Requirements regarding organizational knowledge were introduced for the purpose of:
a) safeguarding the organization from loss of knowledge, e.g.
through staff turnover;
failure to capture and share information;
b) encouraging the organization to acquire knowledge, e.g.
learning from experience;
mentoring
benchmarking
A.8 Control of externally provided processes, products and services
All forms of externally provided processes, products and services are addressed in 8.4, e.g. whether through:
a) purchasing from a supplier;
b) an arrangement with an associated company;
c) outsourcing processes to an external provider.
Outsourcing always has the essential characteristic of a service, since it will have at least one activity necessarily performed at the interface between the provider and the organization.
The controls required for external provision can vary widely depending on the nature of the processes, products and services. The organization can apply risk-based thinking to determine the type and extent of controls appropriate to particular external providers and externally providers, products and services.