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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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The purpose of this paper is to explore whether brokered network governance, run by the manufacturer, affects relational embeddedness and thus contributes to yielding the Coleman rent in the triadic supply chains.

Building upon the theoretical tenets of transaction cost analysis, complemented by the underpinnings of social capital theory, this study involves an empirical investigation that uses survey data collected from the triadic supply chains in Europe. The research covers a two-step analysis. In the first step, the Coleman rent was estimated through the regression analysis with the interaction effects. Then, partial least squares–structural equation modeling was used to estimate the reflective-formative nature of higher component model and test the research hypotheses.

The results of the study demonstrate that the distribution of three mechanisms in network governance is relatively even; however, market and hierarchy still emerge as the most impactful dimensions. Interestingly, though, this study shows that social capital can actually coexist with market and hierarchy in the triadic supply chains with the structural hole. Likewise, the research indicates that the impact of brokered network governance on the strength of network relational embeddedness is significant, but relatively weak, whereas network relational embeddedness has a strong and positive effect on the Coleman rent.

This study makes three major contributions. First, this study is one of very few that explicitly considers brokered network governance, run by the manufacturer positioned on the structural hole in its triadic supply chain. Second, as the triadic perspective is still uncommon in the supply chain studies, this research investigates a triad with the structural hole within the manufacturing setting. Third, the paper seeks to investigate the ability to yield the Coleman rent in the triadic supply chains with the structural hole, although this type of rent is typically linked to another arrangement called closure.

Given the increasing attention paid to the role of social capital within supply chains, this study investigates how relational embeddedness can be used by the manufacturer, sitting on the structural hole and running the network governance mechanism, to yield the Coleman rent in the triadic supply chain.

Buyers and suppliers often perceive relationship governance mechanisms, such as trust and contractual fairness, in different ways. These differences in perception create an extra layer of complexity that is often ignored in the extant literature. This study adds to the understanding of how perceived asymmetries in trust and contractual fairness, two key relationship governance mechanisms, impact relational rents. This study also analyzes how boundary spanners aid managers to deal with these perceived asymmetries.

Based on survey data of 103 buyer–supplier dyads from a single global manufacturer of industrial equipment, the authors test hypotheses of perceived asymmetries in trust and contractual fairness, as well as the moderating effect of boundary spanners, on relational rents.

This research challenges the belief that asymmetries negatively impact or lead to unstable buyer–supplier relationships. Furthermore, it explains how preferential treatment and length of the relationship could reduce the impact of asymmetric perceptions.

This study stresses that open communication, which considers different viewpoints, helps to overcome the negative differences in attitude and perception. In addition, the authors found that long-term relationships seem to be far more resilient in dealing with asymmetries and that preferential treatments are best applied in (approximately) symmetric relationships in terms of contractual fairness.

While studies on buyer–supplier relationships often assume symmetric perceptions of governance mechanisms, asymmetric perceptions are far more prominent in reality. This study aims to improve one’s understanding of the impact of these asymmetries as well as how boundary spanners can affect these perceptions.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse how the use of governance mechanisms in buyer-supplier relationships in the supply chain (SC) are related to the maturity of relationships and the generation of relational rents.

Several studies have analysed interorganisational governance in SCs. However, to the best of the knowledge, no study has focussed on the use of different types of governance mechanisms through maturity stages in buyer-supplier relationships and as a consequence, its relational rents. The aim of this paper is to analyse how the use of governance mechanisms in buyer-supplier relationships in the SC are related to the maturity of relationships and the generation of relational rents. To achieve this goal, this paper carried out multiple case studies.

The results show that changes in the use of formal and informal governance mechanisms contribute to the generation of relational rents and relationship continuity. This paper identified that a reduction in power asymmetry by the buyer may allow for the greater use of informal governance mechanisms and greater relational rents. Moreover, the paper highlights that a relationship might advance or regress throughout the maturity stages, according to the commitment of the buyer to maintain the relationship with the supplier.

The study has the limitation of having chosen polar case studies in the organic sector in Brazil to illustrate the theoretical discussion and propose a model to be tested via further research. This study considered institutional factors in the analysis that might not affect dyadic relationships in other sectors and countries.

As a managerial contribution, the results indicate that when the buyer uses both kinds of mechanisms complementarily and encourages the utilisation of informal mechanisms, relationships become more resilient to adverse events.

The study also contributes towards valuing the role of organic farmers and encourages the government and business community to reflect on the challenges and opportunities in the sector.

Based on four propositions created by evaluating both the empirical data and previous literature, this paper proposes a buyer-supplier relationship maturity model rather than an overall SC maturity model. This paper also elaborated on the arguments of Dyer et al. (2018), proposing a causal explanation of how a relationship might advance or regress throughout the maturity stages, according to the commitment of the buyer to maintain the relationship with the supplier using governance mechanisms. This change in maturity stages, in turn, affects relational rents for the dyad.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how horizontal collaboration aids organisations in responding to modern slavery legislation and in gaining a socially sustainable competitive advantage.

Action research has been conducted in the textiles and fashion industry and a relational perspective adopted to interpret five collaborative initiatives taken to tackle modern slavery (e.g. joint training and supplier audits). The primary engagement has been with a multi-billion pound turnover company and its collaborations with 35 brands/retailers. A non-government organisation and a trade body have also participated.

Successful horizontal collaboration is dependent on both relational capital and effective (formal and informal) governance mechanisms. In collaborating, firms have generated relational rents and reduced costs creating a socially sustainable competitive advantage, as suggested by the relational perspective. Yet, limits to horizontal collaboration also exist.

The focus is on one industry only, hence there is scope to extend the study to other industries or forms of collaboration taking place across industries.

Successful horizontal collaborative relationships rely on actors having a similar mindset and being able to decouple the commercial and sustainability agendas, especially when direct competitors are involved. Further, working with non-business actors can facilitate collaboration and provide knowledge and resources important for overcoming the uncertainty that is manifest when responding to new legislation.

Social sustainability improvements aim to enhance ethical trade and benefit vulnerable workers.

Prior literature has focussed on vertical collaboration with few prior studies of horizontal collaboration, particularly in a socially sustainable supply chain context. Moreover, there has been limited research into modern slavery from a supply chain perspective. Both successful and unsuccessful initiatives are studied, providing insights into (in)effective collaboration.

This study aims to explore how horizontal collaboration can help small and micro enterprises within the drink sector through the relational theory lens.

The use of qualitative research methods, including focus groups and interviews, facilitated understanding the horizontal collaboration in micro and small companies within the Welsh brewery industry. Data collection involved conducting three focus groups and 13 interviews within the Welsh brewery sector in the UK. The collaboration phenomena were explained using the three elements of relational theory: relational rents, relational capitals and relational governance.

Micro and small enterprises in the drink sector use collaborative initiatives in building new capabilities to generate relational rents. In addition, relational capitals and relational governance mechanisms were identified to support the horizontal collaboration among these enterprises.

The focus is on only one part of the drinks industry, i.e. the brewery industry; therefore, this study could be extended to other industries within the drink sector or across manufacturing industries.

The micro and small enterprises can collaborate to achieve relational rent, but this collaboration requires strong relational capitals, such as trust. These partners need to change informal governance mechanisms that already exist towards more contractual formal mechanisms.

Prior research has largely focused on vertical collaboration, with limited studies using the relational theory lens to explicate horizontal collaboration phenomena and no previous research in the context of micro and small companies. Relational rents, relational capitals and relational governance mechanisms are studied to provide insights into an effective collaboration in this context.

In recent years, alliances have become even more popular than mergers and acquisitions. Alliance formation has led to the emergence of interconnected firms, which are embedded in alliance networks. This paper offers a theory of network resources to evaluate the competitive advantage of interconnected firms. It distinguishes shared resources from non-shared resources, identifies various types of rent, and illustrates how firm-, relation-, and partner-specific factors determine the contribution of network resources to the rents that interconnected firms extract from their alliance networks. This paper revisits traditional assumptions of the resource-based view and suggests that the nature of relationships may matter more than the nature of resources in creating and sustaining the competitive advantage of interconnected firms.

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the underdeveloped conceptualization of a particular type network rents, defined as knowledge recombination rents, related to the possibility for a firm to transfer and recombine knowledge within and across its portfolio of inter-organizational relationships.

Adopting a contingency approach, the authors develop a comprehensive model with propositions drawn from an original synthesis of the extant literature on the management of inter-organizational relationships.

The authors summarize the most important internal and external variables that explain how knowledge recombination rents arise within a firm’s portfolio of inter-organizational relationships. The authors create a seven-proposition model that considers: an “internal fit,” related to internal contingencies of the firm, specifically life stage and its strategy; an “external fit,” related to external contingencies of the network of the firm, specifically past experience and current portfolio structure.

The model is theory driven. Future research should validate empirically the relations proposed, especially in different industries and contexts.

The model, beyond the fact of being theoretically sounded, is also completely practical oriented. Indeed, the authors developed a comprehensive model articulated in seven propositions which relationship managers can easily use to analyze and manage their portfolios of inter-organizational relationships.

The model allows us to assert that the value of an inter-organizational relationship is neither fixed nor just related to the single dyadic interaction; rather before engaging with a relationship is crucial to ponder possible benefits and harms. This is the central element in the contribution that develops an easy-to-use and comprehensive model based on best practices.

The purpose of this research is to show that relational capabilities is a topic of interest for the competitiveness of hotel companies. This paper aims to present a methodology based on the analysis of processes in order to create and strengthen relational capabilities and proposes a model with three dimensions that jointly analyzes this phenomenon in relation to the outsourcing of activities and the collateral relationships maintained between different hotels.

Creates a methodology to rethink the relationships between the hotel company, its suppliers and other hotels in the same tourist destination. The creation of relational capabilities necessarily requires the hotel to study and analyze the following stages: internal analysis of resources and capabilities; relational analysis of activities; and process integration. A model is also proposed to analyze this question.

The development of relational capabilities in outsourcing is based on the level of competence of the service companies and on the strategic contribution of the activities, with four cases analyzed: high competence and low strategic contribution; low competence and high strategic contribution; low competence and low strategic value; and relational and internal capabilities. The joint analysis of the outsourcing relationships and collateral relationships among hotels adds a third dimension of process integration, with four possibilities: non‐core activities and low collateral processes integration; core activities and low collateral processes integration; non‐core activities and high collateral process integration; and core activities and high collateral processes integration.

A short self‐assessment questionnaire is developed that may help hotels to implement the methodology, as well as to create the basis for the empirical application by researchers in hospitality management.

The paper studies the possibilities of developing relational capabilities in the sector. It also determines the process to be followed in order to develop relational capabilities in the outsourcing of activities and in collateral relationships between hotels.