An investigation of relationship learning in cross-border buyer–supplier relationships: The role of trust

This paper investigates the factors influencing relationship learning in cross-border buyer–supplier relationships. A conceptual model is developed by integrating organizational learning theory, relational governance and the resource-based view. Based on a cross-sectional sample of 160 firms in the information technology industry and a structural equation model, the findings show that learning intent, absorptive capacity and cross-cultural differences influence relationship learning. This study further addresses the moderating effects of trust.     

Knowledge transfer in the context of buyer–supplier relationship: An analysis of a supplier's customer portfolio

In the context of buyer–supplier relationship, the present study will not only analyse the role of formal and informal mechanisms to transfer knowledge but also the direct and moderating effect of trustworthiness, as relational dimensions, to understand how customers acquire knowledge from suppliers. The results related to a sample of 105 customers belonging to a medium-sized Italian manufacturer's customer portfolio show that both formal and informal transfer mechanisms positively impact knowledge acquisition. Trustworthiness positively moderates the effect of informal transfer mechanisms and negatively moderates the effect of formal transfer mechanisms on knowledge transfer. Some considerations regarding the customer portfolio are suggested to enhance our understanding of the effectiveness of knowledge transfer mechanisms in relation to different trustworthiness contexts.     

The impact of institutional distance on the international diversity–performance relationship

We investigated the impact of institutional distance on the international diversity–performance relationship. We first discussed the international diversity–performance relationship for large multinational firms and later showed the moderation effect of regulative and normative institutional distance. Based on a sample of Fortune 500 firms, we found an inverted U-shaped curve. Regulative institutional distance has a negative moderating effect on the international diversity–performance relationship, while normative institutional distance shows a positive effect.     

The impact of retail buyer innovativeness on suppliers’ adaptive selling in Japanese buyer–supplier relationships

Abstract

We investigate the critical role of retail buyer innovativeness in Japanese buyer–supplier relationships and explore its link to suppliers’ adaptive selling, cooperative relationships, and retail competitiveness. Further, we examine how process conflict between merchandizing and store divisions moderates the relationship between retail buyer innovativeness and suppliers’ adaptive selling. This study employs a structural equation model using survey data from 246 heads of merchandizing divisions at Japanese retail companies. Our findings highlight the importance of both mitigating process conflict and facilitating suppliers’ adaptive selling in order to improve Japanese retailers’ competitiveness, especially when buyers are highly innovative.     

Firm-specific assets and the internationalization–performance relationship in the U.S. movie studio industry

We study the role that firm-specific assets (FSAs) play in the processes underlying the internationalization–performance relationship. International business scholars have begun studying the interrelationship between FSAs, internationalization, and performance; however, this research is still emergent, and has produced inconclusive results. We believe that this may be due, in part, to research designs involving the same FSAs across many industries, even though individual industries may rely on different FSAs in their internationalization strategies. We address this issue in a single industry study of U.S. movie studios, which typically rely on blockbuster production capabilities as FSAs in their internationalization efforts. We show how these FSAs co-evolve with firms’ degree of internationalization, and how each factor mediates the positive effect of the other on performance. Our results highlight the importance of studying specific industries and their salient FSAs when assessing their role of such resources in the internationalization–performance relationship.     

The moderating impact of internal social exchange processes on the entrepreneurial orientation–performance relationship

This paper applies a social exchange perspective to understand the internal contingencies of the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and performance. It focuses on two aspects of social interactions among functional managers (procedural justice and trust), as well as on their organizational commitment, as potential enhancements to the firm's successful exploitation of entrepreneurial opportunities. A study of 232 Canadian-based firms finds several positive moderating effects: The EO–performance link is stronger for higher levels of procedural justice, trust, and organizational commitment. In addition, consistent with a systems approach to organizational contingencies, the EO–performance relationship is stronger when the organization's social context comes closer to an “ideal” configuration of procedural justice, trust, and organizational commitment that is most conducive to knowledge exchange within the organization. The study's implications and future research directions are discussed.     

Do the magnitude and asymmetry of specific asset investments matter in the supplier–buyer relationship?

Abstract

Despite a body of literature on specific asset investments, the extant literature falls short of exploring the magnitude and symmetry of specific asset investments in supplier–buyer relationships. This paper builds on prior research to identify and examine the impact of total and asymmetric specific asset investments on commitment, trust, and conflict in supplier–buyer relationships. Covariance structure analysis is used to analyse survey data. The results show that total SAI are positively related to commitment and trust, while asymmetric SAI are negatively related to trust and positively related to conflict in supplier–buyer relationships. Decision-making uncertainty affects trust, commitment, and conflict more than any other variables. Therefore, firms should work to strengthen their relationships by increasing the magnitude of specific asset investments with the aim of increasing trust and commitment. We also discuss the limitations of this study and suggestions for future research.     

COVID-19’s impact on the U.S. labor market as of September 2020

Business Economics - This paper summarizes the impact of COVID-19 (through mid-September 2020) on the U.S. labor market through the lens of measures found in monthly Bureau of Labor...     

Modeling the employment–oil price nexus: A non-linear cointegration analysis for the U.S. market

ABSTRACT

Theoretically, fluctuations in oil prices are expected to affect production costs and may force businesses to delay their investment decisions, triggering pressures on employment. Following these theoretical notions, this paper investigates the asymmetric impact of oil prices on employment (measured as total employment, male employment, and female employment), in a nonlinear cointegration structure for the U.S. market. In doing so, this paper adopts the nonlinear autoregressive distributed lags (NARDL) model to shed light on such asymmetric association, as the NARDL model recently emerged as a new direction in examining nonlinear cointegration and asymmetry. The empirical findings document a long-run asymmetric effect in case of total employment and male employment only. Furthermore, the short-run asymmetric effect was detected for all three employment categories. As a final point, the Granger Causality test documents a unidirectional causality running from oil price decrease to both total employment and male employment.     

Evasion behaviors of exporters and importers: Evidence from the U.S.–China trade data discrepancy

Since the late 1990s, reported U.S. imports from China and Hong Kong have regularly and increasingly exceeded reported exports of China and Hong Kong to the United States. This discrepancy, which is not caused by re-exporting through Hong Kong, varies by product categories, and in some cases takes the opposite sign. In this paper, we focus on China's direct exports to the United States. Using a model that allows for simultaneous misreporting to two authorities, we find strong statistical evidence of under-reporting exports at the Chinese border to avoid paying value-added tax (VAT). The value of VAT avoided is estimated at $6.5 billion during 2002–2008, and the associated understatements account for approximately two-thirds of the discrepancy. We also provide evidence of tariff evasion at the U.S. border, in particular for related-party transactions, and indirect evidence of transfer pricing and evasion of Chinese capital controls. An estimated $2 billion of U.S. tariff revenue is lost due to such evasion during 2002–2008, which reduces the apparent size of the statistical discrepancy.     

The impact of national culture and communication on exporter–distributor relations and on export performance

Interorganizational relations have been a major focus of marketing scholars in the past 2–3 decades. In this study, we explore the impact of national cultural differences, a factor that is unique to international relations, on behavior variables in exporter–foreign middleman relations. Furthermore, we argue that communication has an extended role in international channel relationships, and that it influences relationship variables in a different manner than in domestic relationships. The study supports that national cultural distance and communication have significant impact on trust and commitment, that communication may influence variables differently than in domestic relations, and that the degree of commitment toward the foreign distributor or agent is directly related to the financial performance in that market.     

The impacts of the U.S.–China trade war

Business Economics - The trade war has received an enormous amount of attention. Its impacts today have been limited because the U.S. and China have been a bit restrained. Lots of firms have gotten...     

The impact of buyer–seller relationships and reference prices on the effectiveness of the pay what you want pricing mechanism

Pay what you want (PWYW) is a new participative pricing mechanism that delegates the whole price determination to the buyer. Previous research on PWYW suggests that the final prices paid are not only affected by consumer characteristics but also by varying conditions, such as social distance within buyer–seller relationships and the provision of reference prices. Through an online survey and two field experiments, we test varying conditions of PWYW, such as social distance (buyer–seller relationship), provision of external reference price, product value, level of reputation, and duration of an application of PWYW. The results indicate that the provision of an external reference price is advantageous for the seller as the prices paid increase. The seller should also avoid offering products with high product value under PWYW conditions. Furthermore, increasing social distance may decrease the prices paid. Finally, a high level of reputation may be beneficial.     

Rethinking guanxi and performance: Understanding the dark side of Sino–U.S. business relationships

Previous studies on guanxi (關係) have focused on how guanxi contributes positively to business relationships, without addressing the pivotal role that guanxi plays in managing the dark-side of business relationships. To address this knowledge gap, this study specifically investigates guanxi’s influence on conflict, opportunism, and switching intention in Sino–U.S. business relationships and examines how guanxi mediate the positive effect of performance as well as the negative effect of uncertainty on such dark-side constructs. Drawing on data from over 270 Chinese firms, the findings reveal that guanxi is undermined by relationship uncertainty but enhanced by performance, guanxi also reduces the dark-side of Sino-US business relationships. Chinese buyers’ guanxi with U.S. suppliers significantly lessens their switching intention, opportunistic behavior, and the perceived levels of conflict in Sino-US relationships. The findings explain how guanxi is employed as a tool to reduce the burden associated with the dark-side of business relationships and give relevant implications.     

The impact of a U.S.–U.K. free trade agreement on workers: a CGE model with worker displacement

Business Economics - On May 5, 2020, the U.S. Trade Representative announced plans to negotiate a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom (USUKFTA). We use GTAP to model the economic...     

Adequacy versus equivalency: Financial data protection and the U.S.–EU divide

In 1995, the European Union passed Directive 95/46/EC, which set the legal framework for European Union citizens to own the rights to their personal data. However, American law bestows ownership to the holder of the data, not the individual, and officials feared the European Union initiative might disrupt data sharing among United States and European Union affiliates. Thus, they negotiated the 2000 Safe Harbor Agreement to allow companies to voluntarily submit to yearly certifications that fulfilled European Union demands, but kept U.S. businesses in control of their data; nevertheless, the Agreement does not include financial and banking services. Instead, the United States argued that the privacy protections within the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act adequately fulfilled European Union guidelines. The European Union disagreed and financial data sharing has operated under a moratorium for the past decade. However, the 2008 financial crisis has governments and clients clamouring for more data transparency to determine risk in the financial system. These global efforts, the European Union's recent push to strengthen the Directive, and the Dodd-Frank Act have pushed data sharing to the policy forefront. This article asserts that transatlantic data sharing will ultimately have to accommodate the privacy cultures in both the United States and the European Union, but firms must be prepared to cope with demands on their data by establishing government relations offices, standardizing information systems, enhancing education for compliance officers, and improving business school curricula.     

The return of ＂customer market＂ An analysis of APPLE products based on traditional Chinese Kung Fu.

以中国传统武学理论解析苹果产品之“万有引力”,可以认识在流行浪潮中被忽视的非市场力量。苹果的成功给我们的启示是多方面的。