The centrepiece of EMERGENCE’s research in Asia is a series of in-depth case studies designed to capture a picture of eWork relocation which is both generally representative and captures the richness of detail necessary for a full. qualitative understanding of the organisational, knowledge management, human resources, training and cultural factors involved in remote telemediated working.

The case study selection process is a complex one, involving a careful balance between a range of different interacting variables.
  

The critical task of harmonising all these competing imperatives within the project is being carried out by Dr Raj Bandi of IIM, supported by Dr Jörg Flecker of FORBA, who carried out this role for the European EMERGENCE case studies.			One facet of this process involves covering the entire range of business functions identified as significant in the EMERGENCE employer surveys in Europe and Australia, and though the literature surveys and reviews of the existing data in each participating country. In doing so, it is also necessary to take account of the reality that the distribution of these outsourced or relocated business functions varies considerably from country to country, so that what is typical in one context will not be typical in another.
Dr Rajendra Bandi, IIM	Dr Jörg Flecker, FORBA

The business functions under consideration here include software development and support; customer services; telesales; data processing; financial services; design, content-generation, R&D and other ‘creative’ functions; and training, HR management and other management functions, including logistics management.

A second criterion is to ensure a balance between functions that are outsourced to other organisations using a telecommunications link, and eWorked functions that are carried out within organisations (in other words, carried out ‘in-house’ by the company’s own employees or subsidiaries) albeit on remote premises.

Another factor to be taken into account is the sector of the organisations under investigation. Our aim is to include as wide a spread as possible, in services, manufacturing and the primary sector, and covering both the public and private sectors, whilst still remaining within the scope of what is typical.

In the same way we also aim for a balance between larger and smaller organisations.

Finally, Asian EMERGENCE aims to achieve a balance within the sample between three different types of relocation. These are:

• relocations within Asian countries (ie between one state or region and another within the same country)
• relocations between Asian countries (eg from Malaysia to Indonesia or India)
• intercontinental relocations (ie between Asia and the EU, Australia, New Zealand or the Americas).

When combined with other variables (such as the differing motivations or investment logics which underlie these relocations, and the need to compare success stories with relative failures) it becomes clear that the task of finding a balanced and representative range of cases is no easy matter. To make matters even more complicated, each case study involves not one but a minimum of two separate investigations, since interviews must be carried out at both the ‘source’ and ‘destination’ locations – often by different national research teams.
  

© 2002, Institute for Employment Studies