Innovation in Buyer–Supplier Relationships: A Review of Relationship Characteristics and Directions for Future Research

Author(s):  
Chun Zhang ◽  
Fang Wu

The increased reliance on external suppliers for generating new product and process innovation has resulted in a growing number of studies on supply chain innovation (SCI). This growing body of research, however, utilizes diverse theoretical perspectives to examine constructs relevant to SCI and has generated fragmented findings on the facilitators of SCI. In particular, although a large number of SCIs occur in a buyer–supplier relationship, the relationship characteristics that foster innovation generation remain unclear. The current study synthesizes the existing literature on innovation in buyer–supplier relationships and provides a comprehensive framework that highlights the key characteristics of a buyer–supplier relationship that foster SCIs. The study also aims to identify new opportunities for future research regarding innovation generation involving upstream suppliers.

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peivand Ghasemzadeh ◽  
Jamal A. Nazari ◽  
Mandana Farzaneh ◽  
Gholamhossein Mehralian

Purpose Different studies have analyzed the relationship between organizational learning (OL) and innovation performance (IP). However, the question of how innovation culture (IC) affects the relationship between OL and IP remains unexplored. This study aims to examine the impact of IC on the relationship between OL and various dimensions of IP, including product, process and objective innovation. Design/methodology/approach A research model was developed and performed based on the relevant literature in the field of OL, IC and IP. The hypotheses are tested with the data collected from companies operating in an intensive knowledge-based industry. Findings Based on the results of 625 questionnaires completed by pharmaceutical companies, OL activities and IC can result in product and process innovation. However, this relationship was not supported for the objective innovation. Furthermore, in terms of the moderating role of IC in the relationship between OL and IP dimensions, the results were significant. Practical implications The findings help to gain a better understanding of how organizational commitment by creating a culture for innovation can help to maximize the benefits of continuous OL in product and process innovation. Originality/value Considering the three aspects of IP, it is the first survey of the contribution of OL in firms’ IP with considering the moderating role of IC. The proposed model would enrich the relevant literature and provide us with better understanding how OL contributes to the IP.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 219-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
So Won Jeong ◽  
Jae-Eun Chung ◽  
Jung-Sim Roh

We examine the role of external knowledge inflow in improving the product and process innovation of Korean exporting small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the textiles, apparel, and footwear industries. Building on the resource-based view (RBV), we investigate how five sources of knowledge inflow (suppliers, customers, competitors, universities, and government agencies) contribute to product and process innovation through absorptive capacity (AC) as a mechanism to explain the link between external knowledge inflow and innovation. Conducting a path analysis, we found that knowledge inflow from customers and government agencies had a positive effect on AC, subsequently enhancing product and process innovation. Additionally, knowledge inflow from universities and government agencies also affected process innovation and product innovation, respectively. We also demonstrated the mediating role of AC in the relationship between external knowledge inflow and innovation. Korean SMEs should thus invest in developing the knowledge sources of customers, universities, and government agencies to enhance AC and innovation.


1998 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
pp. 3-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tony Lynch

Research into listening over the past three decades has, above all, highlighted the fundamental intricacy of the processes involved. In order to make sense of spoken messages, listeners may need to integrate information from a range of sources: phonetic, phonological, prosodic, lexical, syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic. The fact that we achieve all this in real time as the message unfolds makes listening “complex, dynamic, and fragile” (Celce-Murcia 1995:366). In this review I consider research into four aspects of these complexities: processes (e.g., speech recognition, discourse comprehension, and memory); the role of context; factors influencing listening; and the relationship of listening with other language skills. Finally I suggest likely directions for future research into listening.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheshadri Chatterjee ◽  
Ranjan Chaudhuri ◽  
Demetris Vrontis

PurposeThis study examines the relationship between knowledge-sharing activities of the firm and its innovation capability. It also investigates the moderating impact of the firms' absorptive capacity on the relationship between knowledge sharing and firm innovation capability from the cross-subsidiary perspective in the international market environment.Design/methodology/approachThis study reviewed the literature from the areas of knowledge management, international market and innovation management. Through the literature review, absorptive capacity theory and dynamic capability view (DCV) theory, a conceptual model has been developed. This model has been validated using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique with 612 respondents from 16 multinational firms from different countries.FindingsThe study finds that knowledge-sharing activities across subsidiaries of multinational firms are important for product and process innovation. Firms’ absorptive capacity also impacts the relationship between firms' knowledge-sharing activities and their different dynamic capabilities, such as sensing, seizing and transforming. The study also finds that firms' innovation capability positively impacts their competitiveness.Research limitations/implicationsThis study provides valuable inputs to the management of multinational firms to recognize the importance of knowledge-sharing activities across their different subsidiaries in the international marketing knowledge management (MKM) context.Originality/valueThe study adds to the literature on knowledge management, international market and firms' innovation capability. As the study examines the knowledge-sharing activities across different subsidiaries of multinational firms, especially in the context of process and product innovation, it is considered unique. The study also provides a unique validated model.


2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 356-367 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan L. Skiver

While successful performance in terms of cost savings for firms expanding beyond their home boundaries has been well noted in the literature. Other factors, such as product and process innovation gained through this global process, have not been well examined. The aim of this study is to answer four specific research questions: 1) What are the reasons for going global in today’s economy? 2) How can a global supply chain lead to increased innovation? 3) What are the specific ways that companies can gain product and process innovation in a global supply chain? 4) What is a model that can be examined for future research?This literature review examines areas of human resource management and supply chain management through the theory of absorptive capacity in a rapidly expanding global environment. In addressing the four main questions, this review will present emerging research issues for global supply chains.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-126
Author(s):  
Mervi Luonila ◽  
Maarit Kinnunen

Purpose To make sense of the relationship between the festival attendance and the aims in arts festival management, the purpose of this paper is to explore the key characteristics for success and analyze the perceptions of the future in arts festival productions. Design/methodology/approach This qualitative study uses interviews with festival managers and empathy-based stories (MEBS) written by members of festival audience. Discourse analysis is employed for answering the questions: What are the characteristics of a successful festival, and what could ruin it? Findings The paper highlights the importance of interaction with the audience orchestrated by the festival organization. Such interaction co-constructs a more holistic festival experience valued by both parties, which supports the sustainability and future success. Research limitations/implications The research data are limited to one country, and music festivals dominate the data. Practical implications Among managers, there is a need to consider audiences as consumers and as producers in the current competitive climate in the arts and cultural field and clarify the role of the audience as a partner in the networked festival production by placing the attendee at the core of the strategic planning process of arts festivals. Originality/value The research combines the views of the demand-and-supply side. It adds to the knowledge in arts and festival management by exploring the relationship between attendance and the aims of arts festival management in general, and the key characteristics of success in the arts festival context in particular. MEBS offers new interesting opportunities for future research in qualitative festival research.


2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (02) ◽  
pp. 2050013
Author(s):  
Fábio de Oliveira Paula ◽  
Jorge Ferreira da Silva

The aim of this study was to investigate how combining internal and external knowledge sources (KS) may influence product and process innovation of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from developing economies in order to improve their financial performances (FPs). Previous research mostly supported that internal KS influence innovation directly as well as indirectly, moderating the relationship between external KS and innovation performance (IP), with this moderation being more prominent in the case of high-technology firms. These studies also supported that innovation influences FP more strongly in this type of firm. The present study proposes that, in developing countries, the opposite occurs. The moderation relationship of internal KS on the relationship between external KS and IP would be stronger in low-technology firms, as well as the positive effect of innovation on FP. We tested our propositions using a sample of 1551 Brazilian manufacturing SMEs controlling by the technological intensity of the industry and confirmed a good part of the proposed hypotheses.


2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (10) ◽  
pp. 2513-2530
Author(s):  
Cristina Doritta Rodrigues ◽  
Felipe Mendes Borini ◽  
Muhammad Mustafa Raziq ◽  
Roberto Carlos Bernardes

Purpose This study aims to look at the relationship of external embeddedness and institutional distance (governance aspects) with the foreign subsidiary research and development (R&D) capacity. Furthermore, it examines whether these relationships are mediated by subsidiary product and process innovation, and whether institutional distance plays a moderating role in the relationship between subsidiary innovation and R&D capacity. Design/methodology/approach The authors draw on survey data from 130 foreign subsidiaries operating in Brazil and test their model using variance-based structural equation modeling. Findings Results suggest that subsidiary (product and process) innovation fully mediates the relationships between: subsidiary external embeddedness and R&D capacity; and institutional distance and subsidiary R&D capacity, such that the relationship is positive in case of the former and negative in case of the latter. The relationship between subsidiary product and process innovation and R&D capacity is positive and stronger at lower levels of institutional distance. Originality/value The research ignores the underlying mechanisms of the external embeddedness and institutional distance relationship with subsidiary R&D capacity. Furthermore, institutional distance based on formal governance aspects and their impacts on subsidiary innovation and R&D capacity are rarely investigated. This paper contributes with regard to these aspects.


2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evangelos Psomas ◽  
Dimitrios Kafetzopoulos ◽  
Katerina Gotzamani

Purpose The present study focuses on two basic determinants of company innovation, namely, quality practices of top management and process quality management. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of these determinants on product and process innovation. Determining the impact of these dimensions of innovation on the market performance of a company is also an aim of the present study. Design/methodology/approach A research study was carried out on a sample of 433 Greek manufacturing and service companies. Data were obtained through a structured questionnaire from the chief executive officers of the companies. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses are applied to extract and validate all the latent factors considered in the suggested model, while their relationships are determined through structural equation modeling. Findings The analysis of the empirical data shows that both the dimensions of company innovation examined in the present study (product and process innovation) are positively influenced by the quality practices of top management and process quality management. Improving these two dimensions of company innovation, in turn, results in increased market performance. Research limitations/implications First, the sample of the responding manufacturing and service Greek companies which includes both small and medium-sized enterprises and large companies and which operate in circumstances of financial crisis; second, the subjective data collected from only one company representative; and third, the examination of only two factors influencing company innovation, are the main limitations of the present study. Based on these limitations, future research studies are recommended. Practical implications The empirically validated theoretical model of the present study can guide the policy makers of a company to select a quality management and innovation strategy through which the company can lay the foundations to increase its market performance, and thus, overcome the current economic downturn and financial crisis. Researchers can also use the suggested valid model as an assessment tool, a benchmarking tool and a tool for the design of their future research studies. Originality/value The present study contributes to the literature by determining a valid model that describes simultaneously the relationships between quality management factors, product and process innovation and market performance. This is also the first study reflecting Greek companies’ efforts to withstand the current downturn and penetrate the market through innovation.


2014 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 216-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jule Specht ◽  
Wiebke Bleidorn ◽  
Jaap J. A. Denissen ◽  
Marie Hennecke ◽  
Roos Hutteman ◽  
...  

Increasing numbers of empirical studies provide compelling evidence that personality traits change across the entire lifespan. What initiates this continuing personality development and how does this development proceed? In this paper, we compare six theoretical perspectives that offer testable predictions about why personality develops the way it does and identify limitations and potentials of these perspectives by reviewing how they hold up against the empirical evidence. While all of these perspectives have received some empirical support, there is only little direct evidence for propositions put forward by the five–factor theory of personality and the theory of genotype → environment effects. In contrast, the neo–socioanalytic theory appears to offer a comprehensive framework that fits the empirical findings and allows the integration of other, more specialized, perspectives that focus on specific aspects of personality development like the role of time, systematic differences between categories of social roles or the active partake of the person himself or herself. We draw conclusions on the likely driving factors for adult personality development and identify avenues for future research. Copyright © 2014 European Association of Personality Psychology


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