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Recently, increased interest has been devoted to discuss theory development in relation to business-to-business (B2B) marketing. The purpose of this paper is to explore these thoughts through describing and analyzing research on the internationalization of firms from an Industrial Marketing and Purchasing (IMP) perspective. The authors ask: to what extent have these studies resulted in a theory of internationalization?

The paper is conceptual and frames research on the internationalization of firms by means of definitions, domains, relations of variables and predictions. It looks into research on internationalization based on an IMP-inspired network perspective to see to what extent research has resulted in theories of internationalization.

While there have been substantial efforts on theorizing related to IMP-based internationalization studies, the research has not yet resulted in theory.

In this paper one phenomenon was selected that has already been addressed in IMP research, namely, the internationalization of firms. Had the authors chosen another phenomenon previously studied in IMP the findings might had turned out differently.

The paper makes a contribution to understanding how ideas are developed, used and referenced in long-term research development for the specific phenomenon of internationalization. The paper contributes to the debate on theories within B2B research.

The purpose of this paper is to systematically review the relationship and networking strategy tools in the IMP literature. It proposes six dimensions for characterizing such tools: approach to tool development, level (and layer) of analysis, perspective of interaction, activities of network strategizing, external or internal orientation and use for “strategizing on” vs “strategizing in” relationships and networks.

The paper uses a manual qualitative content analysis approach and an inductive approach, well suited for extracting relationship and networking strategy tools due to their implicit and dispersed nature.

The paper presents an IMP toolbox comprising a wide variety of relationship and networking strategy tools emphasizing interconnectedness, interdependence and limited managerial autonomy, as well as an analysis of how identified tools are positioned along each of the six proposed dimensions.

This paper contributes a conceptual framework with a vocabulary to content analyze and discuss relationship and networking strategy tools in IMP research.

The IMP toolbox may be a useful point of departure for managers who feel a need for developing and using a mix of tools for strategizing in business relationships and networks.

The paper instills a strategy tool lens in the IMP literature and foregrounds strategizing concepts and techniques that were previously difficult to attend to for both researchers and practitioners.

The purpose of the paper is to contribute to further advancing of IMP as a research field by setting up and starting a theoretical conversation between system theory and the IMP.

The approach is based on a narrative literature study and conceptual research.

The authors find that system theory and cybernetics can be regarded as important sources of inspiration for early IMP research. The authors identify three specific theoretical “puzzles” in system theory that may serve as useful topics for discussion between system theorists and IMP researchers.

Only a handful of papers have touched upon the relationship between system theory and IMP before. This paper combines a narrative, historical analysis of this relationship with developing specific suggestions for using system theory as a vehicle for further advancement of IMP research.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the current industrial marketing and purchasing (IMP) research that has a vague positioning of the bounded rationality of an actor. By borrowing insights from other disciplines, this study aims to develop the IMP approach further by acknowledging the importance of individuals who act and make decisions on behalf of their companies.

This study is conceptual. By examining the IMP studies in combination with decision-making literature from behavioral economics and psychology, this paper provides a new understanding of the phenomenon in question.

This study demonstrates that individual decision-making is not as rational as has previously been thought, thus indicating the bounded rationality of the actor. After examining the most common negative emotions that influence the decision-making process, the paper presents a research agenda. It provides a series of research topics and methodological choices for future IMP research endeavors.

As this paper is conceptual, empirical research is needed to examine the role of negative emotions in dynamic decision-making processes.

Managerial implications of this paper are focused on providing instructions for managers on how to deal with negative emotions in dynamic decision-making processes.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is one of the first papers that attempts to connect the IMP studies with the dynamics of decision-making by examining negative emotions in the business world.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the strategy of contract manufacturers (CMs). The research question is the following: how can the strategy of CMs be explained? The purpose is to better understand this activity though using different theoretical approaches and analyzing two customer relationships of a Hungarian CM, Videoton Holding.

The primary theoretical background is the relational view of strategy, and the concept of the business model is used for the analysis. The authors confront the literature about this topic in strategic management using the industrial marketing and purchasing approach to strategy; namely, strategizing. Through the case study of Videoton the authors explore how the company became a highly developed CM from its origins as an original equipment manufacturer company.

Through comparing theory the authors have created a research framework which is adapted to the empirical findings. In the CM’s strategy it is crucial to understand how partners are able to synchronize key propositions, key resources and key actors while taking the network of the firms into consideration.

The paper is novel in that the authors investigate the strategy of a supplier from their own perspective, not that of a customer. Applying and contrasting different theoretical approaches to this particular topic may considered to be valuable as well.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a contribution on the role of European R&D projects (ERDPs) on small and medium enterprises’ (SMEs) resource development.

This paper adopts a qualitative methodology based on a longitudinal case study. The case analysis concerns Gamma, a small high-tech firm based in Italy, active in nanotechnologies since 2005 as a research spin-off and since its establishment active in ERDPs. The analysis is developed along three main phases of development where the company participated to different ERDPs.

The empirical analysis highlights that since its establishment, Gamma has been able to increasingly exploit participation in ERDPs, in order to gain access to financial and technological resources. Such active and continuous participation fostered the development of both advanced technological and organizational resources, which then allowed the company to survive and play a growing role as a well-known technology partner in the nanotechnology field in Italy and Europe.

Adopting an IMP perspective, the paper provides a contribution on the managerial dimension of SMEs’ participation in ERDPs – which represents a neglected topic in the existing literature – on two distinct grounds: resource development process and networking processes. With respect to resource development processes in ERDPs, this case study underscores the relevance of ERDPs for developing both technological and organizational resources, highlighting the relevance of project management-related knowledge. In terms of networking processes, this paper highlights the need to fully understand the interplay of ERDP networks and business networks.

IMP researchers have shown interest in how innovations result from interaction among companies, while, and in parallel, there has been an increased focus on open innovation (OI) during the past decade. OI depicts how companies source, spin-out, and collaborate on innovation. This paper describes and discusses whether and how IMP and OI researchers acknowledge and build on each other’s work; and whether and how ideas provided by IMP and OI, respectively, create a fit to expand the exchange of knowledge between IMP and OI.

The paper is based on a citation analysis focussing on whether the OI literature refers to IMP research, and whether or not the IMP literature refers to OI research. The paper also compares OI and IMP to discover potentials for knowledge exchange between them through discussing similarities, complementarities, and contradictions.

The paper points out that while IMP researchers have started to show interest in OI, OI research does not refer to IMP. As such, OI research remains more company-centric in its discussions. IMP provides tools and models to capture the OI phenomenon specifically related to collaborative OI, while OI offers interesting thought for the capture of transaction-based innovation processes and their management.

The paper contributes to previous research through linking together OI and IMP research. This is important for several reasons, including the ability to enhance knowledge in each domain, critically discuss and relate various research domains and their underpinnings, and expand ideas developed in one research domain to another.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of social media (SM) adoption in upgrading and innovating selling processes by small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) facing complex and rapidly changing market scenarios.

To achieve this goal, the paper undertakes an exploratory case study of Gamma, a mechanical company, by actively using SM to start and open a new market. The case-study is analyzed through the industrial marketing and purchasing (IMP) approach, which emphasizes the role of interaction and the interdependencies of resources.

The adoption of SM resources helped Gamma to tap into new markets and thus survive and face the downturn of its original market. SM displayed its effects in combination with other resources: a simple and not expensive machinery, capable human resources, effective production and logistical resources. SM represented a strategic resource to implement an effective business networking effort.

This paper provides novel empirical evidence and conceptual development over the role of SM as a resource in SMEs’ sales processes, using the IMP perspective on combination and development of resources.

The main goal of the paper is to describe the knowledge interconnection process embedded in an interactive business relationship. The purpose of this study is to understand the knowledge interconnection inside the supplier-buyer relationship in the field of contract manufacturing. The knowledge interconnection process is defined by the authors as a process linked to business relationships, which contains different types of knowledge and various sub-processes related to them.

The Industrial Marketing and Purchasing Group (IMP) research framework has been applied and the contribution is a better understanding of the role of knowledge in the interactive business world. The empirical evidence is based on a case study of a Hungarian contract manufacturing company. This paper describes empirical, qualitative research about knowledge interconnection processes applying an abductive research design.

The knowledge interconnection process is linked to business relationships. It is a complex process, which contains three types of knowledge and five sub-processes. The knowledge evolution indicates the links between the different types of knowledge. The sub-processes relate to different types of knowledge and allow the flow of knowledge between the supplier and the buyer. In the business relationship, this flow of knowledge makes possible the new knowledge creation. A model of the knowledge interconnection process has been developed.

Single case studies can create rich descriptions of complex phenomena, but the possibility for generalization is limited. Another limitation is that the knowledge interconnection process has been studied only from the supplier’s perspective. The present research extends IMP’s knowledge of embedded knowledge. In addition, empirical research contributes to the emerging field of IMP research that explores knowledge as a resource but lacks an empirical foundation.

The knowledge interconnection process is a decisive factor in the development and maintenance of long-term customer relations in the field of contract manufacturing. The evolution of knowledge types – from the body of knowledge to knowledge in use – demands the management of different sub-processes. Knowledge selection, knowledge recombination, knowledge mobilization and new knowledge creation processes are more strongly related to the supplier-customer dyad, while the knowledge relocation process has a network character. The knowledge interconnection process influences the company’s body of knowledge and its relationship management capability.

The originality of the study is, on the one hand, an empirical examination of the process of knowledge interconnection. On the other hand, the development of a model of the knowledge interconnection process. A further feature is that empirical research has been conducted in the field of contract manufacturing.