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Centralization vs. Decentralization of Purchasing in the Public Sector: The Role of e-Procurement in the Italian Case

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Book cover Contemporary Research on E-business Technology and Strategy (iCETS 2012)

Part of the book series: Communications in Computer and Information Science ((CCIS,volume 332))

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Abstract

In this work, we sought to better understand the possible role of e-procurement in the evolving strategies of centralization (and decentraliza- tion) of public purchase centres. We conducted an explorative research study in the Italian context, where both centralization and decentralization of e-procurement have been experimented. The analysis of the Italian case highlighted an aspect that has been overlooked in literature so far: the strong and sudden centralization of purchasing caused by e-procurement adoption may present problems, especially in complex contexts with a past tradition of wide-spread de-centralized purchasing powers. The Italian case suggests that a possible solution may be the adoption of a hybrid model, where a centralized structure coordinates a network made of regional semi-centralized e-procurement centres, which, in turn, mediate with local contexts and involve or control the smallest agencies. The main features, strengths and weaknesses of this emerging organizational model for e-procurement agencies are discussed.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Genova, Italy

    Renata Paola Dameri & Clara Benevolo

  2. University of Verona, Italy

    Cecilia Rossignoli

  3. Catholic University of Milan, Italy

    Francesca Ricciardi & Marco De Marco

Authors
  1. Renata Paola Dameri
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  2. Clara Benevolo
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  3. Cecilia Rossignoli
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  4. Francesca Ricciardi
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  5. Marco De Marco
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. CeBA Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada

    Vasil Khachidze

  2. ITSB, PWGSC, Ottawa, ON, Canada

    Tim Wang

  3. Algonquin College, Woodroffe Campus, Ottawa, ON, Canada

    Sohail Siddiqui

  4. Macau University of Science and Technology, Taipa, Macau

    Vincent Liu

  5. Nationan Research Council, Ottawa, ON, Canada

    Sergio Cappuccio

  6. Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, Canda

    Alicia Lim

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© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Dameri, R.P., Benevolo, C., Rossignoli, C., Ricciardi, F., De Marco, M. (2012). Centralization vs. Decentralization of Purchasing in the Public Sector: The Role of e-Procurement in the Italian Case. In: Khachidze, V., Wang, T., Siddiqui, S., Liu, V., Cappuccio, S., Lim, A. (eds) Contemporary Research on E-business Technology and Strategy. iCETS 2012. Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol 332. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-34447-3_41

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-34447-3_41

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-34446-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-34447-3

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

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