Research Article
Build, Buy, or Borrow – Outsourcing Talent-Based Agility in Global Retail Organisations
Dora Ioana Damian*,
Catalina Radu
Issue:
Volume 14, Issue 3, June 2026
Pages:
184-194
Received:
24 March 2026
Accepted:
22 April 2026
Published:
15 May 2026
DOI:
10.11648/j.ijefm.20261403.11
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Abstract: In contemporary digitally mediated and economically volatile environments, organisations face mounting pressure to reconfigure capabilities rapidly in response to technological disruption, geopolitical uncertainty, and persistent talent shortages. Within this context, outsourcing has evolved beyond its traditional cost-efficiency rationale to become a strategic mechanism for accessing scarce expertise, enhancing capability flexibility, and supporting organisational agility through build–buy–borrow talent configurations. This study investigates how outsourcing strategies interact with talent management systems to influence organisational agility in global organisations. Adopting a qualitative comparative case study design based on publicly available secondary data, the article examines three multinational retail firms (Carrefour, Tesco, and Walmart) through thematic analysis structured around outsourcing logic, talent orientation, agility implications, and governance mechanisms. The findings indicate that outsourcing does not, in itself, generate agility; rather, agility outcomes depend on the degree of alignment between externally sourced capabilities, retained internal talent, and governance capacity. Carrefour reflects a partnership-intensive model that facilitates rapid access to digital capabilities but also increases dependency risk where critical knowledge remains externalised. Tesco demonstrates a more hybrid and increasingly rebalanced approach, combining selective external sourcing with stronger internal integration. Walmart exhibits the most internally anchored model, in which selective outsourcing complements substantial in-house digital and supply-chain capabilities, thereby supporting stronger operational and strategic agility. Across the cases, governance quality, knowledge reintegration, and internal capability retention emerge as decisive moderators of the outsourcing–agility relationship. On this basis, the article advances an Agile Outsourcing–Talent Alignment Model, arguing that organisational agility is best understood as the outcome of alignment between sourcing strategy, talent architecture, and governance rather than outsourcing intensity alone. The study contributes to the literature by integrating outsourcing, talent management, and agility into a unified analytical framework and offers practical guidance for designing capability-based sourcing strategies.
Abstract: In contemporary digitally mediated and economically volatile environments, organisations face mounting pressure to reconfigure capabilities rapidly in response to technological disruption, geopolitical uncertainty, and persistent talent shortages. Within this context, outsourcing has evolved beyond its traditional cost-efficiency rationale to becom...
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