsourcing as well as identify the challenges faced and the benefits accrued. A case study method was used in handling the research problem. Both primary and secondary data were collected. The primary data included indepth interviews with selected senior managers of Nokia Middle and East Africa (MEA) using an interview guide. These included head of retail, head of distribution, head of care as well as head of marketing. The main tool applied was content analysis. The study established that those Mobile phone companies that have relied on the local intellect had continued to remain ahead of others in the Kenyan market in terms of innovation and flexibility. This was mainly dictated by the changing market trends as has been apparent from the study. Nokia Corporation was quick to realize this and banked on veterans in various processes that were considered for outsourcing. The researcher therefore recommends outsourcing as a strategic option with enhanced relationships with the providers as this has proved fruitful in the running of outsourcing processes.