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Article
Publication date: 7 May 2019

Manufacturer structural embeddedness and the network rent: the intervening role of relational embeddedness in the triadic supply chains

Artur Swierczek

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the manufacturer that occupies the central position in the triadic supply chain is capable of enhancing relationships…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the manufacturer that occupies the central position in the triadic supply chain is capable of enhancing relationships within both dyads to produce the network rent and extra profit shared among all supply chain actors.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper opted for an exploratory study using a survey of triads forming supply chains. To reveal the capability of yielding the network rent in the examined triads, multiple regression analysis with Interaction effects was used. Having confirmed the existence of supernormal profit, the partial least square path model was developed to investigate the effects of manufacturer structural embeddedness on relational embeddedness and the resulting impact on the network rent.

Findings

The obtained findings show that manufacturer structural embeddedness has a direct and positive effect on relational embeddedness and relational embeddedness of two dyads (represented as a higher order factor) has a direct and positive effect on the network rent. In addition, relational embeddedness mediates the positive relationship between manufacturer structural embeddedness and network rent, as the null model with no mediation appears to underestimate the direct and positive effect between manufacturer structural embeddedness and the network rent.

Research limitations/implications

The study makes three key contributions. First, it extends the application of both relational and structural embeddedness to grasp the network architecture of the triadic supply chain. Second, the concept of manufacturer structural embeddedness is used to elaborate on the role of the manufacturer in establishing relationships of high quality with the supplier and the customer. In connection to the previous point, the calculated network rent demonstrates that establishing collaborative relationships in triadic supply chains may bring a significant supernormal profit, derived as the outcome of mutual interplay between the relational performances of two dyads.

Practical implications

The study shows that manufacturers intending to use their central position to develop collaborative relationships with both partners, and the supplier and the customer, ought to appreciate the role of social ties embedded in interorganizational networks. The paper also implies that in parallel with using formal contracts as a governance mechanism, the manufacturer centrally positioned in the triadic supply chains ought to deliberately shape relational embeddedness of both dyads. Finally, managers can consider the ways to enhance relational embeddedness in a triad by improving relational embeddedness of a certain dyad.

Originality/value

This study provides a novel framework for studying two basic dimensions of embeddedness (structural and relational) and their impact on the network rent in triadic supply chains that goes beyond the dyadic perspective and incorporates the extended supply chain.

Details

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, vol. 24 no. 3
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/SCM-06-2018-0232
ISSN: 1359-8546

Keywords

  • Social capital
  • Supply chain management
  • Customer relations
  • Embeddedness

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Article
Publication date: 11 June 2019

The role of manufacturer in supply chain transformation from intransitive into transitive triads: implications for the network rent

Artur Swierczek

This study aims to investigate the link between manufacturer relational embeddedness, manufacturer influence and supplier-customer relational embeddedness and their…

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the link between manufacturer relational embeddedness, manufacturer influence and supplier-customer relational embeddedness and their resulting impact on the network rent.

Design/methodology/approach

Leveraging the theoretical lens of social exchange theory and the relational view and utilizing the survey data derived from the transitional triadic supply chains, the authors used multiple regression analysis and the partial least squares (PLS) path model. The regression analysis with interaction effects is used to indicate the network rent, while the PLS path model is applied to investigate the link between manufacturer relational embeddedness, manufacturer influence and supplier-customer relational embeddedness and their subsequent impact on the network rent.

Findings

The authors empirically establish that manufacturer relational embeddedness, as a higher-order factor, can comprise both upstream and downstream relational embeddedness. The research also demonstrates that manufacturer relational embeddedness significantly contributes to the manufacturer’s eagerness to form a direct link between the supplier and the customer, and the manufacturers report a significant ability to affect this relationship. Likewise, the study shows that supplier-customer relational embeddedness significantly and positively affects the network rent. In addition, the study implies that supplier-customer relational embeddedness is a mediator between manufacturer influence and the network rent, while manufacturer influence is a suppressor variable, which increases the negative relationship between manufacturer relational embeddedness and supplier-customer relational embeddedness.

Research limitations/implications

The research makes three key contributions. First, this study, as one of very few, simultaneously embraces context, intervention, mechanism and outcome, while investigating the role of manufacturer (its relational embeddedness and influence) in promoting supplier-customer relational embeddedness, and its resulting effect on the network rent. Further on, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first empirically based study that demonstrates to what extent the manufacturer is capable of fostering supplier-customer relational embeddedness, thus favoring the transposition from the intransitive into the transitive triadic supply chains. Finally, to date, the concept of network rent has been mostly conceptualized as the theoretical construct with no empirical evidence. This research offers guidance for manufacturers in managing the relationships between the supplier and the customer to yield the highest network rent.

Originality/value

This study provides a novel approach to investigating the role of manufacturer and relational embeddedness in yielding the network rent in the transitional triadic supply chains.

Details

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, vol. 24 no. 4
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/SCM-10-2018-0341
ISSN: 1359-8546

Keywords

  • SCM practices
  • Global supply chain
  • SCM performance

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Article
Publication date: 6 November 2020

The dilemma of relational embeddedness: mediating roles of influence strategies in managing marketing channel opportunism

Yin Zhou, Wei Yang and Guijun Zhuang

The purpose of this study is to develop a better understanding of how relational embeddedness offers marketing channel partners both benefits and hazards. The nonlinear…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to develop a better understanding of how relational embeddedness offers marketing channel partners both benefits and hazards. The nonlinear effect of relational embeddedness on channel opportunism is investigated. Influence strategies (i.e. coercive and noncoercive influence) are also examined as mediators of this nonlinear effect.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data are gathered from a sample of 149 manufacturers in China. The hypotheses are tested through regression analysis.

Findings

The results support the hypothesis that relational embeddedness has a U-shaped effect on opportunism, and that this relationship can be mediated through noncoercive influence strategies. The results also indicate that coercive influence has an inverted U-shaped effect and noncoercive influence has a U-shaped effect on opportunism.

Research limitations/implications

This research serves as a launching point for further investigations into the “black box” of the double-edged effects of relational embeddedness. Other channel behavior constructs can be explored in future studies.

Practical implications

Firms should be aware of the benefits and pitfalls associated with relational embeddedness in marketing channels. They should be alert to using influence strategies when managing channel opportunism.

Originality/value

This study addresses the dilemma of embeddedness in marketing channel relationships and reveals its causes and mechanisms by exploring the mediating effects of influence strategies.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JBIM-01-2020-0021
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

  • Opportunism
  • Influence strategies
  • Relational embeddedness
  • Coercive influence
  • Noncoercive influence

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Article
Publication date: 4 February 2021

Relational embeddedness in home-based network and dynamic capabilities: evidence from Chinese MNCs

Jian Du, Keying Lu and Chao Zhou

Prior studies have argued that multinational firms with dynamic capabilities can reconfigure and upgrade their internal and external resources and adapt to an…

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Abstract

Purpose

Prior studies have argued that multinational firms with dynamic capabilities can reconfigure and upgrade their internal and external resources and adapt to an ever-changing competitive global environment. The impact of home country networks exerting on multinational corporations’ (MNCs) dynamic capabilities has been rarely discussed in extant research. This paper aims to explore how two types of home country networks’ relational embeddedness (from domestic firms and foreign firms) affect Chinese MNCs’ dynamic capabilities.

Design/methodology/approach

Several hypotheses were tested by analyzing the survey data from 204 multinational companies in china.

Findings

The results reveal the impact mechanism of the home country network on dynamic capabilities. Embeddedness in domestic networks positively affects embeddedness in the foreign network; embeddedness in foreign firms exerts positive effects on the three dimensions of MNC’s dynamic capabilities. Additionally, the effect of domestic firms’ relational embeddedness on resource reconfiguring capability is mediated by foreign firms’ embeddedness. Consequently, this study provides a theoretical introduction for MNCs from emerging economies.

Practical implications

This study has several managerial implications for emerging MNCs’ international operations. For MNCs from emerging economies, close cooperation with domestic firms helps firms to develop a close relationship with foreign firms; meanwhile, developing a close relationship with foreign firms can obtain spillover about technology and management experience better, improving dynamic capability. Specifically, domestic embeddedness, through foreign embeddedness, can extend the impact to focal firms in developing resource reconfiguring capability.

Originality/value

This study provides an alternate view of how home country networks influence the dynamic capabilities of Chinese MNCs and outlines its impact mechanism. Therefore, the study contributes both to the international business literature and social network literature.

Details

Chinese Management Studies, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/CMS-03-2020-0095
ISSN: 1750-614X

Keywords

  • Dynamic capabilities
  • Relational embeddedness
  • Emerging MNCs
  • Home country network

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Book part
Publication date: 27 August 2014

Coevolutionary Perspective of Industry–Network Dynamics

Leonid Bakman and Amalya L. Oliver

The chapter presents a theoretical framework that deals with the basic question of how networks and industries coevolve. We draw upon the structural and relational…

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Abstract

The chapter presents a theoretical framework that deals with the basic question of how networks and industries coevolve. We draw upon the structural and relational perspectives of networks to theorize about changes occurring in interfirm networks over time and the coevolutionary linkage of these changes to the industry life cycle. We further extend the widely accepted industry life cycle model by claiming that industry-specific evolutionary patterns impact the structure of the network’s relations, which in turn lead to diversification in the sources of innovation and to variation in the patterns of industrial evolution.

Details

Understanding the Relationship Between Networks and Technology, Creativity and Innovation
Type: Book
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-067X(2013)0000013004
ISBN: 978-1-78190-489-3

Keywords

  • Industry evolution
  • industry life cycle
  • network embeddedness
  • structural embeddedness
  • relational embeddedness

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Book part
Publication date: 12 November 2010

Subsidiary contribution to firm-level competitive advantage – disentangling the effects of MNC external embeddedness

Phillip C. Nell, Ulf Andersson and Bodo B. Schlegelmilch

Purpose – The purpose of this chapter is to develop a more fine-grained model of the relationship between multinational corporation (MNC) external embeddedness and…

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Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this chapter is to develop a more fine-grained model of the relationship between multinational corporation (MNC) external embeddedness and subsidiary contribution to firm-level competitive advantage.

Methodology/approach – We briefly review previous international management literature and show that the conception of MNC embeddedness in external networks is often simplistic. We develop the concept of the HQ–subsidiary dyad being externally embedded and derive propositions on how this more holistic concept of MNC embeddedness influences subsidiary contribution.

Findings – We argue that subsidiary contribution depends not only on the relational embeddedness dimension of the subsidiary but that there is a complex interplay between several embeddedness dimensions on multiple levels. We suggest that the much emphasized effect of subsidiary relational embeddedness might be contingent on the HQ's own relationships, and the structure of the overall network. We also develop propositions which show that subsidiary relational embeddedness mediates the relationship between overall network structure and subsidiary contribution.

Research limitations – For the sake of theoretical stringency, we keep other influencing factors such as MNC strategy and specific subsidiary mandates as constant.

Originality/value of the chapter – Subsidiaries are an important source of firm-level competitive advantage. Subsidiary resources have also been shown to develop to a large extent in relationships with external actors. Despite this importance, we argue that our understanding of how the MNC is embedded in external networks and how this in turn influences subsidiary contribution is limited. This chapter attempts to make a first step into filling this gap.

Details

Reshaping the Boundaries of the Firm in an Era of Global Interdependence
Type: Book
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/S1745-8862(2010)0000005012
ISBN: 978-0-85724-088-0

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Article
Publication date: 14 October 2020

Open innovation, network embeddedness and incremental innovation capability

Shaojie Han, Yibo Lyu, Ruonan Ji, Yuqing Zhu, Jingqin Su and Lining Bao

This study aims at developing a better understanding of the relationship between network embeddedness and incremental innovation capability and further examines the…

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims at developing a better understanding of the relationship between network embeddedness and incremental innovation capability and further examines the moderating effect of open innovation.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper adopts hierarchical regressions to validate the theoretical model and collect the patent data of the top 54 firm patentees in the smartphone industry as empirical sample. Using patent citation network data, this paper estimates the relationship between open innovation, network embeddedness and incremental innovation capability.

Findings

This paper empirically shows that structural embeddedness exerts a negative effect on incremental innovation capability, while relational embeddedness is positively related to incremental innovation capability. And open innovation strengthens the relationship between network embeddedness and incremental innovation capability.

Originality/value

This paper shifts the focus of the determinants of incremental innovation capability from internal factors to the external network features by exploring the linkage between network embeddedness and incremental innovation capability. A counterintuitive conclusion is that structural embeddedness shows a negative effect on firm's incremental innovation capability. Furthermore, in contrast to most previous studies, which only focus on the direct effect of open innovation on the firm's incremental innovation capability, our study examines the moderating effect of open innovation on the relationships between network embeddedness and incremental innovation capability. At last, the results provide practical guidance for firms to occupy the beneficial network positions and adopt appropriate open innovation strategies to improve their incremental innovation capability.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 58 no. 12
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-08-2019-1038
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

  • Open innovation
  • Incremental innovation capability
  • Structural embeddedness
  • Relational embeddedness

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Book part
Publication date: 1 April 2003

SIZE OF THE PIE AND SHARE OF THE PIE: IMPLICATIONS OF NETWORK EMBEDDEDNESS AND BUSINESS RELATEDNESS FOR VALUE CREATION AND VALUE APPROPRIATION IN JOINT VENTURES

Ranjay Gulati and Lihua Olivia Wang

This chapter examines the factors that may influence the total value created in a joint venture (JV) and also the relative value appropriated by each partner in the…

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Abstract

This chapter examines the factors that may influence the total value created in a joint venture (JV) and also the relative value appropriated by each partner in the venture. We look at the effects of both partners’ embeddedness in prior networks of relationships and the asymmetry of business relatedness of two partners with the JV on these two important outcomes. Results of an event study of stock market reaction to JV announcements by the largest U.S. firms during 1987–1996 suggest that both network embeddedness of partners and the asymmetry of business relatedness of two firms with the JV affect the total value creation of all partners but not the relative value appropriation between the partners.

Details

The Governance of Relations in Markets and Organizations
Type: Book
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0733-558X(02)20008-7
ISBN: 978-1-84950-202-3

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Article
Publication date: 29 April 2014

The effect of social embeddedness on bloggers’ creativity

Hsiu-Hua Cheng

Blogs provide opportunities for bloggers to create. This creativity can attract audiences and generate commercial success for blog service providers (BSPs). Thus to obtain…

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Abstract

Purpose

Blogs provide opportunities for bloggers to create. This creativity can attract audiences and generate commercial success for blog service providers (BSPs). Thus to obtain competitive advantage, such providers should stimulate their bloggers to produce creative content. The purpose of this paper is to adopt social embeddedness and creativity theory to explore factors influencing blogger creativity.

Design/methodology/approach

An online questionnaire and an online embeddedness system are used to collect data from 353 bloggers, including data on their motivation, integration ability, structural and relational embeddedness and creativity. Hierarchical regression is applied for statistical analysis.

Findings

Analytical results show that structural embeddedness and relational embeddedness affect blogger creativity. Additionally motivation negatively moderates the relationship between structural embeddedness and creativity, and integration ability negatively moderates the relationship between relational embeddedness and creativity.

Research limitations/implications

This study applies social embeddedness to elucidate the relationships among quantity and quality of professional knowledge and creativity. This study also discusses the moderating effect of motivation and integration ability on the relationship between social embeddedness and creativity.

Practical implications

Creative articles by bloggers can popularise a blog platform, as they can retain bloggers and attract new bloggers. Therefore, for BSPs enhancing the creative performance of bloggers is one way to obtain competitive advantage.

Originality/value

The study contributes to knowledge of social embeddedness and creativity on blog web sites, and importantly, this study develops a model that explains how antecedents influence blogger creativity.

Details

Online Information Review, vol. 38 no. 3
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/OIR-06-2013-0144
ISSN: 1468-4527

Keywords

  • Blog
  • Creativity
  • Motivation
  • Social embeddedness
  • Integration ability

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Article
Publication date: 3 September 2018

Governing embedded partner networks: Certification and partner communities in the IT sector

Chris Storey, Canan Kocabasoglu-Hillmer, Sinéad Roden and Ko de Ruyter

The complexity of supplier-partner networks in the information technology (IT) sector where large suppliers utilize thousands of authorized partners requires that…

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Abstract

Purpose

The complexity of supplier-partner networks in the information technology (IT) sector where large suppliers utilize thousands of authorized partners requires that organizations reconsider their approach to governing and managing the relationships involved. Traditional dyadic approaches to governance are likely to prove inadequate. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between network governance mechanisms and relationship performance. Specifically, the authors examine the contingent effect of certification of partners and the use of partner communities (as formal and informal mechanisms of network governance, respectively), on complex and embedded networks of relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

A model examining the effect of formal and informal network governance on the relationship between embeddedness (structural and relational) and relationship performance is developed. Data were collected from a sample of partners of leading IT suppliers in the UK and Ireland. Three-way interactions assess the contingent effect of certification and partner communities on the relationship between embeddedness and relational performance.

Findings

Results support the use of a combination of certification and partner communities to strengthen the link between network structure (structural embeddedness) and relational embeddedness, as well as relationship performance. Certification requires the sharing of explicit knowledge with partners whereas partner communities aid the creation and dissemination of more tacit, contextual knowledge. Furthermore, partner communities reinforce positive perceptions of fairness in suppliers’ network management practices, overcoming any perceptions of lock-in or coercive control that certification may suggest.

Practical implications

Certification, despite all its procedural and reputational benefits, damages partner relationships and needs to be supported by partner communities, which themselves show particularly strong benefits in enhancing network relationships.

Originality/value

Despite the emerging prevalence of certification and partner communities in business-to-business relationships, to date there is a paucity of research on their effects on partner relationships and performance. Organizations with an extensive network of similar partners may suffer network overload. This research shows that such organizations can manage their partner network more effectively through network governance mechanisms, thereby addressing the challenge of overload.

Details

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. 38 no. 9
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPM-12-2016-0708
ISSN: 0144-3577

Keywords

  • Governance
  • Communities
  • Certification
  • Embeddedness
  • Partner networks

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