Value-Adding Intermediaries in Software Crowdsourcing

The information systems (IS) discipline has been fertile ground for research that delineates the role of technology in transforming organizations. Crowd sourcing counts as one such phenomenon, but our empirical understanding of it is nascent at best. This paper presents a preliminary theoretical justification for the emergence of crowd sourcing intermediaries by describing how they add value to this new sourcing arrangement. We report findings of a case study as initial evidence confirming two sets of value-adding activities taking place in a crowd sourcing platform: those at the market (macro) level and those at the transaction (micro) level.