Effects of Network Embeddedness on the Relationship Between Environmental Volatility and Interfirm Contracts

Purpose: This study examines the effects of an embedded network on the contractual relationship between exchange parties under conditions reflecting varying levels of environmental volatility and investigates the role of an important network factor—the embedded network—in the contractual relationship between manufacturers and their suppliers.

Methodology: The empirical test was conducted with manufacturing companies in the context of manufacturer–supplier relationships. Construct measures were based on existing measures and previous research. Measurement reliability and validity were established using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and an overall measurement model was assessed with structural equation modeling using LISREL.

Findings: The results of a survey of manufacturers indicate that firms in an embedded network preferred “soft” contracts even when they face volatile environments, whereas those facing volatile environments in a less embedded network preferred “hard” contracts with explicitly specified written requirements. Network partners carefully evaluated embedded networks (a critical factor that has not received enough attention) before forming contractual relationships in a network perceiving interfirm relationships differently.

Originality: The study introduces network embeddedness to explain governance mechanisms in volatile environments and shows that the explicit recognition of embedded network may facilitate the development of contracts with specific provisions as the contractual relationship evolves.