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1 – 10 of over 14000Andreu Blesa and Enrique Bigné
This paper seeks to examines the effect of manufacturer market orientation on distributor dependence and satisfaction with the relationship, and to analyse how this dependence…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to examines the effect of manufacturer market orientation on distributor dependence and satisfaction with the relationship, and to analyse how this dependence affects distributor satisfaction, with specific reference to the Spanish ceramic tile industry,
Design/methodology/approach
Two parallel sets of individual interviews with a total of 222 manufacturers and distributors were conducted by a private research institute. They yielded 179 dyads of interaction. Market orientation, dependence and satisfaction were measured by five‐point Likert scales. The data were used to test 11 hypotheses by structural equation modelling.
Findings
Analysis of the findings suggests that all aspects of manufacturers’ market orientation have a positive effect on distributors’ satisfaction, except response implementation and the influence of distributor dependence. Contrary to expectations, dependence on the manufacturer adversely affects distributor satisfaction. The conclusion is that adoption of market orientation is justified in practice by increased dependence and satisfaction among distributors, in addition to other benefits discussed in the literature.
Research limitations/implications
Although the study only focuses on one industry, and the dependence measurement scale has been limited to two items, in order to obtain an acceptable reliability level, the results are clear within those limitations and are transferable with appropriate caution to the general context.
Originality/value
This study addresses a gap in the research into the effect of market orientation on distribution channel relationships, and provides useful planning information on the market orientation dimensions that influence dependence and satisfaction in the relationships between members at different levels in a channel.
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Irene Gil‐Saura, Maria‐Eugenia Ruiz‐Molina and Francisco Arteaga‐Moreno
In organizational markets, many companies tend to reduce the number of providers to focus on establishing relationships with few of them. The purpose of this paper is to analyze…
Abstract
Purpose
In organizational markets, many companies tend to reduce the number of providers to focus on establishing relationships with few of them. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the influence of relationship value and dependence of supplier on long‐term orientation and customer loyalty in the setting of relationships between travel agencies and their main providers.
Design/methodology/approach
A partial least square regression is performed to test a proposed model that links several relational variables with outcomes in terms of customer loyalty.
Findings
Results provide support for the positive indirect influence of relationship value on long‐term orientation, while customer dependence of the main provider does not seem to exert a significant effect. These findings support the importance of value creation for providers in their relationships with their customers.
Practical implications
This study allows us to suggest that service companies, such as travel agents, should concentrate on investing in generating benefits for customers through offering value‐added services, thus providing evidence that the supplier has no incentives to opportunistic behaviors.
Originality/value
Although literature has reported the importance of both relational and market conditions for customer‐supplier relationships that involve physical distribution of goods and might require important investments in technological solutions to coordinate their relationships, little attention has been paid to service companies.
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Suku Bhaskaran and Emilija Gligorovska
The purpose of this paper is to analyse and review whether national culture influences organisational beliefs about and behaviours to trans‐national alliance partners.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyse and review whether national culture influences organisational beliefs about and behaviours to trans‐national alliance partners.
Design/methodology/approach
Reviewed extant studies on national culture, organisational culture and business‐to‐business relationship. Using information from the literature review and key informant surveys, a survey instrument comprising of close‐ended questions was developed. The questionnaire was sent to the Chief Executives Officer's of 1,248 organisations identified through systematically selecting every third organisation in the sampling frame. Two weeks later, universal reminders were sent to all 1,248 organisations. The data from 376 fully completed questionnaires returned were analysed through exploratory factor analysis and canonical correlation analysis.
Findings
National culture influences beliefs about and behaviours to trans‐national alliance partners. However, beliefs and behaviours are also influenced by the complex inter‐relationships between relational constructs such as trust, commitment, co‐operation, dependence, communication and compatibility. Often, compatibility is not only influenced by national culture but also by the size, business activity and how the organisation is incorporated.
Practical implications
Beliefs about and behaviours to trans‐national partner organisations are not solely influenced by national culture. It is the outcome of complex and diverse social, political, economic and organisational factors and how these factors influence orientations to issues such as trust, commitment, co‐operation and communication.
Originality/value
Explores a hitherto under‐researched theme on trans‐national business alliances, the influence of the national culture of organisations on various relational issues discussed in business‐to‐business relationship studies. The study consolidates knowledge from three streams of literature (national culture, organisational culture and business‐to‐business relationship), often handled as disparate sources of knowledge.
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Since there are increasing international concerns with both the positive and negative impacts of globalization on indigenous and national development, how to manage the realities…
Abstract
Since there are increasing international concerns with both the positive and negative impacts of globalization on indigenous and national development, how to manage the realities and practices of globalization and localization in education for maximizing the benefits and minimizing the disadvantages for the development of individuals and their local community inevitably becomes a key issue in educational development particularly in the developing countries. Proposes a typology of multiple theories of fostering local knowledge and human development to address this key concern. These theories have varied emphasis on global dependence and local orientation and therefore they have their own characteristics, strengths, and limitations. The typology can provide a wide spectrum of alternatives for policy‐makers and educators to conceptualize and formulate their strategies and practices in developing local education. Also presents how to facilitate individual learning and organizational learning in fast‐changing local and global environments and how to foster both individual knowledge and institutional knowledge in schools as the major contribution to the growth of local knowledge and local development. It is hoped that the theories and ideas raised in this paper can benefit the ongoing international efforts for globalization and localization in education for the future of our next generations in the new millennium.
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Jae‐Eun Chung, Brenda Sternquist and Zhengyi Chen
The purpose of this study is to compare two models, traditional‐ and performance‐based, of Japanese retailers' channel relationships. The traditional model proposes Japanese…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to compare two models, traditional‐ and performance‐based, of Japanese retailers' channel relationships. The traditional model proposes Japanese retailers' long‐term orientation with their supplier is an antecedent of Japanese retailers' trust and dependence on the supplier. The performance model, on the other hand, proposes significant influences of suppliers' role performance and dependence on channel relationships.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from Japanese department store buyers and specialty store buyers. A total of 141 cases were analyzed using the EQS structural equation modeling software.
Findings
Results show that the traditional model had a higher explanatory power than the performance model, which indicates the strong influence of culture on Japanese channel relationships.
Research limitations/implications
Some measures have relatively poor psychometric properties. A further study should refine these measurements by exploring the meanings of these constructs from the cultural context.
Originality/value
This study provides insight into how cultural influences are embedded in distribution channel relationships.
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Olimpia C. Racela, Chawit Chaikittisilpa and Amonrat Thoumrungroje
This paper aims at investigating and uncovering the potential effect of exporters' market orientation upon international business relationship with particular emphases on…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims at investigating and uncovering the potential effect of exporters' market orientation upon international business relationship with particular emphases on cooperation, dependence, and relationship distance.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a quantitative study using a mail survey among Thai exporting firms in various industries. The final sample size was comprised of 388 strategic business units (SBU's) from 279 Thai export firms in over eight industries. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling by means of AMOS 4.01.
Findings
Exporters' market orientation enhances the cooperation between the exporters and their major overseas distributor while minimizing their dependence and relationship distance. In addition, export performance is higher with greater exporter cooperation and lower relationship distance. Interestingly, the influence of exporter dependence on export performance varied among industry groups.
Practical implications
This study extends the domain of market orientation in international contexts by illustrating and empirically testing how exporters' market orientation serve as an antecedent to the development of business‐to‐business relationships, which ultimately enhances export performance. To business practitioners, this research pinpoints a particular challenge faced by exporters in managing their relationships with their overseas distributors in order to achieve better performance. Our findings show that market orientation plays a crucial role in developing and nurturing cooperative efforts with overseas distributors. As a result, exporters and their overseas distributors are recommended not only to form cooperative norms that are critical to joint marketing decisions and actions, but also aim to establish and maintain mutual dependence for their superior performance enhancement.
Originality/value
This study contributes to marketing and international business literature and provides insights to exporters by investigating the relationships among market orientation, behavioral aspects of business relationships and export performance. It also provides some evidence that market orientation practices are beneficial in enhancing cross‐cultural relationships, which have been given limited attention in previous literature.
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Wan Chen and Longwei Wang
This paper aims to investigate how firm-level factor entrepreneurial orientation affects alliance outcomes, and how two sources of uncertainty – competitive intensity and the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate how firm-level factor entrepreneurial orientation affects alliance outcomes, and how two sources of uncertainty – competitive intensity and the dependence of an entrepreneurially oriented firm on its partner – moderate the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and alliance performance.
Design/methodology/approach
The hypotheses are tested using survey data from 196 R&D alliances in China.
Findings
The results indicate that the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and alliance performance has an inverted U shape and is negatively moderated by competitive intensity and the entrepreneurial orientation firm’s dependence on its partner.
Practical implications
Entrepreneurial orientation can have positive and negative effects on alliance performance. Particularly in contexts of intense competition or dependence on partners, firms with an entrepreneurial orientation must fully exploit the advantage this brings them, improve their self-control and alliance-coordination capabilities and emphasize the joint effects of technological innovation and market factors on new product development in case of alliance failure.
Originality/value
This study highlights the dual role of entrepreneurial orientation in R&D alliances. By incorporating external and internal sources of uncertainty (competitive intensity and dependence on the partner), it also offers a more comprehensive understanding of how different levels of entrepreneurial orientation affect R&D alliance performance.
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Isabel Maria Macedo and José Carlos Pinho
This article sets out to examine the market orientation construct within the context of the non‐profit sector. Given the specificity of non‐profit organisations and the…
Abstract
Purpose
This article sets out to examine the market orientation construct within the context of the non‐profit sector. Given the specificity of non‐profit organisations and the increasingly demanding resource environments in which these organisations operate, the adoption of the concept of marketing is viewed as an adaptive strategy for ensuring that organisations receive the necessary resources for accomplishing their missions and carrying out their activities. In line with this, the present article aims to investigate the extent to which the type of revenue strategy is related to the organisation's market orientation, towards donors and/or users.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing from a resource dependence conceptual framework, the article reports findings from a quantitative study of a representative sample of Portuguese non‐profit organisations (NPOs). This approach was complemented by qualitative research methods. Combining these two approaches has given access to different levels of reality and provided a more holistic understanding of the phenomena under study.
Findings
The results from the present study demonstrate that Portuguese NPOs favour a market orientation towards users/beneficiaries, revealing a less proactive behaviour in relation to their donors. In the present study, the resource dependence theory has proved to be an important theoretical tool for understanding market orientation strategies within the non‐profit sector. The link between the type of resource strategy and the organisation's market orientation stands out as an important finding derived from the present study and is particularly visible in relation to donor market orientation. In addition, empirical data partially support the conclusion that diversification of revenue sources is likely to favour a higher degree of market orientation. Further refinement of the adequacy of the MARKOR scale within the context of the non‐profit sector stands out as an avenue for further research.
Research limitations/implications
As the sample used for analysis was drawn from Portugal, the generalisability of the results to other countries remains to be tested.
Practical implications
The findings of the present study may assist public policy‐makers in the design of more adequate policies in the allocation of resources to non‐profit organisations.
Originality/value
The study contributes to a better understanding of market orientation in the specific context of the non‐profit sector. Moreover, this is done through applying the market orientation scale to two different stakeholders (i.e. donors and users/beneficiaries) in the evaluation of market orientation and in its relationship with resource strategies.
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Wilco M.H. Verbeeten, Miriam Lorenzo-Bañuelos, Rubén Saiz-Ortiz and Rodrigo González
The purpose of the present paper is to quantify and analyze the strain-rate dependence of the yield stress for both unfilled acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and short carbon…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the present paper is to quantify and analyze the strain-rate dependence of the yield stress for both unfilled acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and short carbon fiber-reinforced ABS (CF-ABS) materials, fabricated via material extrusion additive manufacturing (ME-AM). Two distinct and opposite infill orientation angles were used to attain anisotropy effects.
Design/methodology/approach
Tensile test samples were printed with two different infill orientation angles. Uniaxial tensile tests were performed at five different constant linear strain rates. Apparent densities were measured to compensate for the voided structure. Scanning electron microscope fractography images were analyzed. An Eyring-type flow rule was evaluated for predicting the strain-rate-dependent yield stress.
Findings
Anisotropy was detected not only for the yield stresses but also for its strain-rate dependence. The short carbon fiber-filled material exhibited higher anisotropy than neat ABS material using the same ME-AM processing parameters. It seems that fiber and molecular orientation influence the strain-rate dependence. The Eyring-type flow rule can adequately describe the yield kinetics of ME-AM components, showing thermorheologically simple behavior.
Originality/value
A polymer’s viscoelastic behavior is paramount to be able to predict a component’s ultimate failure behavior. The results in this manuscript are important initial findings that can help to further develop predictive numerical tools for ME-AM technology. This is especially relevant because of the inherent anisotropy that ME-AM polymer components show. Furthermore, short carbon fiber-filled ABS enhanced anisotropy effects during ME-AM, which have not been measured previously.
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Jiyoung Hwang, Jae-Eun Chung and Byungho Jin
This study aims to examine unique cultural influences in the context of buyer-supplier relationships in a Confucian culture. The paper identifies whether and how long-term…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine unique cultural influences in the context of buyer-supplier relationships in a Confucian culture. The paper identifies whether and how long-term orientation (LO), an inherent value of Confucianism, is an antecedent of important factors of channel relationships, rather than a relationship outcome and whether and how market orientation mediates relations among LO and other relational factors.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from retail buyers at department stores in South Korea, a country that is representative of Confucian culture. One hundred and fourteen valid cases were analysed using path analysis to assess the proposed model.
Findings
LO plays significant anteceding roles in market orientation, trust, and economic dependence, both directly and indirectly. In addition, market orientation mediates the impact of LO on trust and economic dependence.
Research limitations/implications
Testing the proposed model with both retailers' and suppliers' data will add robustness to the research findings. This research advances the understanding of cultural influence on channel relationship regarding the role of LO and market orientation. Strategic practical implications include that marketers who deal with business partners in Confucian culture need to understand the embeddedness of LO and its impact on business relationship management.
Originality/value
The current study scrutinizes unique aspects of cultural influence on the anteceding roles of LO and the direct relationship between LO and market orientation in Confucian culture. The findings on the cultural embeddedness of LO provide novel insights; they also provide managerial implications for Western marketers in how to better deal with Confucian business partners.
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