Essay Assignment
A 525- to 700-word paper that addresses the following:
Provide a detailed overview of the advantages of outsourcing and aggregation and describe 2 to 3 cases of when it may be most effective for a company to pursue outsourcing opportunities.
Evaluate potential risks to using a third party within one’s supply chain, as well as possible consequences for a company’s supply chain if things were to go wrong.
Select a company of your choosing and determine 1 or 2 products or services that may benefit from outsourced production (e.g., a product with high production costs, high warehousing costs, 24/7 customer service needs, website development/maintenance).
Determine the product lead time needed and develop a timeline from the initiation of the project-to-project completion.
Research third parties for possible outsourcing opportunities and appraise the third party’s estimated labor and production costs, warehousing capacity, transportation modes/channels, quality assurance practices, and other relevant factors, as applicable.
Assess potential problems and solutions in each of these areas.
Determine whether it makes sense for the company to outsource its product or service based upon a comparison of all the variables involved and summarize your conclusions using relevant examples.
