the role of sourcing agents in global apparel supply chains

egulations of the trade or unions they belong to and in some cases, the sourcing agencies
might also belong to for recognition. Much of the regulation in the apparel industry is a
result of self-policing (Levy & Weitz, 2009). Many American firms subject themselves
to their own labor and production regulations to avoid bad public relations due to
sweatshop conditions or contaminated products. The goal of self-policing is to reduce the
potential for human rights violations and health and safety standards. This project
investigates how industry managers and sourcing agents view the concept of regulation
through questioning their perception of sourcing agent regulation.
Legitimation of Sourcing Agents
Another key component of an institution is legitimation, which can be a sustained
driving force among organization actors, such as sourcing agents. This concept of
legitimation actually combines aspects of an institution and validates the role of sourcing
agents as a governing entity. For example, when Meyer and Rowan addressed
Institutional Theory as a system of class elements rather than a process as Selznick
suggests, the authors still imply that institutions can be rewarded through increased
legitimacy, resources and survival techniques (Meyer & Rowan, 1977). According to
Hirsch (1975), “Retail outlets and ultimate consumers comprise the societal subsystem
that rewards the preceding subsystems through purchase and other positive feedback
(legitimation)…” (p. 329). Sourcing agents have become more legitimized through the
growth of international trade and communication technologies. Today, sourcing agents
offer extensive services including product development, raw material sourcing, quality
assurance, and shipping consolidation (Abernathy et. al. 2006). Due to numerous barriers
and the inability to check production facilities adequately from remote locations, U.S.
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