The critical success factors of sourcing production for small and medium-sized clothing firms in Hong Kong

The main purpose of this paper is to identify the critical success factors (CSFs) of sourcing production, and to study the impacts of production sourcing strategies, buyer supplier relationships and firm-related characteristics on the level of satisfaction -with sourcing performance. Using a multiple case methodology to study ten firms and a two-phase data collection approach, in-depth interviews and mail questionnaires, we found that the industrial sector is the only firm-related characteristic that has an influence on sourcing performance satisfaction. Also, the firms that have adopted insourcing were more satisfied with their sourcing performance than those that adopted outsourcing. Based on the level of satisfaction with a firm's sourcing performance, we identified three main CSFs for production sourcing: (1) to build relationships with production provider personnel at all levels, (2) to develop a comprehensive communication plan with production providers; and (3) to choose the production providers carefully.