Outsourcing and Business Networks in Top Southeastern European Banks: The Quest for Competitive Advantage

The present chapter aims to examine the role that outsourcing and business networks play for top banks in Southeastern Europe (SEE). From a theoretical perspective, the first part of the chapter briefly examines the concepts of outsourcing and business networks, as well as their application in the banking industry, in an era of continuously changing technologies. The next section is dedicated to the banking sector in SEE, in order to identify the main characteristics that lead to competitive advantages through outsourcing and business networks. The third section provides an empirical analysis aimed at identifying whether or not SEE banks use these business processes in their daily activities, what their main reasons for applying these processes are, and what primary forms of inter-organizational collaboration are practiced in the banking system. Based on a set of cross-national empirical cases of top SEE banks, the chapter finally proposes a methodological framework for analyzing outsourcing and business networks in the respective industry, as well as some conclusions about enhancing the competitive advantages of the explored companies.