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This study provides a comprehensive framework of adaptation in triadic business relationship settings in the service sector. The framework is based on the industrial network approach (see, e.g., Axelsson & Easton, 1992; Håkansson & Snehota, 1995a). The study describes how adaptations initiate, how they progress, and what the outcomes of these adaptations are. Furthermore, the framework takes into account how adaptations spread in triadic relationship settings. The empirical context is corporate travel management, which is a chain of activities where an industrial enterprise, and its preferred travel agency and service supplier partners combine their resources. The scientific philosophy, on which the knowledge creation is based, is realist ontology. Epistemologically, the study relies on constructionist processes and interpretation. Case studies with in-depth interviews are the main source of data.

This paper revisits Bartlett and Ghoshal’s transnational theory of the MNC in relation to multi-domestic MNCs. We argue that the aggregate level of analysis adopted by Bartlett and Ghoshal is unhelpful for identifying significant changes in multi-domestic MNCs at the level of discrete functions. We argue that a more disaggregated level of analysis is required. Our analysis of two cases of multi-domestic MNCs that have undertaken the global integration of their locally distributed purchasing functions indicates that while significant change to the purchasing function has occurred, at the aggregate level both MNCs remain multi-domestic. In both cases the decision to integrate local purchasing was regarded as having more obvious benefits than integrating other functions such as marketing. While both of our case multi-domestic MNCs may in future choose to integrate other functions and develop into full-fledged transnational companies we argue that there is no inevitability to this. Indeed global integration may cease with the purchasing function. A second theme in this paper is that we argue that Bartlett and Ghoshal’s transnational theory has a biased view of what constitutes effective governance mechanisms for achieving global integration, local responsiveness and worldwide learning and that it would greatly benefit from a more balanced application of hierarchical and relational governance mechanisms.

The analysis of manufacturer-supplier relationships in Japan has contributed significantly to the advancement of interorganizational theory. It has yielded broad evidence that long-term collaborative partnerships enable firms to exploit the incentive benefits of market-based exchange while reaping the learning and coordination benefits of internalization within a corporate hierarchy. In this paper, we go beyond the issues of trust and cooperation that have occupied much prior theory and research on supplier relations in considering another dimension along which collaborative agreements may be arrayed. We build on transaction and network theories, respectively, to propose two types of long-term collaborative ties: dyadic or bilateral governance and network embeddedness. A comparative analysis of collaborative relationships in product and process development between two Japanese TV manufacturing companies and their suppliers provides empirical evidence for the distinctive effect of network ties over dyadic relationships for collaborative knowledge-sharing.

Contemporary literature reveals that, to date, the poultry livestock sector has not received sufficient research attention. This particular industry suffers from unstructured supply chain practices, lack of awareness of the implications of the sustainability concept and failure to recycle poultry wastes. The current research thus attempts to develop an integrated supply chain model in the context of poultry industry in Bangladesh. The study considers both sustainability and supply chain issues in order to incorporate them in the poultry supply chain. By placing the forward and reverse supply chains in a single framework, existing problems can be resolved to gain economic, social and environmental benefits, which will be more sustainable than the present practices.

The theoretical underpinning of this research is ‘sustainability’ and the ‘supply chain processes’ in order to examine possible improvements in the poultry production process along with waste management. The research adopts the positivist paradigm and ‘design science’ methods with the support of system dynamics (SD) and the case study methods. Initially, a mental model is developed followed by the causal loop diagram based on in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and observation techniques. The causal model helps to understand the linkages between the associated variables for each issue. Finally, the causal loop diagram is transformed into a stock and flow (quantitative) model, which is a prerequisite for SD-based simulation modelling. A decision support system (DSS) is then developed to analyse the complex decision-making process along the supply chains.

The findings reveal that integration of the supply chain can bring economic, social and environmental sustainability along with a structured production process. It is also observed that the poultry industry can apply the model outcomes in the real-life practices with minor adjustments. This present research has both theoretical and practical implications. The proposed model’s unique characteristics in mitigating the existing problems are supported by the sustainability and supply chain theories. As for practical implications, the poultry industry in Bangladesh can follow the proposed supply chain structure (as par the research model) and test various policies via simulation prior to its application. Positive outcomes of the simulation study may provide enough confidence to implement the desired changes within the industry and their supply chain networks.

In this paper the concept of the value of resources is operationalized. It is argued that the resource value is determined in dyads, instead of within one firm. The purchasing model of Kraljic (1983) is used to operationalize “value” from a supply chain perspective. The value of the resource of a firm is determined by the value of the resource as perceived by its customer(s). The presented model can be used by organizations to build and develop their resource base, and thus create better relations with their customers.

Based on an in-depth case study in the French nuclear industry, this chapter describes what happens when law’s ambiguity meets organizational complexity. While regulation studies suggest that organizations assign managerial values (such as efficiency or flexibility) to their compliance structures, this research focuses on the mixed role of purchasing managers in these processes. Constituting the missing link when explaining the legal regulation of economic activities, these intermediaries defend a financial conception of the firm against a more technical performance oriented solution. This financial conception did not emerge from nowhere, but resulted from the institutionalization of a particular meaning of business regulation within the nuclear industry. However, if values guide organizational behavior, the behavior of the actors can under no circumstances be reduced to these values. Conflicts, misunderstandings, and mistakes are a constitutive part of these process, too.

Purpose: This research investigates the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on Portuguese and Brazilian consumers’ vulnerability in contrasting age groups. It seeks to establish the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and the pandemic’s impact on customer’s vulnerability to help companies design strategies to cope with this new market context and be prepared to address these vulnerabilities in a future international health crisis.

Design/Methodology/Approach: This study employs a quantitative research method to assess the different impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on consumer vulnerability. Based on Portuguese and Brazilian residents’ surveys, an age/country-segmented cross-cultural multi-group analysis was performed to understand the differences in vulnerability.

Findings: Outcomes proved how the pandemic aggravates distinctively the vulnerability dimensions of consumers living in Portugal and Brazil. Besides, results highlight significant differences in consumers’ vulnerability during the pandemic given their age group. A positive correlation between age and fear of COVID-19 was also verified.

Value: Results were obtained based on consumers’ perceptions and scores rather than postulated behaviors. The findings highlight the need for health prevention measures to avoid neglecting existing vulnerable groups, whilst verifying how COVID-19 has managed to proliferate consumers’ vulnerability. Suggestions are drawn for both firms and governments based on obtained results and existing literature. Exemplar business strategies to avoid these vulnerabilities are put forward and discussed. The potential business advantages of firms shaping their activity according to their customers’ current vulnerabilities, during international pandemics, are also pointed.

Drawing from seminal research on organizational buying behavior (Johnston, 1979; Johnston & Bonoma, 1981), we use a case study format to explore the impact of the Internet and internationalization on today's industrial procurement processes. Interviews with senior managers of an industrial distributor reveal several key insights regarding the impact of the Internet on buyer–supplier interactions and the importance of global sourcing. Based on these exploratory findings, implications for future research are offered.