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Identifies the communication strategies available to companies when dissolving cross‐cultural inter‐organisational relationships to achieve effective (cooperative) outcomes. First, addresses the importance of communication dissolution, and proposes a typology of available communication strategies. Second, emphasises the importance of understanding cultural diversity in business relationships in general and dissolution in particular. Third, proposes two related theoretical frameworks. The first addresses different conflict management styles that bridge the gap between dissolution communication strategies and the cultural context in which the actors are embedded. The second is a theoretical model for analysing dissolution process in a cross‐cultural business relationship context. Proposes the independent variable, culture, as providing a frame of reference by which meaning and intent are assigned by the foreign company to the communications of the terminating company (disengager), thus affecting the choice of dissolution strategy.

This paper aims to examine the characteristics of buyer‐supplier relationship dissolution in China.

The paper presents the results of nine in‐depth interviews of Chinese managers of dissolved long‐term business relationships.

The paper finds that it is common in China for relationships to have a transferable “energy” after the dissolution of a relationship due to the guanxi that exists between individuals prior to dissolution. It is also common for dysfunctional relationships to “fade away” so as not to lose “face” for a business partner or damage any guanxi developed by abruptly ending relations. Additionally, a characteristic of dissolution in China is the involvement of a third‐party (an individual who introduced subsequent business partners), who would often then play an active role in the dissolution of the relationship.

The findings are based on data from managers in private enterprises with no examination of state‐owned enterprises.

The paper offers guidelines for the characteristics of relationship dissolution in China that make it distinctive, particularly in comparison to dissolution in a Western context.

This study contributes to the understanding of relationship dissolution by examining buyer‐supplier relationship dissolution in China. The findings of this study suggest that much can be gained by examining predominantly western views of relationship functionality and dysfunctionality in different cultural contexts.

Interorganisational buyer‐seller relationships have been primarily studied from the perspective of relationship development and the benefits accrued from relationships. There is a lack of research concerning problems with relationships and relationship dissolution. The dissolution of a business relationship can be either desirable, freeing badly deployed resources, as indicated by the customer portfolio approach, or harmful, involving costly legal disputes and the loss of company reputation. By employing a theory‐driven case study approach we examine the exit strategies available for the disengager in dissolving interorganisational buyer‐seller relationships. We show that the quality of dissolution is affected by the disengager’s choice of exit strategy. Managerial suggestions are provided for achieving “beautiful exits”, i.e. such communication strategies which minimise damages of the dissolution to the disengager, the other party, and the connected business network.

A relationship dissolution model is developed that depicts some of the key antecedents of relationship commitment as revealed in the context of the dissolution of a buyer‐seller relationship. Despite the importance of the dissolution of marketing relationships, there has been little research on this topic. The level of commitment determines intentions to remain in the relationship. However, it is difficult to measure true commitment in a relationship until that relationship ends. In addition to adding to our knowledge about the dissolution of marketing relationships, this paper will also provide a new conceptual representation of the relationship commitment construct.

The purpose of this study is to assess the validity and predictability of insights from the investment model (IM) in the context of strategic manufacturer–industrial supplier relationships. IM is a theoretical model in social psychology pertaining to interpersonal relationship discontinuity. This formal empirical test of IM in a different context supports vertical theory borrowing and minimizes the risk of committing atomistic fallacy.

Data collected from 256 sourcing professionals participating in a scenario-based role-playing experiment were analyzed via structural equation modeling. The authors also performed bootstrapping to assess indirect effects.

The IM is generally applicable to the context of interfirm relationship dissolution. Relative to the original context of interpersonal relationship dissolution, three nuances are detected: investment size as an antecedent has lowered prominence in influencing commitment; satisfaction level, quality of alternatives and investment size have non-orthogonal effects on commitment; and satisfaction level influences relationship continuity through and beyond commitment.

The empirical findings broaden boundary conditions for IM insights. Beyond interpersonal relationship dissolution, the IM appears to also describe, explain and predict interfirm relationship dissolution.

Keeping the manufacturer satisfied is critical. Moreover, suppliers should be cautious when entering joint product development agreements.

This study appears to be among the first to formally validate the applicability of IM insights as they pertain to the dissolution of strategic manufacturer–industrial supplier relationships.

This paper aims to explore the role that inter‐personal relationships play in promoting or hindering the dissolution of business relationships operating in the UK food industry.

The case study methodology was used to explore the dissolution of 11 business relationships and the role of inter‐personal relationships therein.

The findings demonstrate the critical role of personal relationships in the dissolution processing, acting as a catalyst, a precipitator and an extenuating factor in the dissolution process.

The case studies draw exclusively on the experiences and perceptions of suppliers to uncover the dynamics of dissolved business relationships. However, this is not surprising, given the sensitive nature of the subject. Moreover, the two‐stage methodology used for identifying case study candidates should prove beneficial to other researchers in this area.

The case study findings illustrate that important though they are, personal relationships are a means to an end not an end in themselves. Failure to use close personal relationships to deliver commercial benefits leaves the supplier vulnerable.

This is one of very few papers to provide empirical evidence of the dissolution process in business relationships, using a novel case study methodology that may prove useful for other researchers working in this under‐researched area.

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to investigate the supplier's view on supplier‐initiated relationship dissolution due to lack of customer profitability. Design/methodology/approach – The research is focused on inter‐organisational buyer‐seller relationships. An exploratory study in the German mechanical engineering industry was conducted to provide insights into the usage of customer valuation techniques and the preponderance of unprofitable customer relationships, and to identify various ways of managing unprofitable customer relationships by means of cluster analysis. Findings – The study shows that many companies in the industry lack knowledge and use of customer valuation techniques. Three clusters of supplying firms are identified that differ in their willingness to end unprofitable customer relationships. Research limitations/implications – Provides an exploratory study into a neglected aspect of relationship marketing characterised by a low response rate. The sample contained companies from one major German industry, limiting the applicability of its findings. The main implications are that unprofitable customer relationships are a common feature of industrial markets, which merits further investigation. Respondents were shown to have a range of different views and approaches to such relationships. Research on customer valuation needs to focus on the implementation barriers of valuation methods. Practical implications – Study results stress the importance of developing and implementing customer valuation methods, the relevance of unprofitable relationships, and suppliers' decision making concerning such precarious relationships. It is a useful source of information and impartial advice for managers involved with customer management. Originality/value – The paper leads to a more thorough understanding of relationship marketing and provides empirical data on a neglected field of marketing research, as prior work did not consider the supplier's view on dissolution management in detail.

The literature is rich with examples that stress the importance of marketers having long‐term customer relationships. Yet, the reality is that while relational attachments can foster benefits, there are many occasions when marketers seek, or are forced, to disband or change the nature of customer relationships. Interestingly however, despite the obviousness of this circumstance, this remains an unexamined strategic condition. In a unique investigation, this article explores the strategic opportunities and conditions that emanate from “relational unrest” in the business‐to‐business marketplace. Consequently, this article notes how sellers can benefit from understanding how to properly manage relational unrest. To address this issue, a strategic framework is proposed, which concludes that when sellers experience relational difficulties, strategic options with positive outcomes and related managerial implications can be associated with this condition.

The objective of this work is to provide evidence of customer switching intentions as a complex phenomenon involving a series of firm actions – service quality failures, unfair price, low perceived commitment and anger incidents – and factors relating to the purchase situation or the consumer that also play an important role as moderators in the dissolution process.

An empirical study has been carried out in the case of customers of car‐insurance firms.

Results demonstrate the existence of some factors that have a weak influence on the switching intention – service quality and company commitment – and other factors that have a strong influence and precipitate the consumers' decisions – price changes and critical incidents. This study also underlines the moderator role of knowledge about alternatives and switching costs in this process.

This findings show that a continuing dissatisfaction with the firm as a consequence of a quality that is poorer than expected does not influence individuals as much as a change in the price policy or a one‐off incident in which consumers experience a strong unease.

This work provides empirical evidence about the existence of various determinants of switching: variables that weaken the relationship and variables that precipitate dissolution. These categories had already been discussed theoretically in previous work, but their effect had not been tested. Moreover, it advances in the idea that switching intention may fundamentally be conditioned by consumers' level of involvement and their knowledge about other alternatives.

This paper aims to explore the possible scenarios after a failed reverse auction to continue a current buyer–seller relationship.

The authors developed a further understanding of reverse auctions through the examination of a longitudinal case study in the mining industry based on grounded theory.

The study indicates that losing a reverse auction is not a death sentence for the current supplier. Four factors influence the potential scenarios: buyer factors, supplier factors, buyer–seller factors and contextual factors. If the overall evaluation favors the current buyer–seller relationship, the supplier can continue the business interaction by full renegotiation or discrete step-by-step reconsideration. Conversely, the buyer–seller relationship would reach a state of dissolution.

This manuscript contributes to the understanding of reverse auction, an under-researched theme in organizational buying behavior theory. This paper is the first attempt to link buyer–seller relationship dissolution and reverse auctions. The authors suggest that more academic endeavors are needed to study online reverse auctions.