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This study aims to investigate the effects of perceived tangible and intangible resource inequity and the moderating effect of long‐term orientation on future collaboration.

Outcome and moderating measures were developed using structural equation modeling. Data were collected at the project level of customer‐supplier relationships via survey among German and Swiss firms. The results were generated with regression and subgroup analyses.

The higher the negative tangible inequity or intangible inequity, the lower the customers' willingness to collaborate on future projects with suppliers. However, negative intangible inequity showed a stronger negative effect than negative tangible inequity. When long‐term orientation is in the model, the effects of inequity are stronger in short‐term relationships.

The study extends equity theory and provides a fruitful basis for future research at the project level of the customer‐supplier relationships. Specifically, since the effects of negative intangible inequity are stronger than the effects of negative tangible inequity, intangible resources may be more important than tangible resources to the future of customer‐supplier relationships. Since prior research does not delineate between tangible and intangible inequity, this is a unique finding and an important contribution to the application of equity theory in business. Cultural homogeneity is a limitation of the study. Furthermore, a longitudinal study could add insight.

This research offers a distinction between the effects of tangible and intangible resource inequity; it disaggregates the concepts of tangible and intangible resource inequity and tests the effects of either “positive inequity” (i.e. receiving more than deserved) or “negative inequity” (i.e. receiving less than deserved); and it separates short‐term from long‐term oriented companies to allow for a more discrete analysis, than prior approaches, of the effects of inequity on the propensity for future collaboration.

This paper aims to examine the challenges experienced by Russian research and development (R&D) organisations in international technology collaboration in the global innovation arena.

A total of 33 Russian R&D organisations were selected from a sample of 138 potential participating organisations from the Central, Nord‐Western and Volga Federal Districts of Russia to take part in a qualitative interview study. Organisations were selected based on their responses to a questionnaire which measured the extent and nature of their experience in international technology collaborations. Participants were interviewed about their experiences of engaging in international technology collaboration under two different modes of collaboration: short term customer‐supplier relationships vs longer‐term strategic alliances. The semi‐structured interviews focused on 15 different issues which had been derived from the previously published literature on international technology collaboration and a thematic analysis was conducted on the resultant data.

The analysis indicates which of the issues reported as problematic in the literature were pertinent to the Russian organisations in the sample under each mode of collaboration. The findings also provide some evidence that Russian R&D organisations have made progress in the transition from the command to the market economy and are adjusting to the new environment, albeit gradually in some cases.

The paper presents interpretive, qualitative findings, which were analysed from a Russian perspective in three out of seven Federal Districts of Russia. The research sample does not include non‐Russian counterparts and the analysis is restricted to those variables which have previously been identified as exerting an influence over international technology collaborations.

The study reveals a broad range of insights into the types of issues which warrant close managerial attention from both Russian managers and their international partners in engaging in international technology collaborations with contemporary Russian R&D organisations.

The research suggests that different sets of challenges emerge for organisations engaged in different modes of international collaboration and provides insight into the unique context of Russia, challenging some of the previously published analyses of the influence of Russian business and managerial practices on the innovativeness of contemporary Russian organisations.

The purpose of this study is to determine the extent to which institutional pressures affect supplier and customer collaboration and how collaboration explains green supply chain performance using institutional and stakeholder theories.

The paper builds on empirical evidence gathered from responses of Iranian industrial managers based on a self-administered survey. The hypotheses in the conceptual model are tested using Smart-PLS (partial least square).

The results provide evidence that regulatory requirements and internal motivators, as institutional pressure, enable customer and supplier collaboration. Furthermore, customer collaboration has a positive effect on supplier collaboration and, consequently, positively affects environmental and economic performance. But supplier collaboration is just positively affecting environmental performances and is not effective on economic performance.

The subject is that the study is a questionnaire-based survey, and the validity and reliability of the results are influenced by the respondents' idiosyncrasies. This study provides a comprehensive model of drivers, supply chain collaboration and performance in the context of the industry sector. The study contributes by providing empirical data with a focus on customer and supplier collaboration and their interrelationship in GSCM modelling.

The current paper is one of the new field of research which demonstrate the significance of customer and supplier collaboration with each other to attain green performance. It also contributes to show the effect of institutional pressure on the customer-supplier collaboration that fosters green performance in the supply chain.

The purpose of this paper is to empirically test the relationship between supply chain (SC) collaboration and performance improvement.

In keeping with the extant literature, hypotheses were developed incorporating dimensions of supplier and customer collaboration and performance improvement. Factor analysis and linear statistical models for correlation and analysis of variance were used to test the hypotheses with IMSS 2001 data on 374 firms from the engineering/assembly industry across 11 European countries.

Only weak empirical support was found for the hypothesized positive relationships between supplier (or customer) collaboration and performance improvement. There was partial empirical support for the impact of collaboration, both with suppliers and customers, on rates of improvement. For information exchange, performance improvement in respect of cost, flexibility, quality, and procurement was supported, whereas for structural collaboration, only improvement in respect of flexibility and procurement was supported. There was strong empirical support for the hypothesized higher levels of collaboration among companies showing higher performance improvement.

Using cross‐sectional (versus longitudinal), perceptual (rather than absolute) data, coming from a principal firm (rather than from each collaborative entity).

This study indicates that firms need to adopt a concerted approach to collaboration both with suppliers and customers in order to reap maximum performance improvement benefits in the area of cost, flexibility, quality, delivery, procurement, and time‐to‐market.

This study goes beyond analytical modeling and case‐study research on the relationship between SC collaboration and performance improvement and offers industry‐based empirical results on consolidated practical and theoretical insights.

Absorptive capacity, technological collaboration and servitization are analyzed to establish ways to overcome the balance between products and services in manufacturing companies. A fresh perspective is introduced by presenting a framework for innovation strategy, moving beyond product-based R&D.

The hypotheses are tested using data on Spanish firms in the high-tech chemical and pharmaceutical industries through ordinary least squares regression analysis. The sample consists of 112 manufacturing firms included in the Spanish Survey of Business Strategies.

The results show that absorptive capacity facilitates servitization and that technological collaboration moderates the relationship between absorptive capacity and servitization. The synergies between absorptive capacity and technological collaboration for servitization are recognized from the perspective of open innovation as a way of resolving the trade-off between products and services.

Future research should introduce more sources of collaboration by broadening the value chain perspective. Other approaches to innovation may also be considered, including relationships to process innovation.

The results can provide meaningful guidance for companies to determine the key opportunities of servitization driven by absorptive capacity, and the best ways to leverage open innovation and collaboration strategies to exploit such approaches.

This research enriches theories on servitization, open innovation and innovative behavior. Open innovation strategy should be linked to greater servitization activity and should support an open service strategy. This approach is crucial for building innovation capabilities through technological collaboration.

Although managers have struggled with SKU proliferation for decades, research has provided inconsistent guidance, and the cross-functional and cross-firm aspects of the problem were not considered. The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that favor successful and sustainable SKU rationalization.

A single case study was used to investigate the implementation of an SKU rationalization project by a national restaurant chain in collaboration with its food distributor. Qualitative data analysis techniques were used to understand managers’ perceptions about the SKU rationalization problem and the financial results that were achieved.

The findings include seven propositions that begin to formalize theory for SKU rationalization. Cross-functional involvement was both a challenge and a critical success factor, and the supplier was an important resource for managing product variety and complexity.

Seven propositions are provided that increase the likelihood of successfully dealing with SKU proliferation.

SKU proliferation increases supply chain complexity and leads to higher costs. The research reports on an SKU rationalization project that saved a company and its supplier $6.7m.

A previously unexplored theoretical perspective on SKU rationalization was employed that emphasizes cross-functional alignment, buyer–supplier relationships and the impact on financial performance of a firm.

Despite the wide use of quantitative assessment to identify the relationship between green logistics (GL) practices and the sustainability performance (SP) of firms, results of these studies are inconsistent. A lack of theoretical foundation has been cited as a potential reason for these contradictory findings. This study aims to explore the relationship between GL practices and SP qualitatively and to provide a theoretical foundation for this link.

Following a multi-methodology approach, the authors used the grounded theory method (GTM) to investigate perceived relationships through qualitative analysis and adopted the system thinking (ST) approach to identify causal relationships using causal loop diagrams (CLDs).

The authors identified different sustainability practices under three major categories: logistics capabilities, resource-related practices and people-related practices. This analysis showed the relationships among these practices are non-linear. Based on the results, the authors developed three propositions and introduced a theoretical foundation for the relationship between GL practices and SP.

Managerial personnel can use the theoretical foundation provided by this study when making decisions on GL practices adoption. This theoretical foundation suggests applying a holistic approach that can help optimize SP by selecting suitable practices. On the other hand, researchers can use a multi-methodology approach suggested by this study to explore complex social issues.

This study contributes to the knowledge from a methodology perspective as no previous studies have been conducted to identifying the relationship between GL practices and SP by combining GTM and ST approaches. This combination can be extended to build system dynamics models for sustainable logistics impacts bringing novelty to the research field of sustainable logistics.

This introductory paper aims to outline the reasons for optimism as well as for skepticism in regard to Russia's position in the group of BRIC nations and in the global economy.

The paper presents a brief overview of developments in Russia. This discussion serves as a contextual introduction to this special issue by embracing some of the common themes elaborated in the other papers that are featured in the issue.

The paper takes a balanced perspective by discussing both positive and negative trends in Russia's development.

The paper sets the context in which the other papers that comprise this special issue can be situated.

This paper aims to address the need for managerial and organizational approaches to knowledge integration with customers in collaborative product development projects. The purpose is to identify the roles of customers in terms of the customer’s knowledge contribution and timing of customer collaboration in the product development process.

This study is based on a multi-case study approach, comprising four product development projects from two large international suppliers. The cases were selected following the theoretical replication logic. Data consist of interviews, workshops and secondary information. For each of the cases, a within-case analysis was performed followed by a cross-case analysis.

The study shows that the customer’s knowledge contribution is aligned with the specific requirements of each phase of the product development. Three specific customer roles are identified and connected to the customer’s knowledge contribution and the timing of customer collaboration. The technical capability of the customer and the locus of initiative of the product development project are affecting the prerequisites for knowledge integration with customers.

The study is performed from the perspective of supplier firms. The authors have not been able to capture the perspective of the customer in detail. As it is expected that both customers and suppliers benefit from a systematic knowledge exchange, future studies could examine knowledge contributions in both directions.

The findings can be used to devise effective approaches for collaborative product development with customers related to the customer’s knowledge contribution and the timing of customer collaboration and provide guidance to firms seeking to benefit from knowledge residing at customers.

This is one of the first studies to focus on the integration of customers’ knowledge in product development processes. This paper contributes to the customer–supplier collaboration literature by presenting further insight into customers’ knowledge contributions, the timing of customer collaboration in product development processes and the prerequisites for knowledge integration with customers.

As global markets grow increasingly efficient, competition no longer takes place between individual businesses, but between entire supply chains. Collaboration can provide the competitive edge that enables all the business partners in a supply chain to prevail and grow. This paper presents a framework for customer‐supplier collaboration that facilitates effective and efficient supply chain operation. The paper reveals that the level of involvement of customers and suppliers differs across different supply chain processes and also across different sectors. While the involvement of customers is high in demand management and product development, the involvement of suppliers is high in transportation and inventory management processes. The paper also reveals that about 50 percent of the organizations surveyed indicate that suppliers and customers have little or virtually no role in the demand management, inventory management, and product development processes.