The moderating effect of brand orientation on inter-firm market orientation and performance

Abstract

While prior research has shown that market and brand orientation are key contributors to successful business performance, research to date has not fully explored how inter firm collaboration for these two key orientations can enhance business performance. The purpose of the paper is to investigate the relationship between inter-firm market and performance; to test for the moderating role of brand orientation in that relationship. A total of 169 completed pairs of surveys were collected of small and medium enterprises operating internationally in a variety of industries in Switzerland. The results show that inter-firm market and brand orientation are two antecedents of marketing and financial performance. The impact of inter-firm market on marketing and financial performance is significant when the brand orientation is favorable. This study extends previous research by examining the moderating role of brand orientation on inter firm market orientation, which is important, especially for firms wanting to increase their brand reputation by entering into partnerships with other firms. Further research is indicated, to identify the key moderators of the driving force of inter-firm market in relation to business performance and the reason why maintaining a strong brand presence is important in the international marketplace.     

Policy Interventions for Industrial Network Formation: Contrasting Historical Underpinnings of the Small Business Policy in Japan and the United States

This article examines the role of policies in promoting inter-firm networks, by contrasting policy frameworks for small businesses in Japan and the United States. While the policies in two countries share similarities in many respects, different historical underpinnings have led small business policies to play different roles in economies of Japan and the United States. This paper analyzes how Japan's small business policy came to encourage inter-firm collaborations over the course of its history, while policies in the United States have not had explicit orientation toward the development of inter-firm networks until the 1990s.     

Does inter-firm learning and trust promote firm innovativeness?

This paper elaborates on a theoretical framework that assesses the effects of inter-firm trust and learning on firm’s subsequent innovation output. We argue that joint problem solving arrangements play an intermediate role in firm innovativeness by promoting the sharing of complex and difficult-to-codify knowledge and information. Using survey data from a sample of 194 firms from the mainland of China, we find that inter-firm trust and learning have positive impacts on both buyer innovativeness and seller innovativeness. It is also found that there is a positive interactive relationship between trust and learning. Furthermore, their inter-effect and complementarity facilitate innovativeness by promoting joint problem solving at the firm level. Based on these findings, theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

Inter-firm Market Orientation: Its Significance and Antecedents in Distribution Networks

It is often argued that competition takes place between networks or value chains, rather than between individual companies. This means that market orientation needs to be recognised at this level, in order to understand how an inter-firm network can become more competitive and effective in serving its final market. Still, market orientation has been analysed only as a property of individual companies. This paper stresses the importance of recognising market orientation on a network level and as an inter-firm phenomenon. The notion of inter-firm market orientation, i.e.joint activities by firms that make a network more sensitive to market demands, is thus suggested. A framework is presented that discusses the meaning and content of inter-firm market orientation in a distribution network, and how it is influenced by different network and relationship characteristics. The framework is based on previous research on market orientation, inter-firm networks and relationships.     

A market-level model of relationship regulation

This research examines the moderating effects public policy has on relationship strength in a relationship marketing context. Prior research suggests that many positive outcomes emerge from forming inter-firm relationships, yet few examine potential negative outcomes such as anti-competitive behavior. This paper examines what happens to both positive and negative outcomes, when close inter-firm relationships are regulated directly by public policy. It is found that regulations intended to protect consumers and small retailers from anti-competitive behavior are effective in reducing the negative outcomes of such behavior, yet they simultaneously have an unintended effect of dampening the positive outcomes that close inter-firm relationships provide.     

In good company: The role of personal and inter-firm networks for new-venture internationalization in a transition economy

Although personal and inter-firm networks are critical for the survival and growth of entrepreneurial ventures in transition economies, their role in new-venture internationalization has been understudied. Exploring the internationalization of entrepreneurial ventures (n = 623) in Bulgaria, we find that domestic personal networks have a positive effect on internationalization. Firm age negatively moderates the effect of inter-firm networks: the earlier the new venture engages in inter-firm collaboration, the higher the degree of its internationalization. Internationalization is positively associated with new venture size and varies by industry. Implications for managerial practice and public policy are discussed.     

A Framework for Supplier Relationship Management (SRM)

ABSTRACT

Vertical co-ordination of business-to-business relationships figures prominently as an effective response to inter-firm dependence. Current empirical works based on transaction costs economics, however, have scantily examined whether the alignment of inter-firm coordination really serves governance efficacy and lowers transaction costs. This study focuses on the transaction costs efficacy of vertical co-ordination in industrial purchasing relationships. Building on transaction costs arguments and related works within marketing and contingency theory, the author explores whether vertical co-ordination is an effective means to adapt to technologcal and economic inter-firm ties.

This research examines in particular possible impacts the buyer's manufacturing technology and deployment of specific assets on the governance efficacy of vertical co-ordination. Empirical findings from a survey of 171 industrial buying firms demonstrate that when asset specificity is substantial, increased vertical co-ordination reduces ex post transaction costs. Further, the governance efficacy of inter-firm co-ordination turned out to be more evident in purchasing relationships among buyers with flexible manufacturing technology (e.g., order based industries) than was the case in process production with high workflow rigidity.     

IT and Coordination Modes: The Case of the Garment Industry in France and US

The aim of this article is to illuminate the relations between information technologies (IT) and modes of coordination among firms. Does IT strengthen existing partnerships, accentuate market volatility or facilitate integration strategies ? Up to what point do the institutional environment and organisational forms favour the diffusion of IT or not? What may be said about the role of IT in the reorganisation of a supply chain ? Through a study of the garment industry we will try to throw light on these subjects, presenting here some preliminary results of our investigations. We first explain previous research and then show the interest of studying the garment industry as a supply chain comparing the two supply chains in France and the United States. The transaction cost perspective will help us to explore how IT affects relationships between companies. In this context the diffusion of electronic networks should be a major stake in rationalising inter-firm coordination modes. But we will see that this stake remains imperfectly strengthened: complex and rich social networks in some crucial stages of the supply chain offer a significant explanation.     

Order frequency and the co-ordination of industrial purchasing relationships

Transaction cost analysis (TCA) includes the frequency of exchange as a significant dimension of the transaction, and order frequency is expected to influence the efficacy of inter-firm co-ordination arrangements. To date, transaction frequency has received little attention in empirical TCA-studies. This research focuses in particular on the frequency of inter-firm exchange and how it affects the calibration of inter-firm co-ordination efforts in supplier–buyer relationships. Empirical findings from a survey of 161 industrial purchasing relationships indicate that increased transaction frequency gives rise to administrative economics of scale, and there is a positively and logarithmic-shaped association between the order frequency of standardised items (low asset specificity) and inter-firm co-ordination efforts.Furthermore, increased asset specificity seems to improve the economics of specialised inter-firm co-ordination efforts when the transaction frequency increases. As asset specificity becomes substantial, the marginal co-ordination efforts of increased inter-firm exchange are significantly reduced. This research provides some new insight into the economics of inter-firm organisation and supports the TCA-assumption that the frequency of inter-firm exchange improves the utilisation of specialised co-ordination arrangements in business to business relationships.     

Global supply network embeddedness and power: An analysis of international joint venture formations

As a subset of the international business literature, cross-border equity based partnerships have drawn significant academic attention. In the context of inter-firm partnerships, the power dynamics between parties and the implications that power has on the relational dynamics between firms is an important consideration. Research that connects power with network theory has recently emerged, suggesting that the network, as a source of power, plays a significant role in inter-firm dynamics. Yet, while there has been a substantial body of work either articulating the antecedents and consequences of power, little research has paid attention to the role that power plays in international JV formations; this presents a significant gap in the international business literature. Consequently, this study investigates the role that global network structure plays in the formation of new equity based international partnerships. Secondly, it contributes to the international JV literature by developing and testing a theoretical framework that examines inter-firm power dynamics as derived from the network position of each firm in the global network. Global network prominence, brokerage and weakness are key factors utilized in the analysis. The hypotheses are tested using a global manufacturing joint venture longitudinal dataset that contains 985,689 observations from 1985 to 2003. The results of the event history analysis indicate that for the manufacturer global network prominence, brokerage and weakness play an important role in new joint venture formations. On the other hand, only global network prominence is a significant factor for the potential partner.     

Inter-firm R&D networks in the global software industry: An overview of major trends and patterns

This paper presents an analysis of some major historical trends in inter-firm R&D partnering in the international software industry during the period 1970–1999. Our research demonstrates an overall growth pattern of newly made R&D partnerships and reveals the important role played by leading firms. We also examine the emergence of various R&D networks in the software industry, indicating the change from sparse and disconnected inter-firm R&D networks to dense and well-connected networks since the second half of the 1980s.     

企业物流职能一体化问题研究

建立完善的企业物流职能一体化是增强企业竞争力的有效途径。企业物流职能一体化,即消除冲突性管理,提高物流运作效率;权衡交替损益关系,实现物流总成本最小化;提升物流职能地位,发挥其战略作用;增强企业敏捷性,促进物流内外部一体化。目前,我国与发达国家相比,企业物流一体化发展严重滞后,由于大多数工业企业尚未实现物流职能一体化,成为其发展的障碍。因此,为了增强企业的竞争力,必须加强有关一体化的研究和宣传,实施企业组织结构再造以及提高企业信息化水平。     

Long-term view of the diffusion of durables A study of the role of price and adoption influence processes via tests of nested models

This paper extends past research on new product diffusion by taking a long-term view of the diffusion process for several consumer durables.Specifically, we investigate the role of price and adoption influence processes within the product diffusion framework by assessing the relative superiority of competing model specifications belonging to a nested family. Results indicate that price affects the diffusion process only for relatively high-priced goods; further, our analysis suggests that this is achieved through impact on the probability of adoption.It is also shown that the traditional diffusion model specification (incorporating both external and internal influence) is not always the most adequate representation of the product adoption process.     

Firm Growth and Supply Chain Partnerships: An Empirical Analysis of U.K. SME Subcontractors

This paper examines the performance of a sample of 211 U.K.subcontractors to evaluate whether differences in how they manage their supply chain relationships are associated with differences in (sales and employment)growth rates over two consecutive 3 year periods from 1993 to 1999.We identified 34 firms that had close partnership relationships with members of their supply chain. Our empirical findings indicate that firms with inter-firm partnership arrangements with members of their supply chain experienced significantly higher growth rates. These results suggest that inter-firm partnerships may facilitate more rapid and sustained SME growth,though further research is required to determine the role played by partnerships and the extent to which this may vary to reflect differing owner-manager motivations and growth opportunities.     

企业间关系质量：渠道影响策略的权变模型

文章基于渠道行为与嵌入理论,探讨了营销渠道中的经济型影响策略（组织间强制性影响策略和非强制性影响策略）与社会型影响策略（组织间人际影响策略）对企业间关系质量的影响。通过对152家制造商的调查数据分析发现：企业在治理渠道关系时,使用组织间强制性影响策略会降低它与合作伙伴之间的关系质量;使用组织间非强制性影响策略对它与合作伙伴之间关系质量的影响不显著;使用组织间人际影响策略则有助于提高它与合作伙伴之间的关系质量。此外,组织间人际影响策略还会减弱组织间强制性影响策略对企业间关系质量的负面影响。     

Relationship duration and buyer influence in just-in-time relationships

Heavy investments tailored to a specific JIT-relationship highlight the trade-off between improved value-added and inter-firm dependence in industrial purchasing relationships. The main reason for dedicating specific investments in a JIT-relationship is to enhance production efficiency and logistics performance. On the other hand, such investments induce substantial inter-firm dependence and high switching costs, which must be offset by stronger inter-firm co-ordination. Using transaction costs analysis (TCA) and relational contracting theory (RCT), the authors have examined whether the buyer's influence on a JIT-relationship is contingent upon the length of that relationship. Data from a survey of 165 industrial purchasing relationships demonstrate that as a JIT-relationship evolves over time, inter-firm co-ordination tends to increase reliance on relational governance. When the level of the JIT-investment is substantial, hierarchical buyer control relaxes significantly as the length of the relationship increases.     

Social networks and marketing cooperation in entrepreneurial clusters: An international comparative study

This research examines factors that influence the development of marketing cooperation among cluster-based firms in different regions in the world. Theorists have consistently demonstrated the role and importance of economic externalities, such as knowledge spillovers, within industrial clusters. Less research attention has been paid to the investigation of marketing-based externalities, though it has been suggested that these may also accrue from geographical agglomeration. The study focus is on the development of joint marketing activities between firms operating in a single industry sector, located in close proximity. The results suggest that social networking is important in facilitating inter-firm cooperation in marketing activities. The study also explores whether the levels of inter-firm cooperation differs between countries with distinctly different levels of social collectivism. Interestingly, this study finds few significant differences in marketing cooperation among cluster-based firms from Scotland and Chile.     

Cultural interpretations of destructive acts and trust in Japanese supply channel relationships

This paper investigates the way culture influences Japanese inter-firm exchange processes, arguing that isomorphism (e.g., due to macro-force flux and convergence) is eroding traditional Japanese management practices and increasing heterogeneity. The role of culture in the development of routines and relationship capabilities across firm boundaries is particularly important in Japanese firms. Traditional Japanese business values engender confidence in a business partnership's conformity and harmony. However, cultural erosion is shifting Japanese attributions of and responses to destructive acts in channels relationships, which has implications for appraising and sustaining trust and success. Based on a qualitative investigation of Japanese subsidiaries’ supply relationships, our study furnishes academics and practitioners with a set of research propositions on culturally influenced destructive act cognitions and behavioural responses. These provide novel insights into the modern face and unfulfilled promise of inter-firm relationships with the Japanese.     

From hierarchy to hybrid: The evolving nature of inter-firm governance in China's automobile groups

Despite the rapid growth of automobile industry in China, much remains to be known about the governance structure especially the inter-firm relationship within the Chinese automobile groups. Against China's changing institutional environment and compared to the established knowledge on automobile group governance in Japan, this study provides a case analysis of the evolving nature of inter-firm relationship in one of China's major automobile groups, Tianjin Automotive Group (TAG). A top-down hierarchical administration characterizes the inter-firm relationship in TAG before 1999 due to the heavy influence of the old institutional arrangement. Over time, especially entering 2000, weakening institutional ties between the state and TAG forced the group to be more responsive to market changes and to systematically learn Japanese-style supplier management from a joint venture with Toyota Group. The paper provides rare insights into the evolution of governance structure among the emerging Chinese automobile groups and extends the institution-based view of strategy into the studies of inter-firm relationship in automobile industry.     

企业间关系的类型及选择

在定义企业间关系的基础上,指出企业间关系可以进一步分为有清晰界面的市场交易关系和边界关系较模糊的非市场交易关系(又可称为中间组织或准市场关系),重点解析了中间组织的类型,给出了企业关系选择的各种可能.