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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.

Both the scope of postentry growth and the scale of postentry growth are essential for Chinese multinational enterprises' aggressive internationalization. Yet, prior literature has not considered the synergistic approach of postentry growth that seeks the scope of growth and the scale of growth simultaneously. Building upon the embeddedness perspective and the learning view, we address how structural embeddedness directly affects firms' postentry growth in the form of scope and scale and indirectly affects postentry growth via both the scope of growth and the scale of growth. Particularly, we investigate the decreasing mediating effect of the growth's scale on the growth's scope when embeddedness strengthens.

With a survey data set of 206 Chinese multinational firms from manufacturing and service industries, we conduct structural equation modeling (SEM), partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM), instantaneous indirect effect assessment and hierarchical linear regression model to test our hypotheses.

First, Chinese multinational enterprises’ (CMNEs) structural embeddedness is positively related to their scope of postentry growth, while has a U-shaped relationship with their scale of postentry growth. Second, CMNEs' scope of postentry growth mediates the relationship between structural embeddedness and the scale of postentry growth, the mediation effect counts for 33.5% of the over effect. Finally, the indirect effect of structural embeddedness on the scope of postentry growth through the scale of postentry growth is nonlinear. As the structural embeddedness strengthens, the positive indirect effect gradually weakens.

We believe this study further connects core international business research on postentry growth to the fast-growing literature on emerging markets multinational enterprises' internationalization. In addition, we undertake an initial effort in addressing an important gap in the literature: how structural embeddedness matters to firms' postentry growth. Moreover, this study finds important evidence to support the direct and indirect effect of structural embeddedness on postentry growth.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Based on the theory of social networks, it is crucial to enhance information superiority through joint venture capital (VC). The purpose of this paper is to explore the impacts of different roles’ structural and relational embeddedness on the information superiority of joint VC alliances.

The authors design the multiple linear regression models to investigate the leader’s investment ratio from a network embeddedness perspective. Panel data analysis and robustness tests are adopted based on the data from Chinese VCs Database.

The results show that VC leaders enjoy information search advantages because of their better network positions, while their followers lack this superiority. Information sharing among investors and investees may enhance the influences of structural embeddedness on investors’ information search advantages. Joint VC’s scale and its number of leaders could also increase VC alliances’ information superiority.

This research provides a more holistic understanding of the formation of joint VC alliances’ information superiority from a social network perspective. Both VC managers and social planners can seek guidance from this study to implement better strategies and policies to promote information symmetry in the VC market.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The purpose of this paper is to identify antecedents and consequences of customers’ value co-creation behaviour (VCB). VCB as a means to facilitate value realisation processes is gaining importance in service research and practice. Encouraging such enactments can be challenging, but can also offer competitive advantages.

We empirically investigate a conceptual model by converging three contemporary concepts of co-creation research – embeddedness, VCB and value-in-context – and examining the interdependencies between them. Data were collected in an online forum of a leading international weight-management firm.

Results suggest that customers’ embeddedness is a key antecedent of customers’ VCB in a service system. The three embeddedness dimensions – structural, relational and cultural – have a differential impact on customers’ VCB. Furthermore, findings illustrate that customers’ VCB has a significant impact on their object-oriented, self-oriented and brand-oriented social value-in-context outcomes.

This study contributes by empirically investigating and validating antecedents and consequences of VCB in a service system. In doing so, the study highlights the significance of the nature of customer’s social constellations to develop contexts where value outcomes are actualised. Understanding the factors that shape VCB offers insights for firms to recognise how and where value propositions can be deployed that drives on-going co-creation processes.

This study is the first empirical research to offer insights into important pre-conditions and subsequent outcomes concurrently to illustrate how customers’ VCB can be managed and nurtured for sustainable value co-creation processes within service systems. This research further advances mid-range theorizing and microfoundational perspectives in marketing.

The purpose of this study was to identify if network embeddedness and innovation performance relationship, which has been largely studied in multinational enterprises (MNEs) and large corporations, was also applicable in the context of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Secondly, the authors also sought to identify the moderating role of innovation openness in the relationship between network embeddedness and SMEs' innovation performance.

Empirical analysis was based on 388 SMEs in Ghana. Various validity and reliability checks were conducted before the presentation of the actual analysis, which was conducted using the structural equation modeling in Amos (v.23).

Findings revealed that, in the context of SMEs, network embeddedness had significant positive effect on innovation performance. The authors further identified that SMEs with both high levels of network embeddedness and innovation openness had a much higher performance in their innovation, compared to SMEs that relied solely on network embeddedness.

The current study found innovation openness to further strengthen the relationship between network embeddedness and SMEs' innovation performance. The relationship between network embedded and SME's innovation could, however, be mediated by knowledge transfer mechanisms, so future studies should pay particular attention to the mediating mechanisms.

Management of SMEs is advised to develop conducive organizational structures, such as trust, openness to collaboration and so on, for effective innovative knowledge transfer and transformation.

Past research studies on network embeddedness and innovation performance have dominantly resided in MNE and large corporations. This current study extends the body of knowledge by extending the network embeddedness and innovation performance research studies to SME context.

Supply chains are becoming more complex and uncertain, yet existing theories are predominately based on empirical research of dyads overlooking triadic settings. This study aims to bridge the gap between supply chain theories and praxis, this study examined multi-sourcing triads in terms of coordination, collaboration and integration.

Transaction cost economics, resource-based view in conjunction with social capital theory and agency theory were used to develop a research framework. Abductive, comparative research examined four triads. The triads comprised four retailers (EU, USA, Japan and one with a global presence), one third-party logistics provider (3PL) and 103 suppliers in textiles and the clothing industry.

All multi-sourcing triads achieved efficient coordination via network configuration showing varying degrees of collaboration and integration. Three research propositions were developed as follows: transaction complexity and dynamics necessitate triad coordination and control by the 3PL; relational and structural embeddedness emerge when actors invest in triad-specific resources and capabilities; information, relational and structural asymmetries may trigger bridge transfer and affect triad integration and performance.

Empirical research on multi-sourcing triads complements existing research on logistics and service, transitive triads to uncover how triad coordination, embeddedness and power asymmetries affect supply chain performance. Future studies should examine the interrelationships between triad embeddedness, asymmetries and relational capital.

Compared to logistics or service triads, B3B triads excel in relational and structural embeddedness and offer unique production-distribution solutions that create value to end-consumers and triad actors.

B3B triads are a unique conceptualization in supply chain management that extends the concepts of logistics triads and service triads.

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the concept of dynamic capabilities from the knowledge‐based perspective and investigate the mechanisms of dynamic capabilities on innovation performance in networked environments.

This paper designed a seven‐point Likert questionnaire measuring the dynamic capabilities, innovation performance and network embeddedness and a sample of 218 Chinese manufacturing firms were surveyed. Structural equation modeling method was used to statistically test the theoretical hypothesis.

Significant relationships were found between dynamic capabilities and innovation performance and knowledge combination capability played a mediating role in this relationship. For the links between network embeddedness and dynamic capabilities, knowledge acquisition capability was affected mainly by relational embeddedness and the diversity of network and joint problem solving contributed much to knowledge combination capability.

This paper deepened the understanding on dynamic capabilities and the mechanism between network embeddedness, knowledge‐based dynamic capabilities and innovation performance. In the future, the construct of knowledge‐based dynamic capabilities calls for more examination and verification.

Drawing on the literature of dynamic capabilities framework, knowledge‐based view and the network model, this study extends the literature of dynamic capabilities and its link with innovation performance in networked environments. Using survey data and structural equation modeling, this study offers rich evidence on the contribution of dynamic capabilities on innovation performance and the antecedents of dynamic capabilities.