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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.

To determine where, when, how, and wherefore European social theory hit upon the formula of “the True, the Good, and the Beautiful,” and how its structural position as a skeleton for the theory of action has changed.

Genealogy, library research, and unusually good fortune were used to trace back the origin of what was to become a ubiquitous phrase, and to reconstruct the debates that made deploying the term seem important to writers.

The triad, although sometimes used accidentally in the renaissance, assumed a key structural place with a rise of Neo-Platonism in the eighteenth century associated with a new interest in providing a serious analysis of taste. It was a focus on taste that allowed the Beautiful to assume a position that was structurally homologous to those of the True and the Good, long understood as potential parallels. Although the first efforts were ones that attempted to emphasize the unification of the human spirit, the triad, once formulated, was attractive to faculties theorists more interested in decomposing the soul. They seized upon the triad as corresponding to an emerging sense of a tripartition of the soul. Finally, the members of the triad became re-understood as values, now as orthogonal dimensions.

This seems to be the first time the story of the development of the triad – one of the most ubiquitous architectonics in social thought – has been told.

Understanding whistleblowing behavior by identifying preferred reporting channels and associated personality characteristics can aid organizations in their attempts to encourage whistleblowing. The authors investigate whether both Dark Triad characteristics and gender affect whistleblowing intentions and whistleblowing channel preferences. Using a sample of undergraduate business students, the authors find individuals with higher levels of Dark Triad personality characteristics indicate that they are less likely to blow the whistle than individuals with lower levels of Dark Triad personality characteristics. They are also more likely to use non-anonymous channels over anonymous channels and individuals with lower levels of Dark Triad personality characteristics show the opposite channel preference. The authors also find women more likely to report, and when reporting, they prefer anonymous over non-anonymous channels. The results provide support for organizations in cultivating an organizational culture that promotes communication among employees and potentially includes incentives to promote whistleblowing.

This study aims to investigate how relational capital derived by the buyer and supplier from the buyer-LSP and supplier-LSP dyads affects buyer-supplier adaptability and their relational performance.

Drawing upon the tenets of Social Capital Theory and Relational View, the authors performed exploratory research using a survey of 350 supply chain triads. Based on these data, the authors used Structural Equation Modeling to estimate the Higher Component Model (HCM) and test the research hypotheses.

The research results indicate that relational capital derived by the supplier from the supplier-LSP dyad has a strong and positive impact on buyer-supplier adaptability. On the other hand, relational capital derived by the buyer from the buyer-LSP dyad has no significant impact on buyer-supplier adaptability. The results also demonstrate that the effect of buyer-supplier adaptability on buyer-supplier relational performance is strong and positive. The obtained findings also suggest that buyer-supplier adaptability acts as a partial mediator between relational capital derived by buyer/supplier from the links with LSP and relational performance.

The study has some limitations that guide directions for future research. First, along with relational capital, it might be worthwhile to also investigate the impact of structural and cognitive capital in supply chain triads to test whether and how these two dimensions of social capital contribute to buyer-supplier adaptability. It could be also interesting to include the LSP’s perception of relational capital in the model to shift the analysis from the organizational to the interorganizational level.

Given the increasing interest in complex structures of supply chains, this study investigates how one dyad affects other dyads in supply chain triads. Specifically, the study develops and empirically tests the construct of relational capital derived from the links with LSPs, and views adaptability as the result of two interacting parties.

The study seeks to explore the effect of socialization mechanisms on relational embeddedness of logistics service providers (LSP), and relational performance of dyads, and finally their resulting effect on the supply chain performance in transitive triads.

To elaborate on the major constructs of the study, the researchers use the theoretical lens specifically provided by social capital theory (SCT), and relational view (RV). Consequently, the researchers use SCT to examine the role of the socialization process, used by the supplier and customer, to develop relational embeddedness of logistics service providers in triads. Next, the researchers use the RV, complemented by the underpinnings of supply chain practice view (SCPV) to elaborate on the relational performance of dyads and supply chain performance. The study uses partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to estimate the higher component model (HCM) and test the research hypotheses.

The results obtained from a sample of 350 transitive triads suggest that relational embeddedness of LSPs is only shaped by the mechanisms of formal socialization, developed by the supplier and customer. Interestingly, informal socialization appears to be insignificant for this process. The results indicate that relational embeddedness of logistics service providers has a positive effect on the relational performance of three dyads, which in turn, has a positive effect on the supply chain performance in transitive triads.

One of the intriguing avenues of future research is to investigate the dynamics of supply chains. It would be also worthwhile to make use of the specificity of transitive triads, formed by the supplier, customer and LSP, to explore whether and under which circumstances (e.g. reciprocity, symmetry) the strong ties encourage the transfer and integration of knowledge among actors, and the weak ties accelerate the search for information. In connection with that, the other interesting research avenue would be to investigate the information benefits derived from the nonredundant triads.

Although there is a number of recent studies that show empirical evidence for developing relational embeddedness in transitive triads, to date, little research interest has been paid to how relational embeddedness of LSPs is shaped within the supply chain structures, and how it finally affects the supply chain performance.

Third-party logistics providers (3PLs) have significantly evolved during the last decades, yet their role within a supply chain triad has been overlooked; this study examines empirically the 3PLs' role using four established theories: resource-based view, social capital perspective, agency theory and transaction cost economics.

This study examines the role of 3PLs in four supply chain triads, using the case study approach. Sources of evidence include interviews and secondary data.

The 3PL had different roles in multi-demand triads as service developer, customer adaptor and customer developer. The 3PL, by offering advanced services, became a service developer. The 3PL as a customer adaptor offered customised services and gain the client's trust. As a customer developer, the 3PL acted on behalf of its client in expanding its operations and meeting competitive needs.

The results of the case study methodology can only be generalised to similar types of 3PL. Supply chain triads are an emerging research field; theories like the resource-based view and transaction cost economics are established in the dyadic context and require further elaboration when applied in triadic contexts.

The findings provide practical insights into the role that 3PL can play in supply chain triads, how they can upgrade their role by long-range planning and extending their services to create supply chain efficiency.

Understanding the 3PL's role in triads can improve how companies and economies respond to crises like the recent pandemic outbreak.

It uncovers three different 3PL roles in supply chain triads by using four established theories.

Service triads refer to tripartite relationships in which client firms serve their customers through third-party service providers. The purpose of this paper is to systematically review the nascent but fast-growing literature on service triads to explore the broad themes along which the literature has grown, and to identify the gaps and future research opportunities.

Systematic literature review (SLR) approach is adopted to retrieve, select, and synthesise relevant service triads studies. A citation network analysis on the corpus resulting from the SLR identified the core articles of the literature.

The SLR uncovered ten themes of research along the articles’ objectives, theories and methodologies. The classification framework of service triads, the roles of customers and providers, the size of the provider, triadic risks, controlling service delivery and service quality, regulated triads, the stability of the triads, and cross-country, cross-culture triads emerged as significant under-researched areas.

The paper illustrates research trends and provides insights into the neglected and under-researched problems of service triads. This is the first SLR on service triads.

The current paper proposes a curvilinear relationship between the dark triad traits (Machiavellianism, psychopathy and narcissism) and job performance. In addition, it examines the moderation effect of traitedness on the dark triad–job performance relationship.

Drawing on data from 382 participants in a financial services firm in India, the authors conducted a two-phase study to examine the curvilinear and moderation effects.

Results confirmed that the relationship between dark triad traits and job performance is positive at the lower end of dark triad traits but flattens out as the dark triad traits intensify.

The authors discuss theoretical and practical implications and offer suggestions for future research.

The purpose of this paper is to explore service triads in humanitarian logistics (HL). The study uses agency theory to understand the dynamics between principal(s) and agent(s) and how contractual arrangements influence the service buyer–service provider alignment in humanitarian service triads.

This is a case study on a specific humanitarian service triad, with qualitative data being collected in a field study, utilising participant observation and in-context interview techniques for rich data collection.

The findings highlight the importance of both contractual and relational contracts between the service buyer, service provider and end customer – here donor (government), United Nations agency and implementing partner (IP). The alignment of the three parties in the service triad is more easily achieved through hybrid contracts rather than legal arrangements focussing on outcomes only.

Results stem from a specific case study that constitutes a typical humanitarian service triad. An increased understanding of managing services and their service providers in the triadic context of outsourced service delivery adds to the body of knowledge in supply management.

This is the first examination of governance structures in contractual arrangements in a humanitarian service triad. The research fills the gap in humanitarian literature regarding the interaction of practitioners in HL, specifically, a service buyer organisation (a donor – government), a service provider (a UN agency) and the end customer (an IP). The research is field based and is grounded in empirical observations thus adding to the literature and offering insights to practice.

This paper aims to investigate governance in service triads, specifically studying significant steering and connecting coordination failures, to reveal typically hidden characteristics and consequences.

This study focuses on coordination functions and activities between a buyer (a government department), a customer (a military service) and two service providers. Rich data on these normally confidential service ties are drawn from an official report into the causes of a fatal accident involving a UK reconnaissance aircraft and specifically from the evidence presented regarding the earlier development of its complex safety case. The authors also analysed a range of additional secondary data sources.

The authors examine the sources, drivers and manifestation of coordination failures. The authors uncover a series of coordination failures driven from the bridge position, revealing that while bounded rationality and opportunism influenced steering coordination failures, connecting coordination failures were associated with knowledge asymmetry, dyadic inertia and unethical practices.

Organisations and governments delivering complex projects and knowledge-intensive professional services should guard against outsourcing the “coordination” activity to a third party, thereby relinquishing the bridge position. Handing over the bridge position to an integrator would leave the client vulnerable to coordination dysfunctions such as bounded rationality, opportunism, knowledge asymmetry, dyadic inertia and unethical practices.

The study links the previously separate research streams of service triads and inter-organizational coordination. While extant research pays attention to mainly positive control functions, this study focuses on all three actors in two (failed) service triads – and highlights the impact of coordination activities and failures.